The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has launched campaign against human trafficking and violence against persons in secondary schools in Delta.
The Commander, NAPTIP Benin Zonal Command, Mr Sam Offiah, who inaugurated the Anti-Human Trafficking Vanguard in Abraka, Ethiope East Local Government Area of Delta State, said the sensitisation has become imperative to ward off the predators from prying on the students.
NAPTIP, in partnership with Delta Government, formally inaugurated 30 students as Vanguards in Abraka Grammar School, and another 30 students in Erho Secondary School, both in Abraka as the agency’s ambassadors in the schools.
According to Offiah, the target is to cover 50 secondary schools in the state within a given space of time.
He, however, said the agency in this first phase would cover 10 secondary schools this week which has been flagged off in two schools in Abraka.
The commander said that the students were the vulnerable group and target of traffickers, adding that stepping up the sensitisation with the inauguration of the students’ vanguard was the best way to curb the menace of child trafficking and ensure a violence-free nation.
He said, “Today, we have established two vanguards in the two schools in Delta and the essence is to enable them represent us and to speak to other students, community and their friends about human trafficking so that the scourge could be reduced to the barest minimum in the state.
We know that the traffickers target these children because they are vulnerable. So, our objective is to make our nation free from human trafficking and help the children grow to their full potential.”
He said that the Agency would support and groom the students to become equipped with requisite knowledge on issues of human trafficking and to become advocates in their schools to enlighten others about human trafficking.
On his part, Mr Maclean Eze, Deputy Director, Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education and Desk Officer, School Anti-Trafficking Education Advocacy Project (STEAP), said the state government taskforce on human trafficking and irregular migration has become operational.
According to Eze, the taskforce is aimed at protecting the rights of the citizens and to prosecute human traffickers.
Also, Mrs Ijoma Nwanze, Secretary, State Taskforce on Human Trafficking and Irregular Migrations, said the taskforce was set up by government to fight against and reduce the scourge in the state.
The Principals of Abraka Grammar School and Erho Secondary School, Mr Lucky-Jones Dibie and Mrs Edna Eremo respectively, lauded NAPTIP and the state government for selecting their schools for the programme.
Some of the students in an interview with NAN expressed understanding of the subject matter and pledged their resolve to be a voice against human trafficking in their schools.
The highpoint of the event was the formal inauguration of the NAPTIP Anti-Trafficking and Violence Against Persons Vanguard and unveiling of the NAPTIP sign posts in both schools.
Read also: Delta AG commends NAPTIP over fight against human trafficking
