…As taskforce intensifies actions against irregular migration
By Nosa Agbonigiarhuoyi and Godspower Eguasa
As Nigeria marks the World Day against trafficking in persons, the Director General of National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), Dr. Fatima Waziri-Azi, has commended the Edo State Government’s effort at stemming human trafficking and illegal migration.
She gave the commendation on Wednesday, July 27, 2022, during a sensitization program on Channels TV as part of activities lined up for the annual event.
Assessing efforts of the various stakeholders in the fight, the Director General noted that Edo State has invested a lot in youth empowerment and entrepreneurship, which are key strategies to stemming the ugly trends.
“When we talk about Edo state; Edo has actually been able to put their house in order. So they have a lot of interventions targeted at the youths. If you look at the Edo situation, there are more of smuggling of migrants and irregular migration. Of course, they also have components of human trafficking.
“But we look at the key drivers of human trafficking – what are those root causes of human trafficking? Number one is poverty; number two is lack of job and educational opportunities.
“Then we look closely at the family unit; we also have agreed that we also have ignorance. So people don’t really understand the dimensions of human trafficking; they don’t understand the risks of human trafficking but when you have some socio-economic and socio-political checks in place, it helps to reduce that.
“This is something that Edo has done. They’ve invested a lot in youth empowerment; they’ve invested a lot in entrepreneurship. They have this very fantastic program called EDOJOBS, which is targeted at the youths.
“They are trying and of course we have the prosecution part. I think they have designated courts that handle cases of trafficking in persons in Edo.”
In a related development, the Edo State Government said it has intensified actions against human trafficking and irregular migration in the State through a series of programs designed build on the gains achieved over the years.
The chairperson, Edo State Taskforce against Human Trafficking, Prof. Yinka Omorogbe, said this during a stakeholders’ interactive forum which was part of the four-day sensitization program organized by the agency to mark the world day against human trafficking.
The four-day awareness program which commenced on Wednesday 27th July, 2022, with the theme: “Use and Abuse of Technology” amplified the new ways being adopted by traffickers on digital platforms including social media to lure unsuspecting persons with unrealistic promises into their illegal business.
Omorogbe while commending the efforts of the Obaseki-led administration on the successes achieved so far in the war against human trafficking, noted that prior to his administration, Edo was known as the State with the highest number of irregular migrants, adding that the narrative changed through the State Government’s strategic action plans, one of which was the setting up of the taskforce against human trafficking.
She said: “Edo before the establishment of the taskforce in 2017, accounted for the highest proportion of known Nigerian irregular migrants and was known as the epicenter of human trafficking in Nigeria.
“The Governor of Edo State has since taken a decisive position to end human trafficking in the State, setting up the first subnational taskforce that has since become a model for other States to emulate because of its many achievements”.
Omorogbe while disclosing plans by the State Government to hunt down traffickers leveraging technological platforms to recruit victims, lamented that since the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic, abuse of cyberspace by traffickers who sell false information to lure residents, especially the social media has become very rampant.
“Traffickers now use email and social media to identify, groom and communicate with victims using moral coercion.
“It is now imperative that law enforcement agencies, the criminal justice system and other relevant stakeholders in the fight against human trafficking leverage technology in their responses, deploying technological solutions in investigations to track down victims in need of rescue and enhancing prosecution of offenders through digital evidence”.
The Executive Secretary of the taskforce, Itohan Okungbowa, while soliciting for collaborations among returnees, potential migrants and other relevant stakeholders in tackling human trafficking at a session held on Friday 29th July, 2022, said that provisions have been made by the State Government to rescue, protect and cater for victims at no cost.
Okungbowa explained that the scope of trafficking is getting wider as it includes recruitment of under-age persons as house-helps.
Mrs. Juliet Irowa, an indigene of Edo State, speaking at the market sensitization session, noted that Governor Obaseki has always come to the aid of Edo youths with the series of empowerment programs designed for them.
