The story that some girls in Mulanje sign contracts to offer sex while fulfilling other household chores is worrisome. Surely, poverty has made a lot of girls vulnerable to abuse but it is unthinkable to sell one’s body and be used as a sex tool. In a country where survival is more important than anything else among the poor, it is expected that some short cuts will be preferred.

The incident in Mulanje is a sign that there are worse things that happen in our societies that are not reported yet the consequences are evident. No-one can ignore the fact that such behaviour has fuelled the spread of diseases. And again, children that are born out of such temporary unions will lack proper care that will only serve to strengthen the chain of poverty a lot of people have worked hard to break. In a country where some people have worked hard to change such behaviours, it is worrisome to think of resources that have been wasted. Of course we acknowledge poverty as the main cause of such regrettable behaviour. But even the poor have some kind of dignity therefore selling own bodies as a means of survival is something our society cannot be proud of. Poverty should not make us lose our dignity as Malawians.