A recent operation by the Senegalese police has highlighted the growing concern of human trafficking and forced prostitution in Ziguinchor, a city in the Casamance region of Senegal. On September 15, 2026, the police arrested several individuals and uncovered a highly structured network of human traffickers. The arrested individuals were found to be part of a larger network that lures young women and minors with false promises of employment.
According to the police, the network, which is active in Sierra Leone, targets vulnerable individuals, including minors as young as 14 years old. The victims are promised jobs in the service industry, such as in restaurants, commerce, or domestic work. However, upon arrival in Ziguinchor, they are forced into prostitution and made to work in secret locations. The police also found that the network operates a complex system of debt and coercion, with victims being forced to pay off large sums of money.
The investigation revealed that the victims often transit through Guinea-Bissau, where they are subjected to further exploitation and abuse. The victims are also forced to pay an arbitrary debt of between 1,500,000 and 2,000,000 FCFA. The police also discovered that the network uses various means of coercion, including confiscating victims' phones and passports, and using video recordings of occult rituals to control them.
This recent operation is part of a series of interventions by the Senegalese authorities to combat human trafficking and forced prostitution in the region. In November 2025, a Nigerian-Sierra Leonean network was dismantled, and a victim was found to have been sold to two Nigerian women for 300,000 FCFA. The victim was subjected to intimidation rituals and forced to pay off a debt of 2 million FCFA.
The Senegalese authorities have been working to combat human trafficking and forced prostitution in the region, with several operations carried out in recent months. In February 2026, three foreign nationals were arrested for exploitation and proxenetism in an apartment converted into a clandestine brothel. In March 2026, a cell of migrant traffickers and human traffickers was neutralized, and three foreign nationals were arrested.
Several factors contribute to Ziguinchor's emergence as a hub for human trafficking and forced prostitution. The city's location, sandwiched between Guinea-Bissau and The Gambia, provides multiple routes for traffickers to move victims undetected. The city's residential areas, such as Kandialang and Boucotte, are often used as secret locations for forced prostitution.
The Senegalese authorities have attributed the success of these networks to the use of local "têtes de pont" or "bridgeheads", often former victims who have been co-opted by the traffickers to manage the logistics, accounting, and physical coercion of the victims. Liboire SAGNA, a source close to the investigation, emphasized that addressing this issue will require sustained efforts from the authorities to combat the complex networks of human traffickers.
Key points
- Ziguinchor's strategic location and socio-economic factors make it an attractive hub for human trafficking and forced prostitution networks.
- The Senegalese authorities have carried out several operations in recent months to combat human trafficking and forced prostitution in the region.
- Local "têtes de pont" or "bridgeheads", often former victims, play a crucial role in the success of these networks.
