The United Nations reports that child trafficking is increasing in South Sudan, more than nine months after the country descended into civil war.

Aid workers are concerned about increasing threats to the safety of children in different refugee camps and displacement sites.

“There were reports of an increase in child trafficking, sexual exploitation of girls, protection concerns related to alcohol and recruitment of children,” reads the latest situation report published today by the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

OCHA notes that no comprehensive data is yet available, but aid organizations are working to “assess the magnitude of these issues and address them.”

The report was not specific about where such trafficking was reportedly taking place. Separately, however, it cited reports of “transactional sex as a coping mechanisms” among girls and women at the Malakal protection site.

Related: 

Juba’s underage sex workers speak out (2 July 2014)

Juba: Poverty pushes women and girls into prostitution (18 Apr. 2013)