Uprooting the stronghold of sports trafficking in Nigeria

By Dame Julie Okah Donli

In the previous editions of my diary, I wrote about the general overview of human trafficking and its attendant societal ills. Let me once again reiterate that human trafficking is a return of the indignity of human slavery.

In fact, it is a form of modernized slavery that has undergone changes over the years. Drawing from my wealth of experience at NAPTIP, I already established in the previous editions that there are various dimensions and new trends in human trafficking.

In this edition, we tackle one of the dimensions head on and this is the ugly menace of sports trafficking.

In Nigeria and other countries of the world, many young boys and girls are trafficked out of the country under the guise of playing football and other sport activities for different international clubs.

In December alone, seven young footballers between the ages of 16-19 years were deceived and taken out of Nigeria for the Central Asian country, Uzbekistan, with the promise of going to play football for international clubs.

These talented youngsters from different parts of Nigeria came in contact with a fraudster who posed as a football agent, swindled them of millions of naira and processed their visas to Uzbek.

Upon arrival at Uzbek, these young chaps discovered that there was no football opportunity waiting for them there. According to the boys, they met hundreds of young talented Nigerians who had also fallen prey to this kind of scheme.

Upon discovering that their high hopes of playing professional football had been dashed, some of these youngsters returned before the expiration of their visas with their dignity intact while others held on to the mirage of securing other deals there while exposing themselves to various vices.

Approximately, more than 15,000 children are trafficked into Europe and other regions yearly under the pretense of making them professional footballers.

It is sad to note that most of these players do not have any form of formal invitation from any international club, yet, they do not hesitate to fly out to other countries in search of greener pastures all because of ignorance, greed and impatience.

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Another talented young man who was deceived out of the country to Dubai with the promise of professional football deals describes the situation as terrible. According to him, it is extremely difficult to sign for a professional club there, and upon the expiration of your visa, debt accumulates.

At this juncture, these victims are left with the choice of either swallowing their pride and returning home or staying back illegally. Most people chose the former because they lack the courage to return home empty handed because of the high hopes they and their families and in some cases communities had on them.

This brings us to the issue of the causes of this ugly trend, one of which is misplaced priorities; if you can afford to raise one million naira and above to travel outside the country without having a legally mapped out means of survival, what stops you from using the money to set up a business in Nigeria?

So many big business ventures in Nigeria started with a capital of less than a million naira and through hard work, dedication and persistence, their owners have been able to build empires to a level where they are not only financially independent but also employers of labour.

The issue of ignorance on the part of young people and their parents and sponsors is also a big issue here. If not for ignorance, why would you subscribe to the idea of paying any agent money to secure for yourself an international football club deal when these agents do not even have a registered body and in most cases, these agents do not even assess your talent on the field. How then is it possible for someone who doesn’t know your competence to offer you employment?

Sports trafficking also takes place under the auspices of supporters’ club. In the so-called supporters club that travel for World Cup and other international matches, a lot of people are trafficked and do not return back to the country even after the expiration of their visas.

Here, some agents receive bribes and connive with citizens who have other reasons for travelling. The agents slot in their names as supporters. Upon arrival, they escape, confident that their high hopes and survival instinct will give them prosperity in a foreign country.

The mindset of greener pastures is one reason why people will disguise themselves as patriotic citizens willing to support our national team only for them to abandon that noble cause when they leave the country.

Have you ever heard the saying that the grass is greener on the other side because it is artificial? Well, this is what plays out here. Many people think that leaving the shores of Nigeria alone guarantees success only for them to get there and realize that life is not a bed of roses, not even in Europe, and that nothing is free, not even in Freetown.

The result is that we end up with disillusioned, depressed and suicidal victims trapped overseas and ready to engage in all sorts of shady deals just to survive.

To combat this, there should be a synergy between the ministry of sports and NAPTIP. Thankfully, NAPTIP has a regulation that makes it mandatory for anyone going on such supporting trips to get a clearance certificate but most people do not comply hence awareness campaigns must be strengthened.

Also, relevant authorities should ensure that they carry out proper screening and scrutiny of football academies and clubs. Also, Immigration authority, security agencies, embassies etc. must be on alert lest more defaulters shall hide under the guise of ignorance of the regulations.

If these groups do not take up this fight seriously, more potential victims will be trafficked via this route. Parents must also be vigilant and ensure our young and vibrant youths do not waste their talents hoping against hope in a foreign land.

Dame Julie Okah Donli is the new chair of the Board of Trustees of the United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund for Victims of Trafficking in Persons (UNVTF). She was until December 2020, the Director-General of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP).