The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has launched an Amber Alert device to assist in the fight against human trafficking and enhance investigation and rescue efforts.

The launch of the device on Wednesday in Abuja was with the collaboration of Meta, an American multinational technology conglomerate company.

The Amber Alert device is also designed to carry citizens along in terms of information sharing on Facebook and Instagram whenever there is a case of a missing child.

The device is empowered to make searches of any missing child in any designated areas and to help to locate the whereabouts of the missing child.

In a welcome address, NAPTIP Director of Intelligence and Public Enlightenment Josiah Emerole noted that cases of missing children had been on the increase recently in Nigeria.

“The launch of this Amber Alert in Nigeria today will no doubt change the narrative in the search and rescue of children who stray and cannot find their way back home; and those stolen or abducted for various purposes, including trafficking,” Mr Emerole said.

Adaora Ikenze, Head of Public Policy, Anglophone West Africa, Meta, appreciated the collaboration of her organisation with NAPTIP, adding that the company had deployed Amber alert globally to keep the community safe.

She said the company had contributed to solving the challenges around the search and recovery of missing children, adding that keeping the community safe means everything to them at Meta.

According to her, when a child is missing, the most important thing for the company is to get detailed information about the incident out to the public as quickly as possible, and that is why it is partnering with NAPTIP.

Emily Vacher, Meta Director of Trust and Safety, stated that the device was already available in 28 countries of the world, adding that Nigeria is the second African country to join the programme.

“By working with law enforcement in helping to share the right information with the right people, we hope that missing children will be safely reunited with their families faster,” she stressed.

Fatima Waziri-Azi, NAPTIP’s director-general, stated that the journey to the launch of the Amber alert all started in 2020 when the agency was first initiated with the idea.

“With these alerts, communities will instantly be galvanised to assist in the search for and safe recovery of a missing child,” Ms Waziri-Azi said. 

(NAN)