The Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has said that to effectively curb the scourge of human trafficking and irregular migration, there must be a multi-pronged global action by stakeholders in the fight against the trend, calling for support for integration and rehabilitation efforts of the state government.
The governor said this in commemoration of the United Nations International Day Agai nst Trafficking in Persons, marked on July 30 annually.
He said urgent steps must be taken by global leaders to put an end to the practice which exposes women and children to forced labour and sex trade in various parts of the world.
According to him, “The fight against human trafficking is one that requires global collaboration. Global leaders must work together in prosecuting traffickers who profit from the illicit trade in Europe and other parts of the world.”
He noted that, “The implementation of the law on Trafficking in Persons and the establishment of the Edo State Taskforce Against Human Trafficking by my administration, are efforts to stem the scourge. We have shown commitment to address this scourge.
“All we need now is global support to deepen the institutions that have been set up and help in building capacities of our young people to better contribute to development of the state and the country at large.”
He said this year’s theme for the commemoration ‘Responding to the trafficking of children and young people’ aligns with the state government’s focus on training and retraining of youths for productive living.
He added that the state government is providing victims of human trafficking with support structures to acquire training and certifications on in-demand skills which would help reintegrate them into the society.
The United Nations (UN) described human trafficking “as a crime that exploits women, children and men for numerous purposes including forced labour and sex, while the International Labour Organisation estimates that 21 million people are victims of forced labour globally.
“This estimate also includes victims of human trafficking for labour and sexual exploitation. While it is not known how many of these victims were trafficked, the estimate implies that currently, there are millions of victims in the world.”
According to UN “The plan includes integrating the fight against human trafficking into the UN’s broader programmes in order to boost development and strengthen security worldwide. One of the crucial provisions in the Plan is the establishment of a UN Voluntary Trust Fund for victims of trafficking, especially women and children.”
