The Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Dr Emmanuel Ugirashebuja, announced that from 2025 to March 2026, Rwanda repatriated 289 people who had been trafficked to various countries, particularly those on the continent of Asia.
He made this announcement on Thursday during a session with Senators of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, National Unity and Security, which focused on the implementation of international agreements on preventing human trafficking.
Dr Ugirashebuja highlighted the ongoing cooperation between various institutions aimed at preventing large numbers of Rwandans from being trafficked abroad.
He said: “From 2025 to March 2026, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in partnership with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and other institutions, repatriated 289 people who had been trafficked.”
He explained that among those repatriated were 101 people removed from Cambodia, 99 from Oman, 58 from Laos, and 31 from Myanmar. The official also said that a Ministerial Order from the Minister of Justice, issued in 2021, provides that victims of human trafficking are assisted in reintegrating into normal life and starting their own income-generating activities, aimed at protecting them from falling back into the hands of traffickers.
He noted that in 2025, 65 victims of this crime were given assistance, but stressed that challenges remain due to limited public awareness about human trafficking, despite continued efforts to spread messages against it. The Minister of Justice also said there are challenges related to cooperation between countries in tackling cross-border crimes, particularly human trafficking.
Dr Ugirashebuja said figures from the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) show that the level of cooperation in addressing this issue on the African continent stands at a low rate of 5%, while in Europe it has reached 98%.
The Directorate General of Immigration and Emigration also revealed that some of those who had already been rescued have again been deceived by the people they left behind in the countries they were removed from, being told that new jobs have become available, and then coming to request documents to return.
It also revealed that many people fall into the traps of traffickers after being deceived into believing they will find good jobs. These are mostly young people who travel to countries they don’t know well, hoping for a better life, only to end up being trafficked.
In June 2025, the Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB) announced that from June 2024 to May 2025, 105 Rwandans were repatriated to Rwanda after being removed from various countries where they had been trafficked.
RIB figures also show that from June 2019 to July 2024, 39 people were intercepted at the airport while on their way to being trafficked, while between July 2024 and March 2025, plans to traffic around 57 other people were foiled before they departed.
RADIOTV10