The Influence of Corruption on Women Trafficking in Nigeria

Abstract

Human Trafficking is a global and endemic problem which statistics has revealed that Nigeria happens to be one of the countries that accounts for high rate of women trafficking this paper will examine newspapers reports, academic writings and interview feedbacks to answer why Nigeria.

The influence of corruption is rarely considered as a factor when dealing with this problem, this research have decided to focus on this area, how the culture of not asking question about the sources of wealth and how the leadership attitude have influenced the organised crime of women trafficking.

Why Nigeria? Many Scientific research and Theories have attempted to answer this question severally but no cogent solution has emerged so far to this question. The common reason usually adduced in most research conclusions all points to reasons of poverty, greed, forced prostitution, ignorance, illiteracy, desperation to relocate abroad for better life often turning into false hope and so on and so forth.

The alarming rate of women victims in human trafficking from Nigeria can only be understood if we have an understanding of the history and set up of the country itself. Nigeria is so unique that it has defiled so many academic and scientific theories as if they are not applicable to the situation. The factors which influences the Nigerians thinking towards materialistic and get rich syndrome at all cost are so subtle, numerous and often not so obvious that researchers miss it.

This work will focus on the factors deeply rooted in the Nigerian history, politics, culture and traditions, trade opportunities, leadership model, culture of material wealth emulation and where no one ask questions about how people make their money nor face any investigation. We shall also attempt to put forward some arguments and incorporate some relevant theories as far as applicable as we discuss further.

The submission of this paper is that corruption and attitudes of leadership at the highest echelon of the Nigerian society does bear a direct influence and encourages women trafficking as a subset of the organised crime of human trafficking.

Keywords: organised crime and women trafficking in Nigeria