The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) has received 12 victims of human trafficking, including a five-year-old boy, rescued from Ghana and Mali.
The Chairman/CEO of NiDCOM, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, disclosed that 10 of the victims—women aged between 16 and 30—were rescued from Ghana, while two women, aged 27 and 35, were brought back from Mali. The only child among them was also rescued from Ghana.
According to NiDCOM, the victims from Ghana hail from Cross River (4), Benue (4), Imo (1), and Oyo (1) states, while those from Mali are from Adamawa State.
Receiving the victims at the NiDCOM Liaison Office in Lagos on behalf of Dabiri-Erewa, Mr. Dipo Odebowale, Head of the Lagos office, said the girls reported being lured to Ghana with false promises of jobs, only to be coerced into prostitution.
Similarly, the victims from Mali shared accounts of deception, abuse, and severe trauma. They narrated harrowing experiences of sexual exploitation and physical violence during their time in captivity.
Abdur-Rahman Balogun, NiDCOM’s Head of Media and Public Relations, received the Mali returnees and emphasised the commission’s commitment to supporting their recovery and reintegration.
Dabiri-Erewa assured the survivors that NiDCOM would provide logistics for their return to their respective states and work with state governments to help them with their rehabilitation.
She also urged security agencies to intensify efforts to identify, prosecute, and publicly expose traffickers, stating: “We must name and shame those who subject our citizens to modern-day slavery.”
The rescued victims have since been handed over to the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) for profiling and further support.
The post 12 Nigerian Trafficking Victims, Including Five-Year-Old, Rescued From Ghana, Mali appeared first on Naija News.