Ruthless smugglers charge teens £14k to flee Ethiopia

CHILDREN fleeing a war-ravaged region of Ethiopia pay nearly £14,000 to smugglers in hope of a better life abroad only to become victims of human trafficking.

- Steph Spyro

Teenagers are desperate to escape a looming famine, drought, unemployment and a landscape ravaged by a two-year conflict in Tigray's Atsbi district.

The main route for migrant smuggling and human trafficking is from Ethiopia via Obock in Djibouti, Bosaso in Somalia, Yemen and finally Saudi Arabia.

The youngsters are charged over a million Ethiopian birr by traffickers but then spend months in labour camps as they try to borrow more money from friends of family to guarantee their release.

Headteacher Testas Gebre told how many of his students drop out of Genderfu primary school to make the treacherous journey to the Middle East, and several have died along the way.

He said: "In my experience, after grade eight, a few go to high school but the majority migrate to Arab countries or other countries.

"These children are usually 15 or 16 years old. Lots of students die on the way. Some of them get work opportunities but many stay in prison when they cross the border. Very few get work opportunities and help their families."