…Agency unveils week-long activities to mark 2026 World Day Against Trafficking in Persons By Favour Ulebor, Abuja The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has disclosed that more than 300,000 people are trafficked annually into online scam operations across Southeast Asia, generating an estimated $64 billion for transnational criminal networks. Director-General of NAPTIP, Binta Adamu Bello, made the disclosure on Wednesday at a press briefing ahead of the 2026 World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, warning that cyber-enabled trafficking was becoming a growing global threat. She said victims of the trafficking networks are drawn from about 66 countries, with the highest number originating from Western and developed nations, while about 74 per cent of identified scam compounds are concentrated in the Mekong region.
Bello warned that the trend was gradually spreading to Nigeria and other African countries, making the fight against technology-driven human trafficking more urgent. She said the agency had uncovered a disturbing shift in trafficking patterns, with educated and highly skilled Nigerian youths increasingly being lured with fake job offers in information technology, digital marketing, customer service, cryptocurrency trading, gaming and telecommunications. According to her, many victims are recruited through fake social media advertisements, scholarship opportunities and overseas employment schemes before being trafficked to countries including Myanmar, Cambodia, Thailand and Laos.
She explained that upon arrival, their passports are confiscated and they are subjected to threats, violence, debt bondage and psychological coercion, forcing them to participate in online fraud schemes such as romance scams, cryptocurrency fraud and investment scams. “Over 300,000 people are trafficked into scam operations across Southeast Asia annually, with an estimated revenue of about 64 billion dollars generated. About 66 countries of origin are represented among trafficked victims, with the highest from the West and developed nations,” Bello said.
She added that many victims become trapped behind computer screens, false promises and organised criminal networks, unable to escape from the exploitation. The NAPTIP boss said the emerging trend informed this year’s theme for the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, “Trapped Behin… By Kingsley Omonobi ABUJA — The Nigerian Navy has handed over two rescued victims of human trafficking to the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), reaffirming its commitment to tackling human trafficking and other transnational organised crimes.
The Director of Information, Nigerian Navy, Commodore Abiodun Folorunsho, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday. According to him, the victims were rescued by personnel of the Forward Operating Base (FOB) Badagry during a targeted anti-human trafficking operation on July 17, 2026, and were formally handed over to NAPTIP’s Lagos Zonal Command in Ikeja on July 19. Folorunsho said the handover was carried out in line with the Harmonised Standard Operating Procedures (HSOP) for handling victims of trafficking.
He explained that the victims were first taken to the Western Naval Command Maritime Crime Investigation Desk, where they underwent documentation, biometric capture and other necessary administrative procedures before being transferred to NAPTIP for rehabilitation, protection and further investigation. He said the successful rescue and handover highlighted the Nigerian Navy’s commitment to protecting Nigeria’s maritime and territorial corridors from transnational organised crime while ensuring the safety and dignity of vulnerable persons. According to him, the operation also demonstrates the Navy’s sustained collaboration with relevant government agencies in dismantling human trafficking networks and strengthening the country’s national security architecture.
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