The Tribune

By JADE RUSSELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

jrussell@tribunemedia.net

ONE year after Social Services Minister Myles Laroda reported a disturbing rise in cases of mothers prostituting their daughters, the Bahamas Urban Youth Development Centre (BUYDC) says the government has failed to create a comprehensive, funded national response to the issue.

Prodesta Moore, president of BUYDC, said the commercial sexual exploitation of minors is still happening. This includes cases where mothers feel forced to prostitute themselves and, in some instances, their daughters because of extreme financial hardship.

Ms Moore stressed that the practice is not a sudden spike. She described it as a decades-long systemic issue rooted in poverty, housing instability, generational trauma and a lack of coordinated intervention.

While she acknowledged that public awareness has increased, she said the government has not implemented a targeted and funded national response. She pointed to gaps in emergency housing for at-risk girls, economic stabilisation support for vulnerable mothers, and trauma counselling and rehabilitation services.

Other strategies, such as prevention education in high-risk communities and sustainable funding partnerships with frontline non-governmental organisations, have also not been applied, she said.

Founded in 2010 by youth advocate Ms Moore, BUYDC has offered trauma-informed care, mentorship, housing referrals and life-skills training for vulnerable youth. The organisation has focused particularly on girls pushed into transactional sex because of poverty or coercion.

In June 2025, Mr Laroda reported an uptick in cases of mothers prostituting their daughters. Some victims were as young as 14. He said the activity was carried out to pay household bills. Although no official statistics were provided, he said victims are typically between 14 and 16 years old.

“Lives are being destroyed before they begin to live them,” he said during his budget contribution in the House of Assembly in June.

“While the age of consent is 16, using a minor for the sexual gratification of an adult constitutes prostitution and rape, which are criminal offences and should be reported to the police.”

Ms Moore said that if the country is serious about tackling sexual exploitation, there must be action beyond public acknowledgment.

She said the “crisis still exists”, emphasising that the time for collaborative action is now.

“This issue is not simply about criminal justice, it is about survival. When families are choosing exploitation as a means to pay rent or buy food, that signals a deeper social protection failure,” she said.

“BUYDC remains ready to partner, collaborate, and implement solutions immediately. But meaningful change requires political will, coordinated leadership, and financial investment.”

When contacted by The Tribune, Mr Laroda said the government continues to mitigate the issue. He noted officials are working to eliminate instances where children fall victim to exploitation. He acknowledged that full eradication may be challenging but said they remain committed to addressing the problem.