By Janefrances Chibuzor
When the offer came, it sounded like answered prayers. A well-paying digital job in Southeast Asia. Visa processed. Travel arranged.
A chance to escape economic hardship and support family back home.For 23 Nigerians, it was a promise of opportunity.
Instead, it became a journey into captivity.On February 23, 2026, the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), in partnership with the British High Commission Abuja, convened a survivor-centred event in Abuja to spotlight a fast-growing and largely hidden crisis: the trafficking of Nigerians into cyber-enabled scam compounds in Southeast Asia.
The event, titled Confronting the Global Scam Centre Crisis: Perspectives of Nigerian Survivors, shifted the focus from policy rhetoric to lived experience. At its heart were recently repatriated Nigerians who had been deceived with fraudulent job offers and transported to Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand.
There, they said, passports were confiscated. Movements were restricted. Armed guards monitored daily activities. Victims were coerced into running sophisticated online fraud schemes targeting unsuspecting individuals worldwide.
According to the 2026 report “A Wicked Problem” by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, at least 120,000 people are believed to be trapped in forced scam operations in Myanmar alone.
Across Southeast Asia, the figure is estimated to exceed 300,000. Survivors identified so far originate from at least 66 countries.Between 2020 and 2025, nearly 74 per cent of known victims trafficked into scam centres globally were taken to Southeast Asia after being promised high-paying jobs.
Nigeria is now confronting the reality that its young citizens are increasingly being targeted.Earlier this month, 23 Nigerians were safely repatriated following coordinated efforts by NAPTIP, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Nigerian Embassy in Bangkok and the UK-based NGO EDEN.
The operation involved delicate cross-border engagement near the Thai–Myanmar frontier and welfare visits to affected nationals at Bangkok’s Immigration Detention Centre before their return home.
At the Abuja forum, survivors spoke voluntarily.“I was promised opportunity — a good job and a better life,” one returnee recounted. “Instead, I was trapped and forced to do things that went against everything I believe in, while living in constant fear.
I. am sharing my story so other Nigerians can recognise the warning signs.”The room was hushed as testimonies unfolded — stories of psychological intimidation, financial extortion and the erosion of dignity.
Speaking at the event, the UK Deputy High Commissioner underscored the importance of international collaboration, noting that survivor testimony plays a crucial role in disrupting recruitment pipelines and preventing further victimisation.
Representing NAPTIP’s Director-General, Director of Public Enlightenment Mrs. Kehinde Akomolafe reaffirmed the agency’s resolve to confront what she described as an evolving and technologically driven form of organised crime.
“This crime strips people of their dignity and freedom,” she said. “NAPTIP remains committed to protecting Nigerian citizens and ensuring survivors receive the comprehensive support needed to heal and rebuild their lives.
“Experts say the recruitment pattern is disturbingly consistent: social media advertisements promising remote tech or customer service jobs, contracts shared via messaging platforms, agents offering discounted travel processing and pressure to depart quickly.
For many young Nigerians facing unemployment and economic strain, the offers appear legitimate — even life-changing.Yet authorities warn that due diligence is critical. Verification through official channels, scrutiny of recruitment agencies and cautious engagement with unsolicited overseas job offers can prevent tragedy.Beyond rescue, reintegration remains central.
Survivors are currently receiving trauma-informed care, psychosocial counselling and structured support to aid recovery and reinsertion into society.Monday’s engagement in Abuja signalled more than a diplomatic collaboration.
It reflected a growing recognition that human trafficking has entered a digital era — transnational, sophisticated and deeply exploitative.
But it also demonstrated something equally powerful: that survivors’ voices, once silenced by fear, are now shaping national response.And in their courage lies a warning — and a call to vigilance — for countless others seeking opportunity beyond Nigeria’s borders.
