The United States Government has raised concerns over Nigeria’s handling of human trafficking, citing alleged official complicity, inadequate protection for victims, the exploitation of children and the continued operation of so-called baby factories.
The US also listed Nigeria among 14 countries implicated in the recruitment and use of child soldiers, warning that the designation could trigger restrictions on certain forms of American military assistance from October 1, 2026, unless a presidential waiver is granted.
These concerns were contained in the 2026 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report of the US Department of State, covering the period from April 1, 2025, to March 31, 2026.
The report retained Nigeria on Tier 2, a classification for countries whose governments do not fully meet the minimum standards for eliminating human trafficking under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act but are making significant efforts to meet them.
Nigeria was also included on the Child Soldiers Prevention Act (CSPA) list alongside Afghanistan, Burma, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Iran, Russia, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Venezuela and Yemen.
According to the report, Nigeria’s inclusion on the list could affect international military education and training, foreign military financing, excess defence articles, peacekeeping operations and licences for direct commercial sales of military equipment, subject to applicable exceptions and any presidential waiver.
Despite its criticisms, the State Department acknowledged that the Nigerian Government had demonstrated increased efforts during the reporting period through investigations, prosecutions and convictions of human traffickers.
US raises concerns over official complicity
The report identified corruption and alleged official complicity as major obstacles to Nigeria’s efforts to combat human trafficking.
It stated that the government did not report investigations, prosecutions or convictions involving government employees allegedly complicit in trafficking offences during the reporting period. It also said authorities did not provide details of actions taken against officials implicated in previous years.
The report further alleged that, in some cases, the government coerced victims of forced marriage, including trafficking victims, to return to their Boko Haram husbands at demobilisation centres in Borno State.
On victim protection, it reported a decline in the number of trafficking victims receiving assistance, from 2,058 in the previous reporting period to 675 in 2025.
Services for male victims, in particular, remained limited, with the report identifying only one dedicated non-governmental organisation shelter for adult male trafficking victims during the year.
It also criticised restrictions on residents of shelters operated by the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), stating that residents were not permitted freedom of movement.
According to the report, the government required some victims to cooperate with law enforcement proceedings to access certain protection services and did not provide services to adult victims who declined shelter accommodation.
It further stated that Nigeria lacked a formal policy to prevent trafficking victims from being returned to countries where they could face hardship or retaliation.
The report also noted that, unlike the preceding year, the government did not report transferring any children associated with non-state armed groups.
US report identifies child soldier recruitment
On the recruitment and use of children in armed conflict, the report accused Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) of continuing to recruit, abduct and use children as young as 12.
It said the children were allegedly exploited as cooks, domestic workers, spies, porters, messengers, bodyguards, checkpoint guards, morality police, combatants and suicide bombers.
The report’s definition of a child soldier includes persons under 18 who directly participate in hostilities, children under 15 who are voluntarily recruited, and persons under 18 recruited by armed groups distinct from the state, including for support roles.
The classification of Nigeria under the Child Soldiers Prevention Act places the country among those facing potential restrictions on specified categories of US military assistance.
Labour protection gaps identified
The State Department also criticised aspects of Nigeria’s labour protection and recruitment practices.
It alleged that the government did not prohibit recruitment fees charged to workers, report holding labour recruiters civilly and criminally liable for fraudulent recruitment, or provide specialised training on child labour and human trafficking to labour inspectors.
The report further said the government did not provide anti-trafficking training to its diplomatic personnel.
It also raised concerns about foreign criminal networks allegedly recruiting victims to Nigeria under false promises of employment, confining them in rented properties and forcing them to participate in organised online scams.
The report cited concerns that Nigeria’s Ministry of Education helped promote Russia’s Alabuga Start programme despite warning signs.
It also alleged that Russian authorities fraudulently recruited Nigerians to fight in the Russia-Ukraine war.
Additionally, the report raised concerns about potentially exploitative working conditions involving North Korean nationals in Nigeria and possible forced labour affecting Chinese nationals working in the country.
Baby factories, forced labour and sex trafficking
The report described the continued operation of so-called baby factories as another major human trafficking concern in Nigeria.
It said criminal operators often disguised the facilities as orphanages, maternity homes or religious centres, where women were allegedly held against their will, raped and forced to become pregnant and give birth.
The children were subsequently sold, according to the report, which cited government and non-governmental organisations as describing the practice as a widespread criminal industry, particularly in southern Nigeria.
The report also identified several forms of child exploitation, including sex trafficking, domestic servitude, forced begging, street vending, textile manufacturing, agricultural labour and work in granite quarries and artisanal mines.
Both adults and children were reportedly exploited in forced labour on cocoa farms.
It further alleged that some teachers in Quranic schools exploited children, mostly boys from rural communities, through forced begging and seasonal agricultural work.
In some states, the report said, families sold women and girls into forced marriages to older men to settle family debts through a practice described as “money marriages”.
Trafficking investigations and convictions rise
Despite the concerns, the report acknowledged improvements in Nigeria’s investigation and prosecution of trafficking offences.
It said the government investigated 1,341 trafficking cases involving 1,367 suspects in 2025, compared with 744 investigations in 2024.
The number of prosecutions increased to 94 suspects from 71, while convictions rose to 97 traffickers from 49 in the preceding year.
The report also stated that the majority of convicted traffickers received prison sentences of at least one year.
On funding, the government reportedly allocated N233 million, equivalent to $161,000, for victim services in 2025, up from N128 million in 2024.
Funding for prevention also increased to N245 million, or approximately $169,000, from N58.8 million in the previous year.
The report further noted that the government established a police cybercrime unit to combat online scam operations and collaborated with other governments and INTERPOL on investigations in West Africa and Southeast Asia.
It said authorities identified 2,004 trafficking victims and coordinated the repatriation of 428 Nigerians exploited abroad.
The government also issued restitution orders for 14 victims as part of criminal sentences and continued implementing the 2022–2026 National Action Plan against human trafficking.
Other measures highlighted included the operation of an anti-trafficking hotline, public awareness campaigns and anti-trafficking task forces in 23 states.
Although the US report recognised these efforts, it maintained that official complicity, weaknesses in victim protection, labour recruitment practices and the exploitation of children remained significant concerns in Nigeria’s response to human trafficking.
