The Mekong challenge - Cambodia's 'beer promotion girls' - their recruitment, working conditions and vulnerabilities

This survey is part of a series of studies into recruitment practices and working conditions in the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) of children and young women in sectors vulnerable to human trafficking, and the associated and inherent sexual and labour exploitation.

With the increasing sophistication of consumer marketing, the alcohol and beverage industries in Cambodia and other GMS countries have found new ways to advertise their competing products through the employment of ‘beer promotion girls’ – attractive young women dressed in the colours and logos of their sponsors.

The Mekong Challenge – Cambodia’s ‘Beer Promotion Girls’, their recruitment working conditions and vulnerabilities takes one of the first in-depth looks at both the personal and working lives of these young women who are, essentially, walking advertisements for competing beer companies. Working late into the night at entertainment venues, with male clients often intoxicated and sometimes abusive, the work can be both profitable and hazardous.