France, Benin's former colonial ruler, has a naval vessel stationed off West Africa almost permanently. British warships also regularly visit the war-battered nation of Sierra Leone. Dark history Benin, a country of 6 million, has a dark history of human bondage. In the 18th- and early 19th centuries, it was known as the Slave Coast for its reputation as a centre of the transatlantic slave trade. Despite international efforts to stamp out child trafficking, it remains a serious problem in West and Central Africa.
Girls often end up as domestic workers or prostitutes.
Conditions are harsh. Many children go unpaid and some may never see their parents again, aid workers say. Others are too young to remember where they come from. Cadbury calls for action Chocolate giant Cadbury has called for an international effort to stamp out the trade in child slaves for west African cocoa plantations. The Birmingham-based confectioner made its appeal after a ship suspected of carrying children to work in plantations in Ivory Coast was found with just a handful of the 250 children supposed to be on board.