The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons and Other Related Matters (NAPTIP) says Ogun State leads among states where human beings are abducted for rituals.

The Director, Public Enlightenment, NAPTIP Mr Arinze Orakwe disclosed this on Tuesday in Calabar at a Media Roundtable on Trafficking in Persons organised by the European Union (EU).

He said that the increasing rate of trafficking in persons was due to some desperate Nigerians in their quest to use human organ for ritual purpose.

"The most dangerous place where people disappear now is Ogun State and the police know about this," he said.

He said that although all the states in Nigeria were vulnerable to trafficking, 22 states were most vulnerable to trafficking in persons.

Orakwe also said that apart from that, Boko Haram also to perpetrate their heinous acts by using children for suicide mission.

According to him, the suicide bomber used by Boko Haram to perpetrate their heinous crime is sequel to child trafficking by this gang of insurgents.

Orakwe said that if poverty was reduced and infrastructures available in the country, issues of trafficking in persons would be highly reduced.

He said that the proliferation of education agencies recruiting unsuspecting students for overseas admission because of failure in the education sector was largely responsible for trafficking in Nigeria.

The Outreach and Communication Officer, UNODC, Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Mr Silvester Atere listed factors responsible for trafficking.

He said that they include poverty, the desire to earn a living, greed, ignorance, parental negligence among others.

According to him, some of the things facilitating trafficking in persons are denied freedom of movement, psychological abuse, gender division and unequal international economic relations.

He said that trafficking in persons was third most lucrative business in the world, aside drug trafficking and armed smuggling.

He added that such business was inimical to the growth and development of the society.

Atere said that trafficking in persons debased the essence of humanity, while calling on Nigerians to report any act of trafficking to the appropriate agencies of government. (NAN)

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