Stakeholders have renewed calls for stronger action against local human trafficking in Nigeria, stressing that the crime often occurs within families and communities but remains largely overlooked.

The charge was made in Abuja during the screening of short films produced by survivors under a MeCAHT project supported by the Austrian Embassy.

The renewed concern follows a recent warning by the Director-General of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), Binta Adamu Bello, who said victims are trafficked daily from rural communities into urban centres and across borders for sexual exploitation, dangerous labour, and recruitment into terrorism and armed conflict.

At the event, Austrian Ambassador to Nigeria, Peter Guschelbauer, said the initiative was deliberately designed to place survivors at the centre of anti-trafficking advocacy. He noted that Austria’s support aligns with the ongoing 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence and the country’s long-standing partnership with MeCAHT.

According to him, this approach broadens public understanding of human trafficking beyond cross-border movements to the patterns of exploitation occurring locally.

He said the testimonies captured in the films reflect the hidden reality of internal trafficking in Nigeria, which can take place within homes and neighbourhoods. He added that the films would be used across schools and communities to help prevent further victimisation.
“From a European perspective, we are often focused on the transnational trafficking aspects, of course, and the exploitation of vulnerable people in Europe.
“Here, we want to highlight other additional realities, like for example, internal trafficking, which is prevalent in Nigeria, and that it often occurs within family or community settings. We should broaden our understanding and reinforce the need for localized awareness efforts,” Guschelbauer stated.

The ambassador noted Austria’s long commitment to combating the crime, recalling the establishment of a national task force in 2004 and the country’s yearly conference marking the EU Anti-Trafficking Day.

Also speaking, the Executive Director of MeCAHT, James Ikape, said the organisation; was created by Nigerians determined to rebuild the country by confronting the problem of trafficking.

Ikape said the new project, Beyond Care: Supporting Survivors of Human Trafficking, was conceived to deepen empowerment by training survivors to create videos, tell their stories, and promote their small businesses.

He explained that while survivors often learn vocations like tailoring and hairdressing in safe houses, digital storytelling offers an additional layer of empowerment and healing.
“So what we are doing is we brought together Survivors of Human Trafficking, a small number, yes, but a huge impact, for a period of three weeks. During this time, they learned how to make videos from this work.
“We also intend to create awareness using the materials from this initiative within Abuja. For this phase, we intend to create awareness amongst 2,000 people that we intend to scale up in the coming years.
“We also set out to establish clubs in five schools within Abuja, which we’ve also been able to do. In the next phase, we’ll show that we’ll definitely scale up that as well,” Ikape noted.

He stressed that reducing trans-border trafficking would be impossible without addressing the forms occurring within communities. He said MeCAHT plans to scale up the project in 2026, using the materials developed as long-term tools for awareness.

MeCAHT, a media-driven coalition, works to reduce human trafficking among vulnerable groups in Nigeria, South Africa and Europe.