By Oluwatoyin Adegoke
The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, NAPTIP, is raising the alarm over a dangerous new trend: traffickers are using social media and online job platforms to recruit Nigerians for exploitation.
Speaking on Radio Nigeria’s Paramount FM 94.5, NAPTIP’s Ogun State Commander, Mrs Bosede Jimoh, stated that these digital tactics are used to lure victims into forced labour, sexual exploitation, and organ harvesting.
In response, she explained that the agency has intensified its fight.
“We have launched aggressive awareness campaigns in schools and communities,” Jimoh said.
The goal is to equip young people and parents with the knowledge to identify and resist suspicious online offers.
The Commander highlighted a major success: the Schools Anti-Trafficking Education and Advocacy Project (STEAP).
This initiative, which is funded by the Government of the Netherlands and implemented by the International Centre for Migration Policy Development in partnership with NAPTIP, has already sensitised over 21,000 students across 10 schools in Ogun State, with plans to reach 40 more.
Mrs Jimoh credited the federal government and inter-agency collaboration with the Police, NSCDC, DSS, and Immigration for enabling swift responses to trafficking cases.
She also confirmed that NAPTIP provides rescued victims with counselling, empowerment, and educational support, with some survivors even joining the agency’s workforce.
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