Nairobi — An estimated 9 million East African children have been victims of trafficking within their countries and across the borders, a university chancellor said yesterday.

Dr Florence Muli-Musiime of Daystar, who is also a founder of the African Network for Prevention and Protection Against Child Abuse and Neglect, said the trade had reached alarming proportions, and that children aged between 10 and 14 were the main target.

They then become prostitutes and domestic and farm workers, or are forced into early marriage, she added.

She called on the governments and organisations such as the African Union to join hands with lobby groups to fight the trade.

She was addressing a regional conference on human trafficking and forced labour at Safari Club, Nairobi.

Last year, the US government dropped Kenya from an international list of countries that could face sanctions for failing to take steps to end modern-day slavery.

The US had placed the country on the list, accusing it of failing to comply fully with international measures to end trafficking.

In neighbouring Uganda, 20,000 children in the northern part of the country are reported to be engaged in the 19-year-old civil war.

Dr Muli-Musiime regretted that parents and other relatives or guardians of the victims were directly involved in giving them away for money and material rewards. Ms Margie de Monchy of UN children's agency Unicef cited the major challenges to the war on child trafficking as corrupt government officials and weak laws.

Some 13,000 Kenyan girls drop out of school every year due to pregnancy, a new study shows.

The report, Adolescent Health and Development in Kenya: What the Statistics Say, says teenage pregnancies and early marriages are a major contributor to rate. Quoting from the report, Dr Richard Muga, the director of the National Coordinating Agency for Population and Development, said that even if some progress had been made in narrowing the gender gap, much still needed to be done. He was speaking at The Stanley hotel, Nairobi, during a workshop on women's reproductive health ahead of the World Population Day to be marked at Vitengani, Kilifi District, on July 11.

The forum brought together MPs, development partners, international organisations and other population, family planning and reproductive health experts

Housing assistant minister Betty Tett said that although women were about half of the world population and performed two thirds of the work, they received only a 10th of income and owned 1 per cent of property.