Thirty of the minors are still being cared for by relief agencies. A local daily also carried reports that more than 100 names on the departure manifest of March 27 did not match those on the arrival list. The departure manifest also listed only seven children, but UN officials said more than 30 arrived with the ship. Regardless of how the drama unfolds, the Etireno voyage has focused attention on the flourishing trade in child labour in West Africa. According to Unicef, each year, at least 200,000 children are entrapped by traffickers in West and Central Africa.
Girls often end up as domestic workers or prostitutes.
For more information contact Toko Tomita, Campaigns Co-ordinator, Global March Against Child Labour at Tel.