Founder of Child protection organisation Challenging Heights, James Kofi Annan, has sounded an alarm over an active network allegedly recruiting Ghanaian girls into the commercial sex trade through social media platforms, particularly TikTok.
According to Challenging Heights, the trend is increasingly affecting girls in mining communities, with some victims below the age of 16 being recruited.
Challenging Heights’ warning follows an operation by a child protection organisation and the Ghana Police Service that led to the rescue of 47 victims of sexual exploitation from six communities around Goaso in the Ahafo Region.
Following the operation, out of the 47 victims, 26 were handed over to Challenging Heights for rehabilitation and recovery, with sixteen of those rescued identified as being under 18 years old.
Challenging Heights noted that although many of the victims were foreign nationals, particularly from Nigeria, Ghanaian girls are increasingly being targeted for recruitment into the sex trade.
James Kofi Annan, speaking to CITINews, stated, “We are now seeing an active recruitment of Ghanaians, Ghanaian girls, into the sex trade in the mining communities.”
“We are also seeing a worrying trend of babies being affected by this sexual exploitation and forced prostitution in the mining [communities].”
He further called on the Ghana Police Service to intensify operations against human trafficking and sexual exploitation, particularly in hotspot communities and urged the Ghana Immigration Service to strengthen surveillance and border controls to prevent traffickers from moving victims across Ghana’s borders.
In other news, the Upper East Regional Police Command has announced the arrest of three Nigerian suspects, Peace Agbede, Favour Sunday Udo, and Faith Levy.
According to the Police statement, the three have been arrested for their involvement in human trafficking and forcing young women into prostitution.
In a statement issued by the Police on Wednesday, July 1, 2026, read, “POLICE ARREST THREE SUSPECTS IN BOLGATANGA FOR HUMAN TRAFFICKING
The Upper East Regional Police Command has arrested suspects Peace Agbede, Favour Sunday Udo and Faith Levy for trafficking young girls and forcing them into prostitution at Gbane, a suburb of Talensi District.
Preliminary investigation revealed that suspect Peace Agbede met the victim in Nigeria and promised to help her join the Ghana movie industry because of her beauty. The victim accepted and reluctantly followed her to Ghana. On their arrival, Peace Agbede failed to fulfil her promise but rather took her to the mining site at Gbane-Tongo and coerced the victim into prostitution.
The victim is made to pay Four Hundred Ghana Cedis (GHC 400.00) a day to her madam, suspect Peace Agbede.
The victim, who had gotten pregnant, gave birth on 26/06/2026, following which suspect Peace Agbede and her accomplice, Favour Sunday Udo, visited her and tried convincing her to sell the baby for Twenty Thousand Ghana Cedis (GHC 20,000.00) to an interested party who was ready to pay the said amount for the child.
A search conducted in the room of suspect Peace Agbede led to the recovery of six sales recording books bearing the names Esther, Mary, Bright and Silver, and 265 unused condoms.
Police also rescued four (4) female victims aged 18 to 20 years.
Suspects are in Police custody and will be put before court”.
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