US Donates $6.8m to Combat Human Trafficking in Nigeria

The United States has donated $6.8 million for projects to combat trafficking in persons in Nigeria.

The US is sponsoring the projects through its Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) with the fund made available to the United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime (UNODC), which would oversee the projects in the country.

A statement by the US Embassy in Nigeria on Wednesday, explained that the INL donation would fund UNODC to train the Nigeria Correctional Service in the north-eastern states of Borno, Gombe, and Adamawa.

The funds would also support UNODC’s Middle Belt Investigations project by ensuring local police investigators in Kaduna, Plateau, Benue, and Nasarawa states have the training and resources to respond more effectively to incidents of criminality, kidnapping, and conflict.

The project also aims to improve the capacity of local courts and prosecutors by increasing transparency and adherence to due process for cases related to the activities of Boko Haram and ISIS-West Africa.

The statement noted that the United States values its relationship with Nigeria and, through her partnership with the UNODC, provides support to its work combatting drugs, crime, and corruption, and building the capacity of the Nigerian National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP).

It further revealed that the INL funds were made possible through appropriations made by Congress to the U.S. Department of State to support efforts in the fight against organised crime and drug trafficking worldwide.

Michael Olugbode in Abuja

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