47,000 sex workers in Sri Lanka, Health Ministry says

The Sri Lanka Health Education Bureau says that 47,000 women are employed as sex workers in Sri Lanka.

Chief Media Coordinator of the Health Education Bureau Shantha Hettiarachchi said that this was revealed in a country wide survey conducted by the Bureau which comes under the Ministry of Health.
Majority of the sex workers are still at a very young age, said the official.
The Health Education Bureau says that the risk of spread of sexually transmitted diseases is increasing as the number of sex workers increase.
A UN report last year said a major percentage of female sex workers in Sri Lanka engage in unprotected sex increasing the risk of HIV/AIDS. According to the UN report approximately 3.5% of the adult male population in the country are clients of sex workers.