The International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) mobilised parents across Edo on Tuesday to combat human trafficking at the family and community levels. During an engagement with Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) executives from 40 schools, ICMPD stressed that traffickers are increasingly targeting families directly through deceptive schemes. The event was part of the School Anti-Human Trafficking Education and Advocacy (STEAP) project, implemented by ICMPD in partnership with NAPTIP, the Girls Power Initiative, and the Edo Ministry of Education, and funded by the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Parents were positioned as the first line of defence against trafficking.
Sam Offiah, Benin Zonal Commander of NAPTIP, said traffickers have grown more sophisticated, shifting from street recruitment to exploiting familial trust. Represented by Joy Ojiewa, he stated that Edo remains a hotspot for sexual exploitation, with labour trafficking and organ harvesting also prevalent. He cited fake scholarships, fraudulent job offers, sextortion, online recruitment, and baby factories as common lures. Mercy Isibor, STEAP Desk Officer at the Edo Ministry of Education, urged parents to act, warning that government education investments would be undermined if children remained vulnerable. Daniella Ige, Junior Project Officer for STEAP at ICMPD, said PTA members are expected to drive sustained advocacy, with anti-trafficking vanguard clubs already active in schools and awareness integrated into curricula.
Mercy Isibor, STEAP Desk Officer at the Edo Ministry of Education, delivered the sharpest truth of the moment: without parental involvement, quality education in Edo is unattainable. Her warning that "if we fail to secure our learners, then quality education becomes a mirage" cuts to the core of a system where social protection and education policy remain disconnected.
The fact that traffickers now target parents directly—using fake scholarships, online grooming, and baby factories—reveals a grim evolution in criminal tactics. Edo's status as a trafficking hotspot is not new, but the shift from street-level recruitment to infiltration of family trust changes the battlefield. With poverty and misinformation as enablers, the state's education infrastructure is being weaponised against its own children.
For parents in Edo, especially in low-income communities, this means heightened personal responsibility without commensurate state support. They are now expected to detect sophisticated scams, monitor children's digital activity, and counter peer pressure—all while navigating economic hardship. The burden of prevention is falling on the most vulnerable.
This reflects a broader pattern: Nigerian anti-trafficking efforts increasingly rely on community volunteers and donor-funded projects like STEAP, rather than systemic enforcement or economic reform. Grassroots awareness is useful, but it cannot replace a failing protection architecture.
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