Senator Biodun Olujimi has called for a more holistic approach towards reducing the incidence of human trafficking in Nigeria. While she expressed her full support for the national effort towards tackle trafficking in people particularly women and children, Senator Olujimi said there was also a need to address the root causes of trafficking.
Speaking with the media on the occasion of the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons which is marked every year on July 30, she said: “Our youth especially female, are still being lured by false and unrealistic promises to make the dangerous journey to Europe, North Africa and the Middle East where they are subjected to gender-based violence and other forms of inhumane treatment.” She noted that “Many of our unemployed youth leave Nigeria and risk their lives to seek work in these countries, but most end up in exploitative and slavery situations.”
This year’s theme calls for attention to First Responders who are at the forefront in this sector, and who according to the United Nations (UN) may not necessarily receive official recognition and encouragement. The UN has highlighted the importance of those who work in the different sector related to trafficking including those who identify, support, counsel, as well as seek justice for victims of this crime.
Senator Olujimi said “We are aware that Nigeria is routinely listed as one of the countries with the largest number of trafficking victims especially to Europe through Libya and the Mediterranean with many of our young ones especially women have been identified in over thirty countries in one official Report, while many lose their lives during the crossing of sea.”
She however reiterated the importance of everyone involved on tackling human trafficking especially institutions such as the National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) and the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM). She commended their commitment and urged more governmental resources to end the impunity of traffickers. She also called for vigilance on the granting of licences for international recruitment, adding that some of these agencies do not mean well for those they recruit especially our daughters.
Senator Olujimi who is currently working on the Gender and Equal Opportunities Bill in the National Assembly which will provide protection for girls and women also said: “One is in full support of the work being done but would like to see a more holistic methodology adopted through co-operation between the different agencies, in other words, a multi-agency strategy, so that every aspect of the problem is tackled simultaneously.”
According to Senator Olujimi deepening awareness within our communities, including remote villages where millions of the vulnerable reside, about the unscrupulous activities of traffickers, would also go a long way to cutting off all the supply lines of human cargo. She further opined that an increase in the rate of prosecutions of offenders will also serve as a deterrent: “The laws are there and anyone or group found to engage in trafficking of people should face the full wrath of the law.”
Equally important is strengthening of the empowerment component of preventive mechanisms. The opening up of more opportunities for employment and entrepreneurships will address the misery of poverty felt in many of the families whose children risk these dangerous journeys and end up in the hands of traffickers. I believe that through education and training programmes in relevant skills-including offering non-traditional training opportunities to female victims, will offer hope and conviction to our youth to stay in their homes