NAPTIP rescues over 180 children from traffickers exploiting displacement
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In Nigeria, the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) recently recovered over 180 children allegedly trafficked from five states. Kaduna, Benue, Nasarawa, Anambra, and Abuja.
The agency discovered that criminal groups were deceiving families displaced by violence and hardship with false promises of education and support. These groups then took the children, sometimes through established orphanages or with the help of medical staff, and allegedly sold them for adoption or other purposes.
A father in Kajuru, Kaduna State, was reunited with his son after three years, discovering the “NGO” that took his child had tricked him and other parents. NAPTIP’s Director General, Binta Adamu Bello, established a special squad to trace and recover the children following reports of numerous disappearances. Investigations revealed that traffickers targeted vulnerable families, offering assistance as a way to gain trust.
The agency found one child in the care of a nurse at Federal Medical Centre, Onitsha, who admitted to paying ₦771,000 for him. Bello called on civil society organisations to investigate their ranks and expose any members involved in trafficking, fearing that criminals were using the legitimacy of these groups to exploit vulnerable communities. NAPTIP is continuing to investigate and arrest those responsible, aiming to dismantle the network and prevent further exploitation.
