Over 800, 000 women,
children and men are bought and sold across international borders every year
and exploited for labour, organ removal and commercial sex. According to
UNICEF, 2 million
children are subjected to prostitution in the global commercial sex trade; every
two minutes a child is being prepared for sexual exploitation, and the average
age of a trafficked victim is 12 – 14 years. Nigeria is ranked the 4th
in the world with highest number of victims of human trafficking at an estimate
of 701, 032. 80% of the victims are young
people, 50% are children and 70% are women and girls. Other issues that
threaten women and girls are rape and gender-based violence. All over the world there are daily reports of
human trafficking, sexual abuse and gender-based violence.
Based on the above issues, The Academy for Prevention of
Human Trafficking and other related Matters (a subsidiary of Devatop Centre for
Africa Development) in partnership with National Agency for Prohibition of
Trafficking in Persons, Fight Against Child Trafficking, Dorothy Njemanze
Foundation, African Centre for Media and Information Literacy and Media Insight
organized Anti-Human Trafficking Advocacy Course to train over 68 advocates to
be in the forefront of combating human trafficking and gender-based violence.
The trainees include law enforcement agents, medical professionals/health
workers, legal practitioners, educators, faith-based organizations, youth,
journalists, media personnel, and community volunteers mobilized from different
states in Nigeria. During the two days training, the participants learnt
overview of human trafficking, sex trafficking, labour trafficking, organ
trafficking, gender-based violence and how to tackle them through advocacy.
They were equipped and empowered to do step down training; observe and monitor
incidence of human trafficking or gender-based violence, and carryout advocacy
in their various communities and states.
According
to Mr. Joseph Osuigwe Chidiebere, the
Executive Director of Devatop Centre for Africa Development and the coordinator
of The Academy for Prevention of Human Trafficking and Other Related Matters
(TAPHOM), there are much works to do to combat and prevent human trafficking
and gender-based violence, but more people are needed to do them. People might
think human trafficking is a thing of the past, but it is happening now. There
is hardly any family that is not touched by the effects of human trafficking,
rape or gender-based violence. He expressed his passion to engage stakeholders
in building a world without human trafficking and gender-based violence. In an interview with media, he said, “We can’t keep silent at this evil.
We can’t close our eyes to it. We can’t pretend as if it doesn’t exist.
We have to take action, and nothing but action”.
To boost the fight against human trafficking, the organizers
inaugurated Day of Advocacy against Human Trafficking which will be
commemorated in Nigeria every November or 26th November. Day of
Advocacy against Human Trafficking is a period to raise awareness of the plight
of human trafficking victims, support victims, honour survivors, and strengthen
policies against human trafficking. It is a day to advocate for employers,
consumers, companies, faith-based communities, schools, families, individuals,
private and government sector to participate in preventing the incidence of
human trafficking in Nigeria.
During the graduation of the trainees and inauguration of Day
of Advocacy against Human Trafficking, Prof.
Chidi Odinkalu, former Chairman of National Human Rights Commission advised
the participants to start putting things right in Nigeria. He also mentioned
that bad leadership and poverty were among the causes of human trafficking. The Inspector-General of Police, represented
by Commissioner of Police- Interpol Abuja, Mr.
Olusola Subair assured the participants that Police will continue to
improve its efforts and strategies in the fight against human trafficking. The Director of Public Enlightenment of
National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, Mr. Arinze Orakwue inspired the trainees to take strategic actions
to prevent human trafficking.
The participant expressed their readiness to create more
awareness in their communities and take
responsibilities in combating human trafficking.
Devatop Centre for Africa Development is a 21st
century nonprofit organization that has trained over 4500 people from over 30
communities on prevention of human trafficking. Over the past two years,
Devatop has engaged more than 15 organizations/companies and 80 volunteers in
the fight against human trafficking. The organization established the The
Academy for Prevention of Human Trafficking, which is the first in Nigeria, to
raise advocates and trainers to combat human trafficking, end gender-based
violence and ensure gender equality. The academy is focused on training,
advocacy, counseling, research, referral and publications.
Devatop Centre for Africa Development can be contacted through:
www.devatop.org
+2348067251727
Devatop2013@gmail.com
@devatop2013
www.facebook.com/devatopafrica
