The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has inaugurated Anti-Human Trafficking and Violence Against Persons vanguards in eight more schools in Delta State.
This brings to ten, the number of schools where the vanguards have been inaugurated in five local government areas in the state.
They are Abraka Grammar School, Abraka and Erho secondary school, Erho-Abraka in Ethiope East Local Government Area, Igbonine Grammar School, Ozoro, in Isoko North and St. Michael College in Isoko South Local Government Areas.
Others are Okpanam High School, Okpanam, Unity Model Secondary School, Okpanam, Madonna School for Children with Special Needs (Inclusive), Okpanam and St. Thomas’ College, Ibusa all in Oshimili North Local Government Area; West End Mixed Secondary School, Asaba and Osadenis High school, Asaba, in Oshimili South Local Government Area.
The inauguration came under the Schools Anti-Trafficking Education and Advocacy Project (STEAP), bringing to an end the first phase of the exercise.
STEAP is a Project of the Federal Government, funded by the Kingdom of the Netherlands and implemented through NAPTIP in collaboration with the International Center for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) in Nigeria to support the fight against human trafficking
The Edo Zonal Commander of NAPTIP, Mr. Sam Offiah, while inaugurating the vanguards in the schools described trafficking as modern-day slavery, adding that the inaugurated students are being empowered on how to detect, identify, prevent and report cases of human trafficking.
He said that the target of traffickers are secondary school students as they could be easily confused and distracted, noting that “if they were not informed on the dangers, they would fall victim”.
Speaking at the events Mrs Ijeoma David-Ukolo, STEAP Project Officer, said that advocating the campaign to secondary schools became necessary because students are a vulnerable group and the target destination is mostly European countries.
Also speaking, Mrs Nwanze Ijeoma, Secretary of the Task Force appreciated NAPTIP for choosing Delta State as one of the five states to benefit from the STEAP adding that the impact of the project will greatly raise awareness and reduce human trafficking in the State.
She restated the commitment of the state government to combat human trafficking in the State saying that all hands must be on the desk to fight the menace of human trafficking.
Also 0speaking at the events, the representative of the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, Mr. Eze Mackeans, Deputy Director, advised the vanguards and the schools to take all they have learnt seriously as Delta State ranks high with cases of human trafficking.
Responding, the Principals of the inaugurated schools applauded NAPTIP and the State Government for finding their schools worthy of being among the selected schools for the Project just as they promised to assist the inaugurated students to educate other students on the dangers associated with human trafficking.
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