KADUGLI, 22 January 2009 (IRIN) - Every evening, the market in Kadugli, state capital of Southern Kordofan, bustles with activity as women set up their tea shops. Abdi, barely 10 years old, is in one, rinsing glasses. "It is my first day here," he told IRIN, doing a job that will last late into the night.
Many children are being forced to work as the state, which was badly affected by Sudan's 21 years of conflict, grapples with reconstruction challenges. The state is mainly inhabited by the Nuba (central highland tribes) and Baggara Arabs (the Hawazma and Misseriya).
A lack of development has also led to discontent. "Signs of insecurity are widespread in the western area where grievances about lack of access to services and employment and the blockage of pastoralist movement towards the South have led a number of Misseriya youth to resort to armed violence," Sara Pantuliano, research fellow at the Humanitarian Policy Group of the Overseas Development Institute, a London-based think-tank, told IRIN.
"This environment of conflicts, post-conflicts and humanitarian emergencies amplifies the risks of violence and exploitation for all children," Natalie McCauley, child protection specialist at the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) in the Kordofan States, told IRIN.
"There are also very few education options for children and young people who have left or not attended school," McCauley said. "The difficulty of getting food, fuel, and water pushes women and girls into ‘survival sex’ and many children have to work to survive."
