In 2023, Nigeria officially joined the Blue Heart Campaign against human trafficking at an event marking World Day against Trafficking in Persons. This occasion, and the 20th anniversary of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) provided a welcome opportunity to reintroduce the Blue Heart symbol as part of Nigeria’s efforts to combat human trafficking.
The country has already collaborated successfully with UNODC on the 'I am priceless' campaign against human trafficking, which featured the Blue Heart branding in 2011. Since then, NAPTIP has been organizing various Blue Heart Campaign events to raise awareness, empower young advocates, and engage communities in preventing and combating human trafficking.
Nigeria is both a country of origin and destination for victims of human trafficking. In pursuit of better life people are forced to move and often fall victims to deceitful offer of traffickers. According to NAPTIP’s country analysis report covering the years from 2019 to 2021, dominant forms of human trafficking in Nigeria include trafficking for labour and sexual exploitation, street hawking, stone quarrying, and baby sales. Notably, trafficking for sexual exploitation is the most prevalent at 49.4 per cent, followed by child labour/abuse at 28.5 per cent.
The series of events to commemorate the 2023 World Day against Trafficking in Persons in Nigeria was jointly organized by UNODC with NAPTIP, the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), The Fundación Internacional y para Iberoamérica de Administración y Políticas Públicas (FIIAPP), Expertise France and The International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD).
