Migration of young women in Northern Vietnam and its consequences

Many young women from rural areas in developing countries feel it is their duty to migrate to urban areas to help relieve family poverty. Women and girls who migrate are highly vulnerable to sexual exploitation and to sexual violence.
This is a pioneering study in Vietnam which used interviews with families of migrant children in rural areas, interviews with young migrant sex workers in northern Vietnam, and key informant interviews to analyze the decision-making processes for migration and the journey leading to sexual exploitation.
This study aimed to explore why parents obligate their daughters to migrate unattended and begin work in an entertainment industry. The findings indicate that young women often migrate from rural areas out of obligation to assist in the family income. As the young women leave their familiar environment and arrive in the city, they are then tricked or lured into selling sex to supplement the family income. The young women are affected psychologically, physically and emotionally by their sexual exploitation. In addition, the young women report not being able to return home due to family expectations of remittances. In this way, policies and programs much work towards effective strategies to protect young migrant women.