Nigeria source, destination for sex trafficking, organ harvesting — EU Official

The European Union has said Nigeria is now seen globally as a
source and destination for sex trafficking, forced labour, transit
and trafficking in human organs.

The EU also said it would support Nigeria through its political
dialogue and development cooperation to fight these vices.

The Head of the EU Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Ketil
Karlsen, said this, according to a statement signed by the union’s
press officer, Modestus Chukwulaka, on Wednesday.

According to the statement, Mr Karlsen said this on Tuesday, in
Lagos, shortly after ”the 64th chartered flight bringing back
voluntary Nigerian returnees arrived the country”.

He said the EU is also working closely with local communities to
create alternatives to migrant-smuggling based economies and to
facilitate the sustainable reintegration of returning migrants.

”The European Union, through political dialogue and development
cooperation, is supporting Nigeria to improve its capacity to deal
with drivers of irregular migration, including the long-term and
structural root causes and forced displacement,” Mr Karlsen
said.

”It is also working closely with local communities to create
alternatives to migrant-smuggling based economies and to facilitate
the sustainable reintegration of returning migrants,” he added.

Mr Karlsen said the EU would work closely on the ”structural
root causes of irregular migration and forced displacement in
Nigeria”.

“Saving and protecting the lives of migrants and refugees,
breaking the business model of smugglers and traffickers and
providing legal pathways, while addressing the root causes of
irregular migration and forced displacement are at the very heart
of the EU’s policy,” he said.

The EU ambassador explained that the EU does not want to stop
migration, but, ”migration should happen out of aspiration, not
desperation.

“What we want to stop is dangerous, unprotected, and
exploitative forms of migration. Migration should happen out of
aspiration, not desperation.

”The EU is working in all areas of migration in Nigeria,
including migration management, labour migration, irregular
migration, return and reintegration, mobility and international
protection.

”Nigeria is a source, transit and destination country for women
and children victims of sex trafficking and forced labour in the
forms of prostitution, domestic servitude, begging and sometimes
trafficking in human organs. The IOM has identified 749 victims of
trafficking among the returnees, and more than 3,172 with
vulnerabilities.

”The EU is also working on the prevention side in the country of
origin as well. Trafficking in human beings and smuggling of
migrants in Nigeria are targeted under new EUR- 10 million
programmes focusing on these two issues for five years.”

Also in the statement, Mr Karlsen said in April 2017, the
European Union, through its Emergency Trust Fund for Africa (EUTF),
launched the Joint Initiative for Migrant Protection and
Reintegration in Africa with the International Organisation for
Migration (IOM).

The official said that within the framework of the Joint
Initiative, 12,974 stranded Nigerians migrants had been assisted to
return to their home country, including 1,158 in 2019.

According to him, the initiative, ”which is wholly funded by the
EU, aims to improve migrant protection, voluntary return, and
reintegration”..

Nigerian Army, Harvard School Partner on Capacity
Development
The Nigerian Army (NA) has pledged to step up collaboration with
Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) in order to enhance the capacity
development of its officers.

The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Tukur Yusufu
Buratai, indicated the readiness of the NA to strengthen
partnership with HKS when he received a delegation from the
institution at the Army Headquarters, Abuja.

The COAS on behalf of Soldiers and Officers of the NA, thanked
the management of the school for the visit and lauded the
institution for its strategic role in building quality/ visionary
leaders.

It would be recalled that the NA under the command of Lt Gen TY
Buratai has sponsored very many officers who have leadership
potentials, – of becoming great leaders to the school in order to
build their capacity on defence and security studies for strategic
leadership responsibility.

He promised to strengthen partnership with the institution in
order to have the HKS train officers here in Nigeria.

Earlier in his remark, the leader of the delegation, Maj Gen
William Rapp (rtd) stated that the partnership was sacrosanct in
order to develop officers with requisite leadership abilities to
overcome current complex leadership challenges.

According to him, “Nigeria’s future is very significant to the
world, the collaboration will enhance the capacity of the NA
leadership to look forward to changes and challenges in a global
scale.

In his remarks at the occasion, the Director General Nigerian
Army Resource Centre (NARC), Maj Gen Wahab (rtd), who led the HKS
team on the visit posited that “the aim of the visit was to enable
the management of the school familiarize with the leadership of the
NA and deliberate on how best to develop the partnership between
the NA and HKS. We are looking of how best we could have lecturers
from the institution to come to Nigeria to train officers of the NA
through the NARC.

He further disclosed plans by the Centre to have HKS kick start
training here in Nigeria, with the sole objective of building the
capacity of our future strategic leaders for the military and the
nation.

Present during the visit were some Principal Staff Officers of
the Army Headquarters as well as some management staff of HKS.

SAGIR MUSA
Colonel
Acting Director Army Public Relations