The cutbacks are also having immediate and tangible affects on the quality and safety of lives of individuals in the countries in question. The report says that the crisis has reduced access to reproductive health services for adolescents and youth at a time when school drop-outs are increasing and youth unemployment rates are rising. The report found that one of the responses to increasing unemployment and poverty is that many women are turning to the commercial sex industry in order to find work and support their families. A number of STD clinics surveyed cited increases in numbers of sex workers attending the clinics and corresponding increase in cases of diseases. In education, the crisis has led to significantly increased school dropouts with the adverse effects rising with age of child and level of education.
Girls appear to be most disadvantaged.
Tertiary level students are also affected. To help her mother with expenses she works fulltime at a golf course. Overall, the report found that the economic crisis was having an immediate adverse impact on the lives of individuals in the areas of reproductive health care, education and employment. The report found that women are disproportionately affected by the crisis in these areas. The Fund, which began operations in 1969, is a subsidiary organ of the United Nations General Assembly.