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Salesians in Sierra Leone Rehabilitating Young Sex Workers

Credit: Salesian Missions

By Magdalene Kahiu

Freetown, 05 November, 2023 / 9:30 pm (ACI Africa).

Members of the Institute of Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB) in Sierra Leone are rehabilitating young girls who had been forced into prostitution at the Don Bosco Fambul.

In a Wednesday, November 1 report, SDB officials say they support girls as young as 9 years through the Girls Shelter GO+ program that started six years ago.

“Don Bosco Fambul has been operating a shelter for young girls who have faced sexual abuse and are in need of shelter, support and education,” Salesian officials say.

“The main aim of the Girls Shelter GO+ program is to reach out to underage girls who are involved in prostitution and help them off the streets, offering a safe environment where they can access holistic rehabilitation and physical, psychological, and spiritual healing,” the Salesians say in the report.

The Salesian adds that the program started by Fr. Jorge Crisafulli aims at helping the girls   “recover their dignity through education and skills training and reintegrate back into their community.”

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Fr. Crisafulli started the Girls Shelter GO+ program after recognizing that girls who had been forced into prostitution had specific needs.

“Father Jorge Crisafulli asked a group of girls if they wanted to change their lives,” SDB officials say, adding that the Priest started the program inside a therapeutic center. 

The Girls Shelter GO+ program has impacted on the lives of more than 600 girls from Sierra Leone and other West African nations by giving them an opportunity to start new lives and providing them access to education, the Salesians say.

“It’s the only program of its kind in West Africa that enables girls to live in a safe environment to overcome their traumas and start a new life,” Salesian officials say.

Magdalene Kahiu

Magdalene Kahiu is a Kenyan journalist with passion in Church communication. She holds a Degree in Social Communications from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA). Currently, she works as a journalist for ACI Africa.

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