Challenging Heights rescues 144 trafficking victims, urges probe into alleged baby-selling syndicate

Challenging Heights supported the rescue of 144 victims of human trafficking and modern slavery in the first half of 2026 and is calling on Ghana's security agencies to investigate allegations of a suspected cross-border baby-harvesting and baby-selling syndicate. In a statement issued on Tuesday, July 29, ahead of the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons on July 30, the organisation warned that modern slavery remains a pressing reality in Ghana and across the region, stating: "Too many of our compatriots remain in denial - believing that slavery ended long ago, or that it happens only somewhere else. It does not."

The rescues were carried out in collaboration with the Anti-Human Trafficking Unit of the Ghana Police Service and other partners. 42 of the victims were children rescued from forced labour on Lake Volta, comprising 19 boys and 23 girls. The remaining 102 victims were Nigerian nationals - 60 girls and 42 boys aged between 13 and 29. Victims were subjected to forced labour in the fishing industry on Lake Volta, cybercrime, and commercial sexual exploitation. Several Nigerian girls were lured to Ghana with promises of jobs, only to be forced into commercial sexual exploitation in communities including Obuasi and parts of the Upper East Region. Challenging Heights also disclosed that several survivors provided consistent accounts of a suspected organised baby-harvesting and baby-selling operation.