Highlighting the factors that heighten the risk of trafficking, the report says, 'Poverty, low levels of education, lack of employment opportunities, socio-cultural norms and circumstances, including gender and minority discrimination', will push children into vulnerable situations.

'Deterioration in the living conditions can induce children and young people to abandon school in order to contribute to the family income, exposing them to harmful situations that lead to their being sexually exploited in prostitution, child pornography and in other forms.'

'An estimated 1.2 million children are trafficked worldwide for sexual exploitation, including for prostitution or the production of sexually abusive images.

The 'exploitation is likely to continue proliferating due to the profits generated by sex trafficking'.

The report says global profit from the trafficking of people into forced commercial sex is estimated to be nearly $28 billion a year.

'Almost half of these profits are estimated to come from people trafficked into or within industrialised countries such as India. The annual profit per victim per year can be as high as $67,000.'

ECPAT - End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes - claims to be working to encourage the world community to ensure that children everywhere enjoy their fundamental rights, free and secure from all forms of sexual exploitation.

'This vision will only be achieved when all of society demonstrates zero tolerance for such abuses,' Madrinan said.