SPEAK WEDNESDAY – CHILD TRAFFICKING
Child Trafficking is a form of human trafficking and is defined by the United Nations as recruiting, transporting, transferring, and harboring a child for the purpose of slavery, forced labor and exploitation. Child trafficking occurs when children are taken away from safety and exploited. Children who are trafficked are often forced into some form of work, used for sex or simply sold.
Globally, 21 million people are trapped in forced labor or slavery. Of these, one in four are under the age of 18. Every year, 300,000 children are taken from all around the world and sold by human traffickers as slaves according to International Labor Organization (ILO).
Nigeria is not an exception. The alarming number of children being trafficked on a daily basis in Nigeria is worthy of immediate action. The 2015 re-enacted Trafficking in Persons Law Enforcement and Administration Act, and Nigeria 2003 Child Rights Act criminalize child trafficking, yet, this has not seemed to reduce the rate of child trafficking in Nigeria. Children are still being abducted despite measures that are put in place by necessary agencies.
Collective responsibility should be adopted to curb this silent menace globally. Individuals must support the government and necessary agencies to report suspects and suspected locations. At Centre for family Health Initiative, we totally condemn every form of trafficking and gender based violence. Every child deserves the right to grow and strive in a secured environment.
#SayNoToChildTrafficking #NoToChildAbduction #StopChildLabour #CFHISpeakWednesday
