Minister of Women Affairs to collaborate with NAPTIP

The Minister of Women Affairs, Dame Pauline Tallen has promised to work in synergy with the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) to mitigate all forms of violence against women and children.

The Minister made the promise when the Director General of NAPTIP, Hajiya Imaan Suleiman Ibrahim led senior management staff of NAPTIP on a solidarity visit to the Ministry of Women Affairs.

The Minister said that the visit of the NAPTIP DG is the first official visit she will receive since her assumption of office this year, and from self-isolation.

Dame Pauline Tallen said that the Ministry has a very robust working strategy aimed at ameliorating hardship experienced by women and children and called on the authorities of NAPTIP to cash-in on the experience garnered by her Ministry to achieve its mandate.

In the area of human trafficking, the Minister said that women and children are worse hit, stating, that is why her ministry worked for promulgation of the VAD, and Child Rights Acts.

She said that if NAPTIP and the ministry work together they would be in a better position to checkmate all incidences of women trafficking, prostitution and child labour.

Dame Pauline Tallen said that the outbreak of coronavirus has increase the incidences of incest and child molestation by parents in the country.

She said, that is dishearting to note that biological parents take advantage of their wards during the COVID-19 lockdown.

The Minister called on parents, most especially male parents, to exercise restraint to stop abominable behaviors so that the Almighty will see out through all hardship confronting the nation.

Earlier, the Director-General of NAPTIP, Hajiya Imaan Suleiman Ibrahim said that she has come to solicit for a good working relationship with the Ministry of Women Affairs.

She said that the mandate of her organization is to develop and execute programmes against human trafficking.

“You will agree with me that most of the subject of this trade are women and children. It is therefore encumbine on us to work in synergy with the Ministry of Women Affairs in order to succeed”, she said.

She therefore enumerated areas that NAPTIP and the Ministry of Women Affairs could collaborate.

The areas of collaboration include; economic empowerment programs for women and children; training of personnel’s and advocacy visit.

The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Ambassador Anthonia Ekpa promised to set up a committee made-up of staff of the Ministry and those from NAPTIP to work out strategies for the two organization.