The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) says it has handled 4,755 cases and supported over 10, 685 trafficked victims since inception in 2003.
The new Director-General of the Agency, Mrs Julie Okah-Donli, disclosed this at a news conference in Lagos on Wednesday.
Okah-Donli said that from February to April, about 905 out of the 1,134 expected deportees had returned from Libya, 115 from Italy and 41 from Mali.
She added that 26 deportees were received from Burkina Faso, 14 from Ghana and 22 from the United Arab Emirates (Dubai).
“One person was also deported from Cameroun, eight from Cote d’ Ivoire and two from Togo.
“The trend of Nigerians being deported from different parts of the world, especially in Africa, in recent time is frightening.
“We are expecting a batch of 250 persons from Libya on Thursday and another batch of 250 from the same place next week.
“This number does not include the over 5000, majorly victims of human trafficking in Mali awaiting evacuation back home,’’ the new director-general said.
Explaining further, Okah- Donli said the 1,134 expected deportees from Libya were being extradited for various immigration offences, including human trafficking and smuggling of migrants.
She said that some of the migrants were also deported as a result of non-possession of valid travel documents.
The director-general stressed that Nigeria could stop this trend by providing an environment attractive to keep Nigerians gainfully employed at home. (NAN)
ADEX/MIO/COF