Rakiya A.Muhammad
As the globe commemorates World Day Against Human Trafficking marked July 30, Network Against Child Trafficking, Abuse and Labour (NACTAL) Nigeria has called on relevant authorities and stakeholders to look into the abuse of technology.
It noted this became imperative, as COVID-19 had driven more people to use online services and products.
“Millions of children and young people in Nigeria now spend more time on the internet to access educational activities and services as well as searching for job advert through which they are lured by traffickers,” NACTAL Nigeria’s National President Abdulganiyu Abubakar pointed out.
He described the theme for this year’s commemoration, “Use and Abuse of Technology”, as timely given the role technology plays in day-to-day human activities across the globe.
Abubakar referred to a study by the University of Toledo Human Trafficking and Social Justice Institute, which uncovered how traffickers exploit social media to target, recruit, and sell vulnerable children for sex.
“Nigeria remains a source, transit and destination to human trafficking with thousands of Nigerian women, children, girls and boys being trafficked both within and outside the country for exploitation including forced prostitution, domestic servitude, and organ harvest, among others,” he lamented.
“It is pertinent to sustain the fight against human trafficking by prioritising adequate resource allocation to NAPTIP and strengthening multi-sectoral approach including engagement of religious leaders and institutions to prevent, suppress and punish TIP, especially women and children who are trafficked under the disguise of missionary activities.”
He called on the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary to rise to the global call to end all forms of slavery, particularly human trafficking, by 2030 in line with the Sustainable Development Goals.
“NACTAL, as the leading Civil Society Network in the fight against human trafficking in Nigeria, remains committed to completing government efforts to prevent, suppress and punish trafficking in persons,” he assured.
“As a civil society with 208 registered members across the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria, our members will also carry out various awareness activities in major public places such as markets, motor parks, junction towns, shopping malls, churches and mosques across the country in commemoration of the world TIP Day,”
Abubakar, however, commended the Federal Government of Nigeria for the continuous support to the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) in the fight against human trafficking.
He also lauded the NAPTIP DG Dr Fatima Waziri-Azi and her team for the recent elevation of Nigeria to Tier 2 in the 2021 TIP report, just as he acknowledged the network’s partners such as EU, FIIAPP, UNODC, IOM, Expertise France, USAID Nigeria SCALE Project implemented by Palladium for their support in financing and building NACTAL members capacity for better service delivery to victims of human trafficking.
