Human trafficking : 831 rescued, 32 prosecuted, 13 convicted in 2021

The Chief Director of the Ministry of Gender and Social Protection, Dr. Afisah Zakariah has disclosed that out of the total of 831 victims of human rights trafficking who were rescued by the security agencies in 2021, 32 have successfully been prosecuted and 13 convicted for the offense.

She revealed the above in a speech read on her behalf at the opening of a 3-day program on ‘Combating Human Trafficking and Irregular Migration in Ghana’  held in the Volta Regional capital of Ho.

Additionally, Dr. Zakariah cautioned indigenes against the new modus adopted by traffickers that now has to do with enticing and luring victims with non-existent lavish jobs which eventually ends victims into sexual exploitation and servitude in other countries.

Further to the above, she noted that human trafficking has now become the second-largest organized crime and trade globally thus emphasizing the need for the capacity building workshop.

In all, about 70 security personnel drawn from Ghana Police Service, Ghana Immigration Service (GIS), Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) and welfare officers from the Volta Region participated in the workshop.

Also, a Deputy Superintendent of Immigration, Daniel Nyampong on his part revealed that his outfit has in the first quarter of this year, intercepted and repatriated 168 suspected human trafficking victims who were mostly between the ages of 18 to 35.