Titi Atiku Abubakar, wife of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, has expressed concern over the increasing number of Nigerian girls travelling abroad, saying the situation has become a source of worry for foreign countries and contributed to international partners’ support for Nigeria’s fight against human trafficking.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

She explained that the partners wanted more Nigerian girls to remain in the country and pursue their ambitions at home rather than migrate overseas and become a burden on their host nations.

Titi, who is the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Network Against Child Trafficking, Abuse and Labour (NACTAL), made the remarks on Thursday in Abuja during the presentation of the organisation’s review of the 2025 Trafficking in Persons Report issued by the United States Department of State.

Speaking on the reasons behind international partners’ support for Nigeria’s anti-trafficking initiatives, she said the objective was to encourage Nigerian girls to stay in their country and build their futures there.

“You see, why our partners are actually helping us? Because they want our girls to stay at home. Our girls are becoming nuisance in overseas countries. So that is why these partners are helping us,” she said.

She added that the assistance was intended to strengthen efforts to combat human trafficking and empower Nigerian girls to pursue their goals within the country.

“They are supporting us, they are supporting the girls. They want them to stay at home and do whatever they want to do in their homes, in their country,” she added.

The NACTAL board chair also called for stronger collaboration among civil society organisations, stressing that tackling human trafficking, child abuse and child labour required a collective effort.

According to her, NACTAL could not successfully address the challenges alone and needed the support of other organisations working to protect vulnerable people and prevent trafficking.

“NACTAL has about 286 foot soldiers, those are the CSOs that are working with NACTAL because NACTAL alone cannot do it. So we must bring everybody on board to help in this fight,” she said.

Meanwhile, Abdulganiu Abubakar, the immediate past president of NACTAL and regional representative of the West African Coalition Against Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling of Migrants, said the network’s review found that the contributions of the Nigerian government, development partners and civil society organisations were not sufficiently acknowledged in the 2025 US Trafficking in Persons Report.

He explained that the review was initiated after the report’s release to assess its evaluation of Nigeria’s efforts to combat human trafficking, particularly in the areas of victim protection, rehabilitation and shelter provision.

Abubakar noted that development partners had supported Nigeria in formulating policies, assisting trafficking victims and renovating shelters operated by civil society organisations and the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP).

He said about 10 NAPTIP shelters had received renovation support, but the interventions were not adequately reflected in the US report.

He also argued that the work of more than 289 NACTAL member organisations, alongside Nigeria’s involvement in regional initiatives to combat human trafficking across West Africa, deserved greater recognition.

However, Abubakar acknowledged that Nigeria continued to face significant challenges in enforcing anti-trafficking policies.

He identified inadequate funding, insufficient political will and weaknesses in prosecuting trafficking cases, particularly high-profile cases, as some of the factors undermining the country’s response.

He urged the Federal Government to increase funding for ministries, departments and agencies responsible for combating human trafficking and demonstrate stronger commitment to implementing existing policies.

“The government of Nigeria needs to do a lot in terms of funding. The political will and commitment should improve,” he said.

Abubakar also called on the government to create an enabling environment for civil society organisations and development partners to operate independently while complementing official efforts.

He further urged the authorities to recognise investigative journalists who uncover human trafficking networks and expose alleged perpetrators.

NACTAL Plans To Expand Membership

In his remarks, NACTAL President Osita Osemene announced plans to increase the organisation’s membership from approximately 286 civil society organisations to 500 within the first three months of his administration.

He said the network was also targeting a membership of at least 1,000 organisations within one year.

According to Osemene, expanding the network would promote greater grassroots participation in the fight against human trafficking and improve assistance for victims and other vulnerable people.

He emphasised that the responsibility for tackling human trafficking should not be left to international partners alone, urging Nigerians to play a more active role in addressing the problem.

“The fight against human trafficking is a collective responsibility, and everybody must come together to ensure that this fight is won,” he said.

Osemene added that his administration would prioritise training and capacity-building programmes to equip more civil society workers with the knowledge and skills required to handle cases involving human trafficking and child labour.

He explained that the strategy would combine membership expansion with professional development to improve the quality of support available to victims.