More than 32 million Brazilians are living in the most extreme conditions of poverty, without access to healthcare, education, nutrition, basic sanitation or decent living conditions, or in other words, without access to basic human rights.

According to the World Health Organization, in developing countries such as Brazil, over 60% of those living in rural areas and 25% of urban dwellers have no access to safe drinking water.

In semi-arid areas of Northeastern Brazil, using a cistern to capture rain water can guarantee potable water for drinking and cooking for a family of 4 for 8 months. 1

In certain areas of Northeastern Brazil, children do not fully develop physically or intellectually as a result of insufficient nutrition; they suffer from chronic hunger. 2

Using permacultura techniques, in only 100 sq. feet with just 15 minutes of maintenance a day, enough fruits and vegetables can be grown to feed 2 people for a year. 3

In Brazil, 15% of the population lives with under a dollar a day, 40% of which is under the age of 18. 4

Data collected in a recent National Research of a Household Sample revealed that 2,557,588 children were in the Brazilian work market. 5

Young people between 13-16 years old leave the intense work of rural areas and migrate to urban centers in search of better life conditions. As a result, many of them turn to prostitution agents. 5

Post-trauma for victims of sexual exploitation can be: 6

• Extremely indifferent and apathetic reactions
• " Depersonalize" the experience and think it happened to someone else
• Suffering notions of altered time and holes in their memory
• Suffering fragmented perception, feelings, consciousness and memory
• Flashbacks, awoken by things like a smell or a noise
• Trauma that can last for years and in many cases for the rest of their lives, with the ability to provoke, panic, terror, fear, sadness and desperation

According the Brazilian Center for Children and Adolescents, the country has more than 800,000 children commercially sexually exploited.

At Prajwala, a leading NGO working with girls and women rescued from sexual exploitation, 85% do not return to prostitution if they cross the crucial six-month period, during which counselling and skill training are provided.

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1. www.cliquesemiarido.org.br
2. Helene, Maria Elisa Marcondes, Beatriz Marcondes e Edelci Nunes. Fome. (2003)
3. Jeavons, John as cited in Gardening for the Future of the Earth. by Howard-Yana Shapiro and John Harrisson. (2000)
4. BBC News Jan. 27 2005
5. www.youthxchange.net/main/b236_homeless-h.asp Cynthia Palacios, "Crece la población de chicos en las calles," La Nación (Buenos Aires), July 29, 2003
6. "Tráfico de Pessoas para fins de exploração sexual" (2005) Organização Internacional do Trabalho