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Human rights organisation Challenging Heights has announced that it has rescued 82 victims of human trafficking and forced labour since the start of 2025, working in close collaboration with the Ghana Police Service.
According to the group, 57 of the victims — comprising 31 boys and 26 girls — were Ghanaian children trafficked into the fishing industry, mainly on Lake Volta. The remaining 25 victims, all Nigerian girls, were freed from forced prostitution in a cross-border trafficking operation.
The rescued Ghanaian children are currently undergoing rehabilitation and receiving educational support, while the Nigerian nationals have been safely repatriated.
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Challenging Heights, a survivor-led NGO that operates Ghana’s largest rehabilitation centre for trafficking victims, has worked with the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) for over 20 years, rescuing thousands of children from exploitative labour in fishing, mining, and agriculture.
“We commend the CID for 20 years of relentless collaboration in fighting human trafficking in Ghana,” the organisation stated.
Statistics from the Global Slavery Index show that over 49.6 million people worldwide are trapped in modern slavery, with more than 91,000 in Ghana. On Lake Volta alone, an estimated 21,000 children are engaged in forced labour.
In response to the crisis, Challenging Heights is urging the Minister of Finance to allocate a minimum of GH¢20 million to the Human Trafficking Fund in the 2026 budget. It also wants the Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection to amend Ghana’s Human Trafficking Act (2005) to better address current challenges.
Under the present law, traffickers face prison terms ranging from five to 25 years. The organisation is also calling on the public to reject any form of exploitation that could lead to human trafficking.
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