Amsterdam is known for its freethinking towards prostitution. The city just took another huge step towards normalising the profession.

The area’s medieval alleyways provide a historic backdrop for the world’s oldest profession.

But sex work in the Dutch capital — which went on for centuries before it was legalised in 2000 — is undergoing a modern makeover. Pimps are out and prostitutes are running the show.

Amsterdam’s sex workers on Thursday launched a new project, financed by one of the country’s biggest banks. They say it’s a breakthrough for the men and women who have sex for money and will create “a safe and comfortable place for the whole community”.

A window display in the city's Red Light District.Source:Supplied

It’s called My Red Light and it launches in May next year inside four buildings comprising 14 of the famous windows staring out at visitors and paying customers.

Spokesman for the project, Richard Bouwman, said: “Today we are witnessing a breakthrough in the empowerment of sex workers ... it is a dream come true.”

The project started out of necessity. Sex workers say they’re commonly abused and their incomes are entirely at the discretion of their handlers.

They say they’re victims of an industry that makes it almost impossible to make a living and earn a respectable wage. All of that is expected to change, in no small part thanks to generous financial support from one of the Netherlands’ biggest banks, Rabobank.

A neon sign advertising a peep show flashes in the red light district in Amsterdam. Picture: Peter Dejong/APSource:AP

“My Red Light, founded by sex workers, offers self-employed entrepreneurs within the prostitution sector the opportunity to rent work spaces at attractive rates and flexible terms,” the project said in a statement.

“We want to create a safe and comfortable place for the whole community.”

About 7000 sex workers ply their trade in Amsterdam with some 75 per cent coming from poorer countries, particularly in eastern Europe. It’s part of the attraction for visitors but it means many are starting off with nothing.

The city itself tried to “clean up” the industry back in 2007 when it started in Project 1012. Changes included shutting down souvenir shops, coffee shops, adult shops and Red Light District windows and replacing them with more “up-market” operations like hotels and restaurants.

A map of red light district of Amsterdam, where sex workers are taking back the power.Source:News Limited

“Over the last few years, an imbalance has evolved between the various activities,” the project’s website declares.

“Low-level economic activities and crime-sensitive sectors have become over represented. These include coffee shops, window brothels and low-quality bars and cafes.”

The initiative naturally led to protests. In April last year, sex workers marched in the streets carrying placards reading: “Stop closing our windows” and “Stop Project 1012”.

“Closing the windows makes it harder for sex workers to find work,” Felicia, a sex worker from Romania, told The Guardian.

Stop closing our windows!: Sex workers and sympathisers demonstrate against Project 1012 last year. Picture: Robin Van Lonkhuijsen/AFPSource:AFP

“There are a lot of girls in the evening who are already having to walk around, looking for work, because there are more girls than windows now.”

My Red Light isn’t just about keeping the industry alive. It’s about making it fairer. The project will offer workshops for female, male and transgender sex workers looking to make their way into the industry and pour profits back into new initiatives to help the industry as a whole.

Amsterdam’s tourism office says it’s all about making “the city’s sex work industry clean and safe, and (giving) sex workers greater independence”.

— with AFP