Ivory Coast: Young footballers at risk from people smugglers
By France24
12 December 2019 |
8:00 am
With the number of African footballers playing for teams around the world at an all-time high, thousands of youngsters dream of following in their footsteps. According to the NGO Foot Solidaire, over 6,000 minors leave Africa every year in the hopes of being recruited abroad. Some hand over their savings to unscrupulous middlemen for the dubious promise of a trial with a foreign club. Today, both amateur and professional players are trying to prevent aspiring African footballers from falling victim to people smugglers. Our Ivory Coast correspondent Thaïs Brouck reports.
In this article
Related
15 Oct 2021
From planting trees to raising awareness and developing new solutions for waste, three young environmental activists in Abidjan are looking for inclusive ways to stop global warming.
19 Oct 2021
Former Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo vowed on Sunday (October 17) to continue in politics "until my death" as he launched a new party following his acquittal by the International Criminal Court and return from a decade abroad.
Gbagbo, president from 2000-2011, returned to Ivory Coast in June after being acquitted in 2019 by the Netherlands-based court on war crimes charges for his role in a civil war sparked by his refusal to concede defeat in an election.
3 Nov 2021
In Ivory Coast, painters, photographers, designers and sculptors are choosing to settle in the city of Grand-Bassam, away from the urban chaos and air pollution of Abidjan. The historic UNESCO World Heritage city, located an hour from the economic capital, is attracting more and more designers in search of a more serene and affordable lifestyle. As the once-popular artisanal village of Grand-Bassam grapples with a drop in tourism, a new generation of artists from diverse backgrounds is reclaiming this historic cultural centre and breathing new life into it. Our correspondents report.
13 Nov 2021
Fish have become scarce in the Ébrié Lagoon in southern Ivory Coast. Its water is polluted and littered with waste. Scientists and NGOs are striving to restore degraded resources and raise awareness among the population.
15 Jan 2022
Refugees in Ivory Coast are starting to rebuild businesses affected by the economic slowdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, through initiatives sponsored by the United Nation refugee agency (UNHCR), to help integrate refugees in the West African country.
13 Jan 2022
Ivory Coast soccer fans watching the African Cup of Nations are being greeted with rapid tests, masks and COVID-19 vaccines at dedicated fan zones, an initiative of the health ministry to spur vaccination. Officials say dozens of young people have been vaccinated at the Cup of Nations villages.
27 Jan 2022
The Pharaohs played a goalless draw with the Elephants of Ivory Coast in Douala but went on to win after a penalty shoot-out. The seven-time champions are still on course to stretch their record.
17 Feb 2022
Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara granted an exclusive interview to FRANCE 24 and RFI ahead of an EU-African Union summit in Brussels. He criticised the planned departure of French and European troops from Mali, saying it "creates a void". Ouattara added that it was the responsibility of domestic African armies to "solve problems in their own countries.
26 Mar 2022
Baky Meïté is a former captain of the Ivory Coast rugby team. Back in the spring of 2020, he put his rugby career on hold to work as a janitor in a geriatric hospital in Paris. He has now published a book, "Les Chiffons Bleus", as a tribute to his former colleagues who appear somewhat forgotten today. He joined us for Perspective.
16 Apr 2022
In an unexpected announcement, Prime Minister Patrick Achi and his Cabinet have tendered their resignation. The leader of Ivory Coast's government had held the job for a little over a year.
11 May 2022
At the start of a U.N. conference on desertification in Ivory Coast, President Alassane Ouattara has said the country wants to raise $1.5 bln to revive forests and land in the world's top cocoa producer.
23 May 2022
The COP15 conference is meeting to address issues of land degradation, advancing deserts and deforestation. Experts and activists hope that this will not be just another high-level conference with no concrete results.
Latest
2 hours ago
After an anonymous tip-off, the gunman's apartment was raided by police. Authorities discovered 15 loaded magazines and more.
2 hours ago
In a video circulating on social media, users claim that a waiter at an upscale French ski resort wearing a Russian flag jumpsuit carried a Ukrainian "coffin" during a champagne parade. The FRANCE 24 Observers team contacted Bagatelle Courchevel; the restaurant explained that the scene had nothing to do with the war in Ukraine. We tell you more in this edition of Truth or Fake.
2 hours ago
Georgia's proposed "foreign agents" bill did not pass parliament's second reading after the ruling party withdrew support under pressure. The move comes after days of opposition protests.
2 hours ago
For years, many fields have been largely dominated by men, but, in recent times, more women are either taking key positions in various management teams, closing deals worth hundreds of millions of dollars, breaking new grounds, or starting new ventures. Today, Guardian Nigeria host women to a conference titled: IWD 2023: Digital: Innovation and technology for gender equality
3 hours ago
A male pill could become available soon, but an on-demand male contraceptive may have more potential. Would you take it?