Odimmegwa Johnpeter/Abuja
The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has called on government agencies, security institutions, development partners, community leaders and the media to strengthen collaboration in addressing irregular migration, human trafficking, migrant smuggling and travel fraud.
The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Kemi Nandap, made the call on Wednesday at a Stakeholders Sensitisation and Engagement Seminar themed “Bridging the Information Gap: Promoting Informed, Safe and Regular Migration.”
The Comptroller-General, who was represented by the Deputy Comptroller-General in charge of Visa and Residence Directorate, Franca Nwanneka, said access to accurate, timely and reliable migration information was essential to protecting prospective migrants from exploitation and other dangers.
She noted that inadequate information and intelligence sharing among relevant stakeholders could expose individuals to human trafficking, migrant smuggling, travel fraud and the consequences of irregular migration.
According to her, addressing these challenges requires more than border restrictions, stressing the need to equip prospective migrants with the information necessary to make informed decisions and pursue safe and lawful migration pathways.
The NIS chief said the service was strengthening its operational capacity through institutional reforms, modern border management technologies, intelligence gathering and improved service delivery.
She cited the deployment of the Border Control and Immigration Management System and other technology-driven platforms as part of efforts to build a modern, responsive and intelligence-led immigration service.
However, she maintained that technological advancement alone could not address all the underlying factors driving irregular migration, making public sensitisation, community engagement and inter-agency cooperation essential to effective migration management.
The Comptroller-General urged stakeholders to move beyond discussions and embrace coordinated, practical measures to combat misinformation and ensure that reliable migration information reaches communities, particularly those vulnerable to exploitation.
She also encouraged participants to contribute their experiences and expertise during the seminar’s presentations, roundtable discussions and technical sessions to identify institutional gaps and develop workable solutions.
The NIS chief expressed appreciation to partner institutions, development partners, resource persons and participants for their continued support towards improving migration governance in Nigeria.
She subsequently declared the seminar open, expressing confidence that the deliberations would produce actionable recommendations for a safer and more coordinated migration management system.
In her goodwill message, a Senior Project Associate of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), Lady Lena Onoaha, reaffirmed the importance of collaboration in addressing irregular migration.
She said the gathering provided an opportunity for stakeholders to deliberate on practical measures to make regular migration more accessible and promote better migration management in Nigeria.
She conveyed the goodwill of the IOM to the participants and expressed hope that the discussions would produce fruitful deliberations and actionable outcomes.
Also speaking, the Assistant Director and Head of Department at the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), Mr Abiodun Akanbi, who represented the commission’s head, described irregular migration as a serious threat requiring collective action from government and society.
Akanbi stressed the need for stronger partnerships between NiDCOM, the NIS and other relevant organisations to address migration-related challenges.
He noted that migration was often driven by the desire for better opportunities, adding that although all members of the diaspora are migrants, not all migrants necessarily belong to the diaspora.
He called for sustained cooperation among stakeholders to strengthen migration management and ensure that migration-related policies and interventions achieve their intended objectives.
Other participants called for collective action, stressing that tackling irregular migration required sustained partnership among government institutions, security agencies and other stakeholders.
The seminar brought together stakeholders to examine existing approaches to migration management, address information gaps and explore ways to strengthen cooperation among relevant institutions in promoting safe, informed and regular migration in Nigeria.
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