By AfrikTimes | Ilorin
The Kwara State Government says it’s deepening ties with federal security agencies to monitor who’s crossing into the state, framing tighter migration checks as central to its broader fight against insecurity and human trafficking.
Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice Ibrahim Sulyman disclosed the plan during separate visits to the Kwara commands of the Nigeria Immigration Service and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps in Ilorin, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Justice’s press secretary, Janet Bogunjoko. The visits come ahead of the state’s commemoration of World Day Against Human Trafficking on July 30, with this year’s theme, “Trapped Behind the Scam.”
A state government drawing a direct line to insecurity
Sulyman, who also chairs Kwara’s Task Force on Human Trafficking, was represented at the events by Funke Balogun, Director of the Ministry’s Gender-Based Violence Response Unit and the task force’s secretary. Through her, Sulyman raised concern over what he described as an unchecked influx of migrants into the state without proper documentation or vetting, signalling a trend he linked directly to the terrorism, kidnapping, and banditry he says have crept into a state historically known for relative calm.
He was careful to frame the concern around process rather than presence, noting that no Nigerian can be barred from living in any state of their choosing, but arguing that every migrant arriving in Kwara ought to have a clear and legitimate reason for being there.
The proposed fix: better tracking, more coordination
Sulyman’s core recommendation was procedural as he suggested improving data tracking and migrant profiling through closer coordination between security agencies stationed at the state’s borders and those operating within it. He called on the NIS, NSCDC and other relevant agencies to back the state’s anti-trafficking efforts, acknowledging it as a demanding but necessary undertaking.
Olufemi Oyedeji, Kwara’s coordinator for the Network Against Child Trafficking, Abuse, and Labour, used the occasion to push for firmer action against trafficking networks, noting that women and girls remain disproportionately targeted as victims.
Agencies respond
Representing NIS Comptroller Hussain Ibrahim, Deputy Comptroller Saka Jimoh pledged the command’s logistical support for the task force’s work and suggested extending public sensitization campaigns into markets and religious centres; spaces he said could help expose traffickers’ tactics before residents fall victim to them.
NSCDC Commandant Abbas Mohammed likewise pledged his corps’ continued backing, saying it would strengthen its collaboration with the NIS at the state’s borders to curb trafficking and shore up overall security.
