The Federal Government and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) have reiterated the need for safe, orderly, and regular migration to protect young Nigerians from exploitation and human trafficking.

Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Dr Bernard Doro, observed that while well-managed migration builds national capacity, irregular routes expose citizens to severe abuses.

Speaking at the fifth anniversary commemoration of the Cooperation on Migration Partnerships to Achieve Sustainable Solutions (COMPASS) programme in Abuja, the minister highlighted the dangers of irregular migrants.

“When migration is safe, regular and well managed, it builds capacity for these nations and allows those who will leave to return and give back. However, irregular migration exposes many of our young people to exploitation, trafficking, abuse and other risks that undermine human dignity,” Doro said.

To combat this, the minister stated that the government is implementing the “One Humanitarian, One Poverty” response system.

This framework according to him, aims to coordinate assistance and move vulnerable citizens from dependency to sustainable pathways out of poverty supported by partners like the Netherlands.

Earlier, the IOM Chief of Mission in Nigeria, Sharon Dimanche, revealed that the COMPASS programme has supported over 900 vulnerable migrants with healthcare, psychosocial, and livelihood interventions over the past five years.
Dimanche said that “The challenge is not migration itself, the challenge is ensuring that migration is safe, orderly, regular and protects the dignity of every individual,” Dimanche stated.

She commended the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) for its frontline role in protecting female and youth survivors.

“Returning home becomes the beginning of a new chapter and not the end,” she added, emphasising that strong communities remain central to lasting solutions and sustainable reintegration for returnees.

Also, the ambassador of Netherlands to Nigeria, Bengt van Loosdrecht, disclosed plans to integrate football into the country’s migration policy.

Through the Dutch Football Association, youths will receive technical and life skills training to act as agents of change against irregular migration in their communities, he explained.

The ambassador said the Dutch government is commitment to combating irregular migration and human trafficking in Nigeria through the COMPASS programme.

Van Loosdrecht noted that the International Organisation for Migration (IOM)-implemented programme focuses on human dignity, survivor care, and the dignified return of stranded Nigerians.

“It is about preventing the agony of victims who left for that perilous journey,” he stated.

In her presentation, the Director General of NAPTIP, Binta Bello, commended the project for bolstering the agency’s capacity to thoroughly investigate and prosecute trafficking cases.

She stressed the critical need for sustained collaboration to tackle evolving criminal networks exploiting economic hardship.

Bello pointed that “No single institution can tackle trafficking in persons or unsafe migration alone; it requires a collective effort.”