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| Okah-Donli |
The
Director-General of the Agency, Julie Okah – Donli disclosed this in Abuja
while inaugurating a 27 member Steering Committee for the establishment of the
Academy.
The
NAPTIP boss said that the need to close the existing knowledge gaps amongst Law
Enforcement Agencies in the Country and those within the West African region on
issues involved in the fight against human trafficking as national and
international crime with huge implications for national security and sovereignty
has made it necessary for such an Academy to be established.
Okah
– Donli said: The Steering Committee is to see to the successful establishment
of a standard Regional Training Academy that will offer solution to all
institutional needs and satisfy the requirements around the spheres of Human
Trafficking and other related matters, towards effective continuous capacity
building of NAPTIP Personnel and other relevant stakeholders within the country
and the West African region, as well as meeting the needs of National and
International Researchers in the field of Human Trafficking.”
She
explained that the Agency being the first of its kind in the world with a huge
mandate of preventing the crime; prosecuting offenders; protecting and
assisting rescued victims as well as partnering with all stakeholders to curb
the menace, has over the years provided a learning ground for various
stakeholders within and outside the country.
She
further said: “Many of our partners from the West African region have over the
years relied on us to provide training on how best to fight the scourge bearing
in mind our many years of experience in the fight against human trafficking.
Many including those from Europe have been here on study tours and we need to
properly put in place a befitting place to help in raising the capacity of our
personnel, those of our sister Agencies and those from abroad especially from
our sub-region.”
She
also explained that the need to ensure proper identification and profiling of
both suspected human traffickers and victims of trafficking have made it
imperative to build a regional academy on counter human trafficking in Nigeria.
She
said: “NAPTIP, just like any other organization, is composed of human and
material resources and the level of employee efficiency is directly
proportionate to the quality of training he is exposed to. Hence, no personnel
can deliver any productivity beyond the level of his capacity acquired through
training. Since its inception, the Agency has had to build the capacity of its
manpower through improvised and haphazard ways, leading to an uncoordinated
manpower development process and a total lack of a single and up-to-date
training databank, as is the standard practice in other organisations.
“The Academy when fully in place shall take full
charge of the Training needs of the Agency and be directly responsible for the
professional development of officers of the Agency. It shall play a pivotal
role in research, documentation, publication and training of officers to
constantly update officers’ knowledge on emerging trends in TIP, thus providing
the needed raw materials for precise policy/legal reviews that will provide
adequate response to the scourge of trafficking in persons.”
Okah-Donli also noted that an enabling environment
for the smooth take-off of the Training Academy has already been put in place
with the successful development of a standard Training Policy, Training
Curriculum, Training Modules, and Trainers’ Guide by the Agency through the
European Union and ECOWAS sponsored project entitled: Support To Free Movement
of Persons and Migration in West Africa (FMM West Africa).
The project was implemented by the International
Center for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD).
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