By Usman Aliyu

The International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) and the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) have extended their anti-human trafficking campaign to private schools in Edo to increase awareness.

The latest intervention involved the inauguration of an Anti-Human Trafficking Vanguard Club on Thursday at Aunty Joy Preparatory School, Ogheghe, on the outskirts of Benin.

The initiative, implemented under the School Anti-Trafficking Education and Advocacy Project (STEAP) of the ICMPD, sought  to equip students with knowledge to identify trafficking risks and mobilise their peers against exploitation.

Miss Daniella Ige, Junior Project Officer, ICMPD, Edo, said the inclusion of private schools was necessary because children were vulnerable to trafficking irrespective of the type of school they attended.

Ige said the project, which initially focused largely on public schools, is expanding its reach to private institutions to ensure broader awareness and prevention.

“Children, whether in private or public schools, can be vulnerable to human trafficking, and they also need to benefit from human trafficking awareness and capacity-building,” she said.

She explained that Aunty Joy Preparatory School was selected partly because of its strategic location and student population, adding that the club could serve as a training platform for neighbouring schools.

According to her, five private schools are included in the project’s target of 50 schools under the pilot phase.

She said the project would continue to identify strategically located schools, with support from the Edo Ministry of Education, to extend anti-trafficking education across communities.

Mrs Umoren Iniobong, Head of Research and Programme Development Unit, NAPTIP Benin Zonal Office, described the inauguration as a preventive measure against human trafficking and violence against persons.

She said the students would serve as NAPTIP ambassadors, advocates and information channels within their schools, families and communities.

“The vanguards that are being inaugurated today are ambassadors of NAPTIP. They are our mouthpieces. They are advocates,” she said.

Iniobong urged the students to speak against trafficking and violence, encourage victims to report abuses and provide information that could assist the agency.

She said human trafficking violated fundamental human rights and exposed victims to sexual and labour exploitation, diseases, teenage pregnancy and death.

She added that trafficking also had wider consequences for society, including the loss of young people through exploitation and dangerous migration journeys.

Mrs Queensly Ovenseri, Principal of Aunty Joy Preparatory School, expressed delight that the institution was included in the programme in spite of being a private school.

She, however, stressed the need for regular monitoring to ensure the club remained active beyond its inauguration.

“If there is follow-up, these things will not die,” she said, calling for officials to visit the school regularly and monitor the club’s activities.

Ovenseri said the school hoped to sustain the initiative through continued engagement and support.

The club’s President, Miss Oghenerouna Koyonda, said she felt humbled by her appointment and is committed to sensitising students about trafficking and deceptive recruitment practices.

She said the club would encourage members to serve as good examples, discourage bullying and organise activities to raise awareness within the school and surrounding communities.

Mrs Mercy Isibor, STEAP Desk Officer at the Edo Ministry of Education, urged students to use the knowledge acquired to protect themselves and others from traffickers.

She advised them to report suspicious promises of overseas opportunities, jobs or wealth to their teachers, counsellors, club coordinators and school authorities.

“Always speak out. If you see something, say something,” she said, warning that silence could give traffickers the opportunity to exploit vulnerable children.

Isibor assured the students that the ministry of education and NAPTIP would continue to monitor the clubs and provide support where necessary.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the STEAP project is implemented by ICMPD in partnership with NAPTIP and relevant Edo state institutions, with funding from the Government of the Netherlands.

The project uses school-based advocacy and community sensitisation to prevent human trafficking and promote awareness of safe migration among young people. (NAN)

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Edited by Chioma Ugboma