Feature : Ladies of the night, a rising concern for Namibia

Chiedza Musarukwa once had a happy teenage life in a middle-income suburb back in Zimbabwe. Even though they were not rich, her family could afford to live comfortably and she never lacked anything.

However, when she was 12-year-old her father died and his family took over all his belongings, leaving her, her mother and three younger siblings on the streets.

"It was a difficult time then, and we didn't know my mother was entitled to all my late father's money and belongings. They made her sign some documents and then we were thrown out of our home," she said.

Her mother struggled to fend for them but through hard work she persevered and managed to give her children an education.

"I was 19 when I started sleeping with men for money and other material things. I had just finished my diploma and was trying to get a job back home," she said.

In 2008, life became unbearable in Zimbabwe and her mother could no longer provide enough for the family.

Chiedza moved to Windhoek with the intention of getting a job but life in a foreign country proved to be very difficult.

"I met some women from my country and we would go out to local bars and clubs, spot the men whom we thought had the most money and then seduce them," she said.

She explained that at first it was just for food and she was just experimenting with the sex stuff, but soon after she began trading her body for almost everything she thought she needed at the time.

"I just wanted to provide for my mother and sex was the easiest way that I could get what I needed," she said.

Things, however, took a turn for the worse when her mother passed away leaving her to care for her three younger siblings who were all still in school at the time.

"It was really difficult for me because I was forced to make the transition from a more fun kind of prostitution to what I refer to as street prostitution."

Chiedza said she needed more money to maintain the household and put her siblings through school.

"My first night on the streets was horrible, but the fact that I saw familiar faces made it easier and from then on I never looked back," she said sadly.

However, prostitution remains a chargeable offense in Namibia and those that engage in it could face prosecution.

Last year, the City of Windhoek announced that they would not just start arresting prostitutes but will also start arresting their clients.

Namibia Police said that the city will start arresting clients of sex workers who are also contributing to the growth of the trade in the country.

The harsh economic situation in Zimbabwe has forced many of its patriots to leave the country and look for better opportunities outside the country.

For most of them they leave to go and do odd jobs despite having degrees and diplomas.

The number of refugees fleeing Zimbabwe was so high that in 2009, South Africa's Department of Home Affairs declared a moratorium on deporting undocumented Zimbabwean refugees and allowed them to stay in South Africa officially by granting them work and study permits.

The hardships found with staying in a foreign country have led many of the women who come to Namibia to resort to prostitution because it is very difficult to find an eight to five job.

"I'm a qualified receptionist with a national diploma. Previously when I stayed in Botswana I never had a decent job, but thrived on casual jobs usually as a cleaner in the construction industry where I earned 50 Pula(5 U.S. dollars) a day," one of the women involved in the trade said. Endi