Nine Zambian youths aged between 14 and 21 have been returned from the Democratic Republic of Congo after allegedly attempting to enter the country illegally through undesignated bush paths.
Department of Immigration Chief Public Relations Officer Namati H. Nshinka says the youths were received at Sakania Border Control on Wednesday, 16th September 2026, after being removed by Congolese authorities.
Mr Nshinka says preliminary investigations indicate that the youths, who said they were from Serenje, intended to travel to the DRC in search of piecework.
He says investigations are underway to establish how the youths travelled from Serenje to the border and whether their journey was facilitated by other individuals.
Mr Nshinka says the youths will be handed over to the Department of Social Welfare for appropriate assistance and further management.
Meanwhile, the Department of Immigration has removed 55 Ethiopian nationals who were apprehended in Muchinga Province and convicted of failing to appear before the nearest Immigration Officer upon entering Zambia.
Mr Nshinka says the department has also detained 29 undocumented foreign nationals, comprising 20 Burundians and nine Congolese, following a routine operation in Chifwema, Shantumbu, Sinoma and Ten Miles.
And in Kafue, a 31-year-old Egyptian national, Mahmoud Abdelrahman Ahmed Ahmed, has been fined 13-thousand kwacha for unlawful stay in Zambia after his immigration permit expired.
Mr Nshinka has since cautioned members of the public against crossing international borders through undesignated routes, warning that such movements could expose individuals to exploitation, trafficking and other forms of harm.
By Niza Vomo
