The Director-General of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), Prof. Fatima Waziri-Az, has charged officers of the agency on efficient human trafficking data collection
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Waziri-Azi gave the charge on Friday in Abuja at the closing session of a five-day capacity building for NAPTIP officers and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs).
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the five-day capacity building is on the reviewed of data collection instruments for reporting and implementation of the National Action Plan (NAP) on human trafficking 2022-2026.
NAN also reports that the organisation of the programme was in collaboration with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC), funded by the Swiss Authority.
The NAPTIP boss stated that her expectation from the capacity building is for the NAPTIP officers and other participants to have an enhance ability to develop reliable data and track the progress in the fight against human trafficking.
She said that she also expected the participants to get better in the implementation of the NAP in terms of monitoring and evaluation of activities revolving human trafficking in and out of Nigeria.
According to her, the officers are also expected to step down the knowledge from the training to their colleagues in various departments.
Waziri-Azi said that they were also expected to extend such knowledge to NAPTIP state command and liaison offices across Nigeria.
She disclosed that NAPTIP has the best counter trafficking response in the whole of West Africa, adding that the 2022 Global Slavery Report (GSR) also highlighted it as a strong agency in human trafficking response.
“In terms of the Legal Framework, we have it, in terms of operational structure; we have it at NAPTIP, a world stop shop that has enforcement, prosecution powers and protective mandate, to meet the target beneficiaries.
“If you look at our prosecutorial records, accumulatively we have secured 674 convictions, 80 convictions in 2022, 66 convictions 2023 and as at today, we have secured 34 convictions and still counting.
“If you look at rescue and repatriation of victims, we are pushing over 24, 000 victims that have been rescued, reintegrated into the society.
“If you look at our preventive strategy, our partnership in term of policies, I will say that Nigeria is doing well but considering enormity of the problem we face.
“Human trafficking issue is like a revolving dog, as we are catching criminals putting them in prisons, many people are going out to commit the same crime and this is why partnership is always very important.
“NAPTIP does not have presence at the land and sea borders or Airport, we relied on the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) as partners to catch all these criminals,” she stressed.
She, however, called on all and sundry particularly parents to rise up to the fight against human trafficking, saying that it was the work of everybody, both at the state and community level. (NAN)
By Aderogba George
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