round, often in addition to their work in the plantations.
According to the specially trained investigators in child exploitation and trafficking who interviewed the victims, none of the children were aware that what was happening to them is illegal.
In order to tackle the increasing child trafficking and exploitation in this South Eastern part of Côte d’ Ivoire, the operation was planned by Interpol’ s Regional Bureau in Abidjan in conjunction with Ghanaian and Côte d’ Ivoire police authorities. Based on local intelligence gathered in advance of the operation, specific plantations were targeted.
Operation BIA was conducted under Interpol’ s programme of Operational Assistance, Services and Infrastructure Support( OASIS) to African Police Forces, funded by Germany, which is aimed at developing operational policing capacities in Africa. Support was also provided by the German governmental organization GTZ which provides sustainable solutions for political, economic, ecological and social development.
It is believed that hundreds of thousands of children are working illegally in the plantations across these two countries alone. The trafficking of children is often disguised by the practice of apprenticing children( see page 6). In reality, they are often sold and their rights to education, health and protection are denied.
3.3 Coffee
Chocolate isn’ t the only food produced by slaves. Some coffee beans are also processed by slaves. In addition to producing nearly half of the world’ s cocoa, Côte d’ Ivoire is the world’ s fourth-largest grower of Robusta coffee. Robusta beans are used for espresso and instant coffees. They are also blended with milder Arabica beans to make ground coffees.
Often, coffee and cocoa are grown together on the same farm. The tall cacao trees shade the shorter coffee bushes. On some Côte d’ Ivoire
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