…builds capacity of School Principals, Vanguard Coordinators, Administrators, CSOs

By Peter Duru, Makurdi

The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, NAPTIP, in collaboration with the International Centre for Migration Policy Development, ICMPD, has commenced building the capacity of School Heads and members of Civil Society Organizations, CSO, to fight the menace of human trafficking in Benue state.

Declaring open a two-day programme tagged Awareness Raising/Capacity Building Workshop for School Principals, Schools Vanguard Coordinators, Education Administrators and CSOs for the Coordination of Schools Vanguard under the School Anti Trafficking Education and Advocacy Project (STEAP) funded by the Government of Netherland, the Permanent Secretary in the Benue State Ministry of Education, Mrs. Helen Nambativ noted the dangers human trafficking posed to the Benue society.

She emphasized that “Benue state seems to be a fertile ground for the illegal business. This is because of the incessant attacks by herders and terrorists on Benue communities thereby leaving our people vulnerable.”

The Permanent Secretary commended ICMPD for supporting NAPTIP and Benue state in the fight against the menace saying that the “partners are doing a lot in awareness creation in the selected schools and communities as well as Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs, camps”

She also lauded the NAPTIP Makurdi Zonal Commander’s tireless efforts in ensuring that the menace was put to an end.

The Director General of NAPTIP, Binta Bello, represented by the agency’s Director of Intelligence (Research and Programme Development) Mr. Josiah Emerole explained that the essence of the engagement “is to bring the Principals of Schools and Coordinators School Vanguards to speed on the issues of human trafficking.”

She stated that NAPTIP was doing a lot to curb trafficking in Benue state and across the country even as she noted the high prevalence of trafficking in Benue saying “In the past we used to talk about Edo state but now we have Benue state topping the rank of all the states of Nigeria. But you must remember that trafficking in person is a clandestine crime.”

The Director General who blamed  insecurity, displacement of the populace and deceit of vulnerable populace by traffickers as some of the reasons for the situation in the state said it was time for all to be careful and for all hands to be on deck to tackle the menace and the perpetrators head-on to put it to an end.

Also, the Project Manager for School Anti Trafficking Education Advocacy Project, STEAP, of the ICMPD, Rhoda Dia-Johnson who explained that the event was one of the many activities under the STEAP project said “it is basically targeting Principals and the Coordinators of the Anti Trafficking Vanguards that have been established in 50 schools in Benue state.”

The Project Manager stated that the STEAP project was currently in five states including Edo, Delta, Enugu, Ogun and Benue “and this two-day training is on Standard Operating Procedures, SOPs, of the activities for the schools Anti Trafficking Vanguards, reporting tools and how the Vanguard activities are going to be coordinated by NAPTIP in the various schools that have been selected.

According to her “the SOP are documents that have been developed by NAPTIP that will also be used in those schools and we also have interventions that is targeting the parents. The STEAP project is targeting the whole of the school system; parents community leaders, teachers, school administrators and every other stakeholders. So part of what we are doing is also community outreach to sensitize the parents and communities on the issues of trafficking, how to identify cases, where to report and how to respond if it happens.

“And now that report says Benue has the highest rate of trafficking in the country all hands need to be on deck to ensure that we minimize the exposure of our children to being victims.”

The Zonal Commander, NAPTIP Makurdi Zonal Command, Mrs. Gloria Bai who disclosed that the programme was well tailored to tackled the menace, explained that “we have what is called Vanguards Against Human Trafficking and Violence Against Persons.

“The Vanguards are to be inaugurated in 50 schools in Benue state but for now we have inaugurated only in 10 Schools, but we earmarked 50, so we have 40 to go. And by the time schools resume in September we will continue with our activities of inaugurating the Vanguards in schools and also continue with out sensitization in their host communities.”

According to her, “the objective of having the Vanguards in schools is to bring up the children to speed, or catch them young because most of the children being trafficked are from Secondary School age. So we decided that we will go to the schools to sensitize them and create these Vanguards because we want them to be the ones to carry the message of counter-trafficking within their communities and in their schools.”

Representative of the Benue State Ministry of Justice and Public Order, Mrs. Dooshima Ortserga, commended the organisers of the engagement which she said “is aimed at equipping Students, School Principals and Education Administrators with the necessary knowledge and tools to combat human trafficking.”

The Principal of Community Secondary School, Makurdi, Mrs. Victoria Akange and her counterpart from Tilley Gyado College Makurdi, Dr. Emmanuel Zakaa, commended NAPTIP and ICMPD for the programme saying “it has opened the eyes of our students and teachers on the issues of human trafficking and how to respond to such issues at all times.”

The Vanguard Coordinator, Community Secondary School Makurdi, Franca Ijor, who was elated by the impact the anti trafficking club was making in the school since its established said “since our inauguration we have been holding our club meetings every week and the students are very happy because they are all interested in leading the campaign to check the menace of human trafficking in the school, the host community as well as the communities they come from.”