The III World Congress Against the Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents took place this week in Rio de Janeiro, with around 3,000 participants from 137 countries.

The four-day event focused on how to protect children from various types of sexual exploitation such as child marriage, the commercial sex industry, child pornography and the sexual exploitation of children on the internet.

The choice of Brazil as host country reflects the importance given to the subject in government policy, and in his speech at the opening ceremony President Luiz strongly placed great emphasis on the importance of educating children about the dangers of sexual exploitation.

The event was organised by the Brazilian government, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the international network ‘End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes’ (ECPAT) and the non-governmental organisation Group for the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

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Sources: Office of the President of Brazil and UNICEF