Human trafficking: three Bissau-Guineans rescued in Abidjan
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on O Democrata
Three young Bissau-Guineans held in Abidjan after fraudulent recruitment have been rescued by Ivorian authorities and taken to an International Organization for Migration centre. The Guinea-Bissau government is preparing their return, while two other victims were recently repatriated from Nigeria and Dubai, according to Braima Mané.
Three young nationals of Guinea-Bissau, two women and a man, were rescued in Abidjan while being held captive, Braima Mané, director-general of Communities, announced on Tuesday 3 November 2026 at a press conference on the diaspora. The Ivorian authorities took them to a reception centre run by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), he said.
According to Braima Mané, the young people had been targeted by a human trafficking and illegal recruitment network that promised them fake jobs and high salaries abroad. The Directorate-General of Communities alerted the Guinea-Bissau government, Guinea-Bissau’s honorary consul in Ivory Coast and the association of the Bissau-Guinean community in Abidjan. Their return to the country is being prepared, with resources mobilised by Guinea-Bissau’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Braima Mané also said that two other Bissau-Guinean nationals who were victims of trafficking had recently been repatriated from Nigeria and Dubai with IOM support.
