V.E Kalu

The international trafficking in human beings – particularly of women and children for purposes of slavery, forced labor or prostitution is a growing global problem. It represents the world’s third largest area of organized crime – after drugs and arms trade – and a business that produces an estimated seven billion dollars annually. Again, the physical and sexual abuse of children as well as the trafficking of children for exploitative purposes amount to the worst violations of human rights in recent times. Research has shown that an estimated 35% of victims trafficked annually are under the age of 18. Various studies have also shown that children are regularly kidnapped, tricked, persuaded or coerced into leaving home and often cross international borders with the promise of bogus jobs that could benefit families back home; some are sold into outright slavery. African children are routinely trafficked from one country to another within the continent and to European countries and forced to work as child prostitutes, in farms, plantations, quarries, mines, and domestic servitude. This paper critically examines the near absence of clear policy plans and comprehensive legal frameworks to combat the menace in the continent, particularly in West and Central Africa, and makes proposals for urgent steps in these directions as the foundation of all efforts to combat the scourge.