UNICEF estimates that thousands of Nigerian children are trafficked annually, often ending up in forced labour, sexual exploitation, or illegal adoption rings. Poverty, weak law enforcement, and porous community vigilance fuel the crime.
Tears of joy and grief flowed freely in Yola on Wednesday as 14 abducted children trafficked from Adamawa to Anambra State were formally reunited with their parents.
At the reunion, Adamawa Deputy Governor, Prof. Kaletapwa George Farauta, warned that the state had been “placed on the map of an unfortunate monster ravaging the nation — child trafficking.”
“These children were converted into commodities of trade. Some were sold between N800,000 and N1.7 million each. This monstrous crime isn’t only traumatic to the victims and their parents but a sad and strange reality to our state,” Farauta said.
She disclosed that security operatives arrested the alleged kingpin, Ngozi Abdulwahab, who ran a small provision shop in Jambutu Ward, Yola-North. She reportedly lured unsuspecting children with snacks before trafficking them to the Southeast for resale.
“I thought my daughter was dead. For two months, I didn’t sleep,” said Husseini Shehu, father of nine-year-old Fatima, who was snatched while playing outside their home in Mubi-North.
“When I saw her today, I cried like a child myself. No parent should ever go through this pain.”
Aisha Isa, mother of five-year-old Muhammad Buba, could barely speak as she clutched her son.
“They stole my only child. I begged God every day to return him. Today, I know God is alive,” she whispered.
Others expressed shock that neighbours had lived side by side with the alleged trafficker without suspecting her.
“She pretended to be a harmless trader. Who knew she was selling our children like goats in the market?” said Mohammed Abubakar, father of Umar Farouk, nicknamed “Lagos Boy.”
Farauta said the suspects would be prosecuted under the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Enforcement and Administration Act, 2015, the Adamawa State Child Protection Law, 2008, and the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Law, 2021.
“The message of His Excellency, Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, is clear: Adamawa is the wrong place to come to. We shall flush them out, dismantle their networks, and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law. This isn’t an empty charge. It is a promise,” she declared.
The government provided each family with N100,000 and food items to cushion the reunion, promising follow-up monitoring by the Ministry of Women Affairs and local government welfare units.
Child trafficking has become one of Nigeria’s darkest realities.
In 2024, police in Ogun State uncovered a “baby factory” where infants were sold to traffickers. That same year, the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) intercepted buses in Kogi and Edo states transporting children as young as five for forced labour in Lagos.
In 2023, 35 children trafficked from Benue to Lagos for domestic servitude were rescued. In the Southeast, “baby farms” continue to flourish despite periodic police raids.
UNICEF estimates that thousands of Nigerian children are trafficked annually, often ending up in forced labour, sexual exploitation, or illegal adoption rings. Poverty, weak law enforcement, and porous community vigilance fuel the crime.
Civil society organisations argue that the Adamawa case shows how traffickers exploit trust and poverty at the grassroots.
“Parents must be extra vigilant. These criminals are not spirits — they live among us,” said an activist with the Adamawa Child Protection Network who attended the handover.
Farauta gave a similar warning, saying, “Children are sacred blessings from God. We must treat them with responsibility. Parents must be watchful, and the public must report suspicious activities. This fight is for all of us.”
As the rescued children clung to their parents, relief was mixed with fear that others may still be missing. For now, the families celebrated their return — but the shadow of Nigeria’s trafficking monster still looms large.
SaharaReporters
