BRIEF REMARKS BY AG. IGP MOHAMMED A. ADAMU, NPM, mni AT THE OPENING CEREMONY OF THE INTERPOL WORKSHOP ON COUNTERING TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS AND MIGRANT SMUGGLING IN NIGERIA HELD AT DENNIS HOTEL, ABUJA ON 25TH MARCH 2019.
I welcome you all to this important workshop organized by INTERPOL to engage the topical global security challenge of trafficking in human beings and smuggling of migrants. That this Conference is being held in Nigeria and attended by participants from the Nigeria Police, Nigeria Immigration Service, Nigeria Customs Service, National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons and the Ministry of Justice is significant in several ways.
2. First, it is an appreciation by the Federal Government that the activities of human trafficking and migrants smuggling networks have evolved to become a major internal security challenge in the country. Second, it is a clear statement that the government recognises that the consequences of human trafficking and migrants smuggling have critical national security and developmental implications and requires sustained intervention action build on capacity development for security agencies. Third, it symbolizes the firm commitment of the Nigerian government to galvanise all relevant security agencies and strengthen strategic local and global partnerships towards dissecting, developing strategies, and emplacing sustainable action plans towards addressing the threat.
3. I recall that during the 6th INTERPOL Global Conference on Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling of Migrants which was held here in Abuja in September 2018, stakeholders from Nigeria met with top officials from the INTERPOL General Secretariat to discuss modalities for technical assistance in capacity building to combat the scourge of human trafficking and migrant smuggling and the result of that engagement has culminated into this workshop today.
4. This event could not have come at a better time. This is because in recent times, Nigeria and indeed the continent of Africa have been experiencing a surge in the menace of trans-border trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants. These illegal activities do not only pose a threat to the victims as individuals but also to the countries involved at both ends.
5. The Nigeria Police, working in collaboration with the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) and the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) have been at the forefront in the fight against the menace. I must in this regard, recognize and commend the great works that the Director General of NAPTIP and the Comptroller General of NIS have been doing in this regard. The Nigeria Police under my leadership shall continue to support the two agencies while strengthening its institutional capacity towards addressing the threat of human trafficking.
6. In furtherance to this, recently, the Nigeria Police raised the bar by upgrading the Anti-Human Trafficking Section of the Force with the appointment of a Commissioner of Police to head the Section. In addition to this, the Police have over the years, remained faithful to the inter-agency framework of seconding police officers to NAPTIP to support and enhance their investigative and operational capacities towards attaining their anti-human trafficking mandate. I can assure that these initiatives shall be sustained under my leadership as the Inspector General of Police.
7. Indeed, beyond this, I will in due course, engage with the Heads of NAPTIP and all other strategic security agencies with mandate for managing human trafficking and migrant smuggling with a view to strengthening inter-agency collaborative efforts and exploring new pathways and that will advance our common drive towards managing this national and global security concern in a coordinated manner.
8. In addition, I shall continue to deploy our unique intelligence and operational assets and draw on my strong network with INTERPOL to support this initiative, just as I will also be engaging with international agencies and foreign development partners towards achieving the goals of addressing the transnational crime of human trafficking and migrants smuggling.
9. These sets of actions are essential because human trafficking and smuggling of migrants is an organized and transnational crime which requires multi-agency and multinational collaborative approach to effectively combat. It is, therefore, my expectation that this forum will provide participants with the platform to create good working relationship that will allow for robust professional synergy and exchange of information which will, ultimately, strengthen coordination among all security agencies and other strategic partners in the fight against this scourge in Nigeria.
10. Permit me to conclude by commending INTERPOL for facilitating the hosting of this workshop in Nigeria. This represents a personal honour to me as a former Vice-President of INTERPOL and a member of the global INTERPOL family. I look forward to the sustenance of this form of support and partnership in other fields of internal security endeavor and towards the attainment of my policing vision for Nigeria.
10. On this note, I welcome you all to this engagement, and I have the singular honour and privilege to declare the Workshop open.
11. Thank you and God bless you all.