10 Nigerian Girls Forced To Work As Prostitutes In Cote d’Ivoire Rescued By NAPTIP

Despite the dangers involved in trafficking of persons and the attendant risk to health especially, Nigerians girls are still being ‘traded’ across the borders unwittingly by friends, relatives and even strangers with offers of a good life. It was in recognition of this unwholesome practice that the Federal Government set up the National Agency for the Prohibition of Traffic in Persons and Other Related Matters (NAPTIP) to help stem the ugly tide.
Therefore, it was a laudable achievement when on Saturday 15th September, 2012, the National Agency for the Prohibition of Traffic in Persons and Other Related Matters (NAPTIP) announced the rescue of ten Nigerian girls, who had been forced to work as commercial sex workers in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire.
The girls, who arrived Abuja in two batches, hail from Edo, Delta, Rivers and Benue states respectively, with Edo topping the list with six girls.
The Executive Secretary of NAPTIP, Beatrice Jedy-Agba told Daily Times that the rescue operation was carried out based on a tip-off that several Nigerian girls were in sex bondage in Cote d’Ivoire. The operation was done in collaboration with the regional bureau office of Interpol in Abidjan, and an Abidjan based Non-Governmental Organisation, Family Essan for Protection and Promotion of Human Rights (FEPDH).
The rescued girls are already undergoing medical screening and counselling with NAPTIP operatives, after which they would commence rehabilitation