He attributes the child trafficking to severe deprivation. Child trafficking is not any strange thing in Togo. In rural Togo, parents sometimes force young children into domestic work in other households in exchange for cash. The government has done nothing to stop this practice. Harsh conditions in the rural areas leave women with little time for activities other than work in the fields.
Togolese laws protect children's rights, but there is little enforcement.
The law does not specifically address the question of forced or bonded labor, including that performed by children. International trafficking often results in the children being taken to other West African countries, the Middle East or Asia, according to informed sources in Togo. Child trafficking services have also developed sophisticated marketing strategies, keeping their eyes on the bottom line. The fact is that there aren't many saints on the face of the earth. The traffickers have figured out a way to make a buck.