10th of December 2020 was a normal day for Jacqueline Waithera (not her real name) as she went about her routine of seeking clientele at her usual hot spot on the street of Nairobi, in the Kenyan capital.

Jacqueline is a sex worker and on a good day she can get up to 10 men who part with any amount from KSH 500 to even KSH 5000 shillings depending on the financial capability of the client.

Unknown to Jacqueline, this fateful day was not going to be productive to her and some of her colleagues, she was arrested and thrown into a waiting police van. At this point she knew very well that the little she had already earned would go into paying hefty fines.

She pleaded for mercy from the arresting officers but none would hear her, instead the law enforcers would physically and sexually harass the sex workers in the van and later be confined at the police cells.

“Times have changed, we need to acknowledge the fact that our kids are already engaging in sex”, says Wanjiku* who has a teenage daughter. With the closure of schools, the number of teenagers engaging in sex has risen.

Cynthia, a young mother to tell us her story; “In March, when schools were closed, we were excited that we would be spending the remaining time of the term at home. During the first month of the pandemic, my parents were quite strict on me and my brother moving around so we had no other choice but to stay at home.

After a couple of weeks, they were lenient and allowed us to leave the house but not later than 6 pm due to the curfew that had been imposed. During this time, I met this man. He was really friendly and he would take me back home at the end of the day. He told me he was still in university.