The Minister for Children says she wants to stop young sexual abusers from going on to abuse as adults.
A new report from the Rape Crisis Network shows that over a third of all perpetrators of child sexual violence are children themselves - and the vast majority are boys.
The RCNI says the figures show there is an urgent need to challenge the culture of pornography and discuss the issue of consent with young boys.
Minister Frances Fitzgerald says she has given the go ahead for the appointment of eight new child sex abuse prevention positions around the country - four of which will deal specifically with children who display sexually harmful behaviour: