Agency Report
Authorities in Ivory Coast have rescued 137 children who were trafficked to the country to work on cocoa plantations or as sex workers.
The children were rescued during a two-day search of cars, farms and nearby villages by the Ivory Coast Police in the eastern town of Aboisso, Voice of America reported.
The children ranged from ages six to 17 were brought into Ivory Coast from Nigeria, Ghana, Niger, Benin, and Togo.
“Ivory Coast’s image is tarnished by child trafficking,” Aboisso’s deputy police chief Kouadio Yeboue Marcellin said.
“We are appealing to all parents: a child’s place is at school and not on plantations.”
Many Nigerians have fallen victims of human trafficking while searching for greener pastures in other countries.
A Nigerian lady, Omolola Ajayi, who was trafficked to Lebanon, was rescued on Monday by Nigerian officials in the Middle-East country.
Ajayi had cried out for help in a viral video, claiming that she was sold into slavery in Lebanon.
She claimed that a family friend introduced her to the Lebanese, who took her to Beirut to teach her children the English language.
“A family friend introduced me to the Lebanese that brought me here to teach their children English language,” Omolola said in the video
“It turned out to be a lie. When I got here, they collected my passport and kept it. I asked why they did that, I was told that I had been sold as a slave.
“What I’m facing here is not a small thing. I hope I don’t die. If we’re ill, they wouldn’t take us to the hospital and they only give us analgesic. Half of the people we came to Lebanon together with have died.”