BENIN CITY – The Girls Power Initiative (GPI), an NGO has organised a Town Hall meeting as part of its strategic plan of actions towards duck-mating the incidence of trafficking in human beings and illegal migration from Edo State.
The Town Hall meeting which held at the Secretariat of Oredo Local Government Council was organised to raise awareness on the evils of human trafficking and irregular migration among in and out of school children and the general public in Edo South Senatorial District.
An official of GPI said it is part of a comprehensive programme spanning a period six months to discourage human trafficking and illegal migration among in and out of school children in any guise.
The meeting had stakeholders in attendance, including market women, students of higher education, opinion leaders, clergy men young girls and boy as well as married and unmarried men and women.
According to her, the strategy plans will be extended to the seven local government areas of Edo South Senatorial District, including three secondary schools in each local government area where a total of 180 students are being targeted.
The official listed the ills of human trafficking to include, rape, battery, drug abuse, psychological torture, unwanted pregnancies, forced labour, abortion, death, violation of human rights, stress and sexually transmitted disease.
Describing human trafficking as a crime against humanity, official identified poverty, cultural attitude towards girls, lack of appropriate means of earning livelihood, lack of requisite information, and education as well as the demand for cheap migrant labour as principal reasons for trafficking in persons.
As a way of checking the incidence of human trafficking and illegal migration, official therefore recommended that parents give birth to the number of children they can cater for; provision of job opportunities by government and individuals, spreading anti-human trafficking crusade as well as reporting cases of trafficking in human beings to appropriate quarters.