Child Trafficking, Kidnapping Now A National Emergency, SWS Cautions
The rising wave of child trafficking and kidnapping across Nigeria is fast becoming a major threat to the nation’s future, with child rights advocates warning that urgent and coordinated action is needed to halt the disturbing trend.
The Standup for Women Society (SWS) has expressed deep concern over the increasing cases of child abductions and trafficking reported in states including Oyo, Kebbi and Borno, describing the situation as a growing national crisis that endangers the safety and wellbeing of Nigerian children.
In a statement issued through its Director of Media and Communications, the organisation called for the immediate establishment of a Presidential Task Force on Child Trafficking and Kidnapping to coordinate intelligence gathering, rescue operations, victim support and prosecution efforts nationwide.
Speaking on behalf of the group, SWS International President, Deborah A. Ijadele-Adetona, said although security agencies have recorded successes in rescuing victims and arresting suspects, reactive measures alone are no longer sufficient.
She urged authorities to dismantle trafficking syndicates, strengthen prosecutions and publicly disclose convicted traffickers and kidnappers to serve as a deterrent.
The organisation also advocated the establishment of shelters, rehabilitation centres and trauma recovery facilities in affected areas, while calling for increased funding for the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, the Nigeria Police Force, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps and other security agencies.
SWS further proposed the creation of Child Protection Desks in schools, markets, motor parks, healthcare facilities and border communities to improve early detection and reporting of child-related crimes.
The group stressed that protecting children must be treated as a matter of national security, warning that meaningful inclusion and development cannot be achieved while children continue to face trafficking, kidnapping, exploitation and abuse.
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