Nigeria Struggles Against Human Trafficking

In a Lagos suburb, 22-year-old Omo huddles over her battered cell phone, scrolling through text messages to find the name of the Russian city where she was coerced into prostitution.

It was two years ago and she had just finished her exams to enter university when her mother introduced her to an agent promising a sales job in Russia. She agreed to go hoping for a better future. "I wanted to assist myself and my family, because I really wanted to go to school," she said.

When she arrived in Pyatigorsk, a mountain city with a renowned health resort, her travel documents were taken from her and she was told she would be selling her body.

"They said if I don't do it they will kill me," she said, staring at the floor. "It was hell."

Nigeria, Africa's most populous country with 170 million people, is a regional hub for human trafficking, and more assistance is needed to help those who escape the exploitation to find a stable place back in Nigeria, say experts who work with survivors.

Nigeria tops the list of non-EU citizens registered as trafficking victims, according to the European Commission's 2015 Eurostat report.

"Nigeria figures as one of our top priority countries of origin," Myria Vassiliadou, the EU Anti-Trafficking Coordinator, told The Associated Press. To stop the exploitation cycle, reintegration assistance is as important as working to discourage Nigerians from initially being sent overseas to work as prostitutes, she stressed.

"People leave as vulnerable people and come back as vulnerable people," said Vassiliadou. "What stands between them being trafficked again is reintegration support."

As many as six out of 10 trafficked women in European capitals are Nigerian, estimates Nigeria's National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons. The agency says it has rescued 8,006 people since it started in 2003. Support for survivors when they return voluntarily or are deported back is crucial. Many face stigma and even rejection by their families and finding work and housing is a challenge, according to experts.

Like many Nigerians who are trafficked, Omo was sent into exploitation by a family member. She insisted on not giving her full name to avoid further stigmatization.

-ABC News
 

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