The crime of human trafficking is a big industry worth over $150 billion, the Director General, National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), Mrs. Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, has said.
The DG, who said fighting the crime needs collaboration, also said going forward, the agency would focus on growth and preventive measures so that they can solve the problems from its roots.
Mrs. Suleiman-Ibrahim was speaking at a joint stakeholders dialogue on Trafficking In Persons (TIP) and Smuggling of Migrants (SOM) at the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) head office in Abuja yesterday.
The NAPTIP boss, who lauded the efforts of the Comptroller General, NIS, Muhammed Babandede and other agencies in the fight against human trafficking in Nigeria, said the agency has strong cooperation and partnerships with donor and national agencies in the fight against TIP.
She said going forward, they would focus on growth and preventive measures so as to solve the problem.
“We would continue to work with definite strategic approaches on policy prevention, protection, prosecution and strengthening partnerships.
“Our main areas of collaborations have been synergies in partners, joint law enforcement operations, intelligence sharing and other areas of immediate collaborations.
“Our data as far as the fight against human trafficking is concerned are all over the place so, it is a commitment for us to have it all in one place for posterity referencing.
“We have the political will to take this fight beyond where it is and we are going to take full advantage of that.”
She said the agency is focused on building capacity and manpower development.
“We need all the support we can get in that area. We are going to review our multilateral and bilateral agreements to ensure that its value is for both parties and everyone involved,” she added.
