The collaborative efforts of the Nigerian Embassy and a Senegal-based non-governmental organization have led to the rescue of 24 Nigerian girls who were victims of sexual exploitation in Senegal’s Tamaccounda and Kedougou Regions.
The acting Ambassador of the Nigerian Embassy in Dakar, Senegal, Salihu Abubakar, revealed this to the News Agency of Nigeria on Sunday.
Abubakar explained that the girls, mostly under-aged and ranging from 11 to 24 years old, were trafficked to Senegal through Cotonou, Republic of Benin, and then via the Mali-Senegal border for sexual exploitation in Tamaccounda and Kedougou Regions.
“These girls and many more are being trafficked to Senegal, through Cotonou, Benin Republic, via Mali to the Senegal border for prostitution,” the diplomat stated.
He noted that initial investigations showed that most of the girls, who had dropped out of school, were from Edo and Delta states, with a few from Imo and Abia, and two others from Plateau.
Abubakar added that out of the 24, 22 had been repatriated weeks earlier, while the remaining two were repatriated to Nigeria on Saturday and safely arrived in the country.
The diplomat could not provide immediate details regarding the health status of the victims or the duration of their exploitation in Senegal.
He highlighted that the successful repatriation of the girls underscored the enhanced international cooperation in combating human trafficking between the embassy and the Senegalese-based NGO, ‘Free the Slaves’, La Lumiere in French.
“Our main goal and number one priority are to discourage the trafficking of our Nigerian girls to any part of the world for prostitution under any disguise,” Abubakar emphasized.
