The conditionality channel was in fact most influential. It was the anticipation of possible debt cancellation that broke the political deadlock that had prevented policy reforms for a long time.  Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala got lots of plaudits from this brilliant move that saved Nigeria the much sought after $18 billion debt relief.  Although this writer…

To foster opportunities for inclusive, fair and sustainable future of work, labour ministers have reaffirmed their commitment to promote innovative skills policies, strengthen social protection, and formalise labour markets to make them more equitable and inclusive. In their declaration at the just-concluded G20 Education and Employment Ministers’ meeting in Argentina, they endorsed the G20 Strategy…

Domestic work is an area that is not regulated by law in most parts of the world. This makes them one of the groups most vulnerable to exploitation, violence, harassment, and forced labour.  While in most parts of the developing countries domestic workers are children of relatives, the practice has moved well beyond in-country practice…

Beyoncé made the cover of Vogue's prestigious September issue on which the singer speaks candidly about race, body image, creativity and her children. Vogue's editor-in-chief, Anna Wintour, gave the singer an unprecedented amount of editorial control of the issue. And this control showed every step of the way in the cover. The photos were shot…

Rapper Kanye West, on the receiving end of criticism in the music world after backing President Donald Trump, sparked fresh outrage Tuesday when he called slavery "a choice." The rapper, never shy about expressing himself, made the comments in passing during one of two free-flowing interviews he gave as he promotes two upcoming albums. "You…

The Nigerians who cross the Sahara on their way to Europe were exploited by all kinds of people: in Nigeria in Benin by the agent, in Sahara, on the way to Agadez, by Bedouins and Berbers who extorted money from them. In Libya, they were sold as slaves usually because they could not pay the…

President Gaddafi of Libya may have been a megalomaniac, but he was an African megalomaniac and also an Islamic megalomaniac, in a world where his activities could be seen by the West as harmful to its interests in the war between the West and Soviet Russia. In the late 60’s, 70’s and 80’, Gaddafi and…

In what I call ‘The Victory of Slavery’, our own Edo State boy, Victory has become the poster boy of modern day slavery! And it seems CNN can’t seem to get enough of the story. It fits in perfectly with their Freedom Project as well as their insatiable hunger for all the negative narratives about…

Following the tremendous success of last year’s  #MyFreedomDay call to action, CNN is once again encouraging young people around the globe to raise their voices on March 14 to generate awareness of modern-day slavery. From panel debates to film screenings and marches, students from hundreds of schools – spread across six continents and representing more than 100 countries…

She is a big trader in one of the big cities in the city and by all standard neither she nor her husband could be said to be poor, at least, by the city’s standard.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Thursday, condemned the resurgence of slavery in some parts of Africa, saying that the development was worrisome. Speaking at the 2017 Annual Conference of the Comptroller General of Immigration held at the MITROS Residences in Abeokuta, Obasanjo said that slave trade in the 21st century should be condemned in the…

The mere mention of slavery or the slave trade today evokes the memory of a dark and fiendish chapter in human history,  dark, despicable, brutish, heinous and horrific comparable only to the holocaust, the mass extermination of millions of  Jews ....