NAPTIP inaugurates vanguards against trafficking, SGBV in military schools

The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) on Tuesday in Abuja kick-started sensitisation and Inauguration of vanguards against human trafficking in all military secondary schools nationwide.

The exercise, supported by the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD), was held at Command Day Secondary School Abuja.

Part of the goal for the project is to guide against all forms of Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV), and report such issues to the school authority who will take it up.

Speaking at the Inauguration the Director-General of NAPTIP, Prof. Fatima Waziri-Azi, said the purpose of the vanguards was to educate, sensitised the children and raise a generation of confidence children.

According to the director-general, human traffickers are looking for victims all around, and trafficking is prevalence at every moment.

She noted that traffickers moved around on internet, and that students must be very smart with themselves when using internet.

Waziri-Azi said that NAPTIP had rescued many victims who were trafficked through internet, adding, investigation was ongoing about some of the trafficking cases.

“We are inaugurating this vanguards to protect yourself, it is your right to aspired for good things but you must do it in the right way, and follow the right trajectory of life.

“There are so many lies on social media, follow the right part, there is no free launch anywhere, you must ask questions when different promises comes your way.

“The essence of this vanguards is to also have a school approach to tackling human trafficking,” she said.

Dr Mojisola Sodeinde, Head of West Africa Region, ICMPD, thanked NAPTIP for initiating the project, saying it is a laudable one.

Sodeinde who was represented by Mr Adeniyi Bakare, an ICT in the organisation also commended the Chief of Army staff, Lt.-Gen. Farouk Yahaya, for his dedication towards the fight against human trafficking.

She also thanked the government of Netherlands for their contribution through the Niger-Nigeria Trafficking In-Person (TIP) project, under the framework that ICMPD was able to provide.

According to Sodeinde, NAPTIP support had resulted in strengthening of cooperation and coordination between national stakeholders in Niger and Nigeria, and had led to concrete result.

She said that the Inauguration of the vanguards also echoes ICMPD support to NAPTIP in mainstreaming TIP issues into the Basic and Senior Secondary School education curriculum.

Sodeinde said that ICMPD had supported TIP issues into school curriculum since 2016 to 2019 in the framework of the project support to Free Movement of Persons and Migration in West Africa (FMM West Africa).

The Chief of Army Staff therefore called for a robust support to NAPTIP from all uniform men saying it will do a great work to protect Nigerian youth from all forms of exploitation.

He said that the Inauguration of the vanguards was an important programme that would safeguard Nigerian children in the society.

Yahaya stressed that it was the responsibility of all to protect the children from all forms of exploitation and that everyone must work together against the dangers of trafficking.