By Olukayode Idowu
The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking In Persons (NAPTIP) has decried that many Nigerians remain victims of human trafficking for failure to understand the antics of traffickers and the nature of the crime.
Speaking at the 2024 World Day Against Trafficking in Persons commemorated in Abuja at the weekend with a novelty football match between female officers of NAPTIP and female partners of the agency, The Director-General of the anti-trafficking in person organisation, Professor Fatima Waziri-Azi said the sensitization should not be limited to elderly persons but equally children to educate them on the different strategies and antics of human traffickers.
Waziri-Azi who used the occasion of the 2024 World Day against trafficking in persons to sensitise the public, said the purpose is to leave no child behind in the fight against human trafficking.
She noted that the aim of the football game was to create fun and also using the same avenue to sensitise people to create the needed awareness about issues of human trafficking.
She said: “We know that a lot of times we talk about human trafficking, because children are also proportionally affected. So it’s just for us to remind the public, remind the world that victims of human trafficking, and those trafficking our people, should learn to show them compassion. We should also show solidarity in addition to sensitization.”
She said NAPTIP remains the focal anti human trafficking law enforcement agency in Nigeria, and in carrying out its work five-prong strategic approach which is prevention, protection, prosecution, partnership, and policy is evolved.
The head of International Centre for Migration Policy Development, ICMPD,
Mojisola Sodeinde, on her part said, “it’s a game that is very important. It’s not so much who won or who lost. we all won because we’re gathered here to make an event in support of anti-trafficking efforts that narrative has been championing for decades.
“The ICMPD as a partner, not only in Nigeria, but across the West Africa region with NAPTIP has shown in its efforts today and that of our partnership and the effort that we all put in to fight against trafficking.
“This year for ICMPD, we started a project with NAPTIP in five states- Benue, Edo state, Ogun, Delta State and Enugu where we’re working with school authorities as well as the communities in order to continue the advocacy work of NAPTIP and also ICMPD.
“Every year, we always strive to improve what we did the previous year. So this year is better than last year because obviously, we’re doing more, we’re doing it better. We have a lot of experience doing it now.
“What is unfortunate is that traffickers are also on their side, coming up with new ways of perfecting their trade. And we always have to catch up with them to know the new approaches, the new tactics that they are deploying, as partners.”