In a statement given Monday, a UN special rapporteur warned that despite global efforts, children continue to face a serious risk of sale, sexual exploitation, and sexual abuse. 

In her report, Special Rapporteur Mama Fatima Singhateh stated that child sexual exploitation is rapidly evolving amid new digital technologies and global crises. Rates of technologically-driven sexual abuse are on the rise, and conflict and climate-related disasters often perpetuate environments that are conducive to child sexual exploitation and abuse. 

Singhateh labeled these developments “new frontiers” and said that while awareness of digital, environmental, and conflict conditions has grown, the “scale and severity” of crimes against children continue to grow. The special rapporteur argued that there is a gap in legal definitions and criminalization related to child exploitation across jurisdictions.

The expert called on states to implement framework that harmonizes legal structures and criminalizes all forms of child exploitation. She warned that states must “invest in digital safety and strong oversight platforms, enhance cross border cooperation, ensure survivor-centered justice, address root causes and engage the private sector as a proactive partner.”

Singhateh called on stakeholders working for children to ensure that children are placed at the center of policy development, stating:

The sale, sexual exploitation, and sexual abuse of children are not inevitable. They are preventable. They are rooted in choices—political choices, economic choices, technological choices—and, because they are rooted in choices, we have the power to choose to uphold and protect the rights of children, close the gaps that leave them vulnerable, and build a world where every child is valued, protected and free from every form of exploitation.