An Investigating the Sex Business of Females and Children at the Tourist Destination Site (Sex Tourism): The Case of Bahirdar City, Ethiopia

Abstract

Sex tourism business is one of the fastest growing practices at most of the tourist destinations area in the world. Currently no tourists’ destination sites can be immune or free from such business. The objectives of the study are to assess the factors which motivate females and children to involve to the business, to examine the impacts of the sex tourism business and to indicate the mechanisms to combat the practice. The target populations were police mans receptionists, tourist guides, females and children who are participating at the business, culture and tourism experts, taxi and Bajaj drivers. To get the right respondents, the researcher used a non probability sampling technique which was basically snow ball sampling techniques. Thus, the researcher used 25 respondents. The data instrument techniques were Focus Group Discussion, field observation, in-depth interview, document analysis.  The findings showed that poverty, lack job opportunity, peer pressure, modernization and migration were the main motivating factors. Whereas the effects of participating at the sex tourism business were transmitting disease like HIV AIDS, feeling loneness and losing moral values, creating bad images of the destination and the country at large. The mechanisms suggested through the respondents where cooperation of the stakeholders, establish laws, rules, regulations and policies to prevent the practices, creating awareness to the victims’ families, to the general public of the destinations. Generally the stakeholders should be stand together to stop such practices to save the bright futures of the females and children in Ethiopia.

Keywords: sex tourism, tourism, effects, motivating factors, Bahirdar