The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has launched its first Anti-Human Trafficking and Violence Against Persons (A.TIPVAP) Vanguard Club at Egor Secondary School.
The initiative, in partnership with the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD), aims to engage young people directly in the fight against human trafficking.
The initiative, which is part of the Schools Anti-Trafficking Education and Advocacy Project (STEAP), is supported by the Kingdom of Netherlands.
Speaking at the inauguration, Mr Sam Offiah, Zonal Commander, NAPTIP, Benin Zonal Command, said the vanguard club was designed to empower students with knowledge about the tricks and antics deployed by traffickers to lure young people into slavery.
“The aim is to make these students not just aware but also ambassadors, who will educate their peers and families on the dangers of trafficking,” Offiah said.
According to him, human traffickers are adapting to modern technology, shifting their recruitment tactics online, where unsuspecting youths are baited with fake job offers, scholarships, or international travel opportunities.
“Online trafficking is on the rise. Traffickers now hide in the dark web, making it harder to trace them. Nevertheless, we can begin dismantling their operations from the grassroots through peer education,” he said.
In his opening remarks, Elvis Ederibhalo, the Edo Coordinator for STEAP under ICMPD, stated that the project, funded by the Netherlands and implemented in five pilot states—Edo, Delta, Enugu, Ogun, and the FCT—focused on community empowerment.
“Traffickers are not your friends. They promise heaven and deliver hell. What they sell is modern slavery, and no young person should fall victim,” he warned.
Ederibhalo shared a recent example where more than 100 Nigerian girls were repatriated from Côte d’Ivoire under harrowing conditions.
“These girls were lied to, trafficked, and used. Today, they are back in Nigeria, broken and sick. We must stop this from happening to others,” he said.
Similarly, Dr Onaifo Osemwengie, the principal of Egor Secondary School, described the initiative’s timing as crucial.
He stated there was no better time than now to address trafficking, emphasising that students were the prime targets and that the enlightenment campaign was crucial for raising awareness among them.
The event featured a drama presentation exposing the inherent dangers of trafficking in persons by the students of the school.
In his inaugural address, Nelson Eghaghe, President of the club, said the club would serve as a platform for peer education, where members would organise discussions, drama and awareness campaigns to sensitise their schoolmates and families about the social ill. (NAN)
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