How many children are affected by sexual violence in Colombia? 

The exact numbers surrounding the sexual exploitation of children in Colombia are unknown due to an enduring culture of silence but 
the figures estimated by the Colombian government are alarming:

• 200,000 children in Colombia are sexually abused each year.
• Over 35,000 children are involved in commercial sexual exploitation (CSEC) in Colombia annually.
• More than 13,000 people reported incidents of sexual violence between January and August of 2021.

Why has sexual violence against children worsened in recent years?

• The pandemic caused children to spend the majority of their time at home and online, resulting a notable increase in domestic and online sexual abuse, specifically child pornography.

• Sexual exploitation and trauma is generational. Many children, grow up with family members that are engaged in sex work, thereby normalizing it. And recent economic strains have led some desperate families to put their own children into sex work.

• Colombia has experienced an influx in Venezuelan migrants and sexual violence and exploitation, fuelled by xenophobia, towards migrant women and children has increased. 

• Many children are silenced by their abusers and few abusers are brought to justice by the criminal justice system. It is estimated that between 2005 and 2018, only 6,000 out of more than 80,000 cases of sexual abuse against children ended in conviction.