Atacora

Benin keeps one of the most painful historical memories of the African continent: “la route de l'esclave”, the path followed by millions of slaves, women, men, children, who were loaded on slave ships. But the denial of liberty is not only a past memory. New exploiting ways are finding a rich ground in Somba villages in the region of Atacora, thanks to the illusion of wealth coming from the illegal gold digging. Somba people dig under the fierce sun all day long. Their salary is half a dollar a day, that is the half of minimum survival threshold as stated by the United Nations. The children, who have plenty of dreams and are willing to be free, are the essential basis for the mining work system. The documentary has been produced by Children's Forum 21 (CF21), a no-profit international organization, based in Greece and Italy, committed to the improvement of children's lives.