In her own words: Surviving trafficking in Nigeria

By Kerri Whelan
January 5, 2022

This story is part of a new blog series called โ€œIn Her Own Words,โ€ where youโ€™ll read incredibly powerful stories directly fromย the experts with whom we work: the girls themselves.

Plan International USA is a girlsโ€™ rights organization. We aim to be girl centered, girl driven and girl led in all our work to boldly create a more just and equitable world. So, to amplify girlsโ€™ voices, weโ€™re introducing a new blog series called โ€œIn Her Own Words,โ€ where youโ€™ll read incredibly powerful stories directly from the experts with whom we work: the girls themselves.

Estherโ€™s story of survival in Nigeria is the first of this series.

Please note this story contains references to sexual violence and abuse which some may find upsetting.

I was a girl with a very big dream. I wanted to be a doctor, but it didnโ€™t work out. Maybe because of the poverty. I lost my dad when I was 8 years old, and then everything became tougher for my mom, my siblings and me.

My mom had to marry another man. He would say to me, โ€œYouโ€™re not my child so why should I care.โ€ My mom had to do everything. We had to sell things on the street to make enough money to buy food. We would work all day long.

Then one day when I was 16, a woman came to our house and told me she would like me to go with her to Abuja where she promised she would find me work.

I travelled there on the bus with two other girls. When we arrived in Abuja the woman picked us up from the bus stop. She took us to a hotel where I saw lots of girls wearing just their pants and bras. I asked her what I was doing there โ€“ why would I be here?

She said, โ€œThis is what youโ€™re coming here to do.โ€ She said if I didnโ€™t, Iโ€™d have to pay her all the money back for the journey. I cried and cried, but she told me, โ€œYour crying cannot save you.โ€

I was forced to start having sex with men โ€” all kinds of men. I had to give all the money I made to her. Every day, I had to go out to clubs to sleep with men and she would take all the money. Immediately when I would return home, sheโ€™d ask, โ€œWhereโ€™s my money?โ€ And I would give it all to her. Sometimes I would make 20 or 30 thousand naira [around $59-$80] a night.

Men would come to the hotel and after a drink they say they want to sleep with you. Even when I was menstruating, I still had to sleep with them. I felt like there was something missing because it was painful for me to go through all those things. I didnโ€™t want my life to be that. I was forced into it and I didnโ€™t have any way out. My life was miserable.

Eventually I met a woman who was teaching at the nearby church. We became friends and she took me to a safe house. Now Iโ€™m a caterer and I will soon become a chef.

I used to be very aggressive. I was stubborn because of the life I was used to. I had to learn how to forgive. How to move on and forget about my past. No matter how much someone hurts you, you have to let go. I think I still have the passion to go to school. I want to help someone in the future, thatโ€™s what I want to do. Iโ€™m so much happier. I have peace. I have everything I can think of in this world.

Conflict in Nigeria has proven ideal ground for traffickers โ€” 94% of victims are women and girls, the majority of whom are trafficked for sexual exploitation. Plan is working with a group of girls who are leading a solidarity campaign to end trafficking in Nigeria. The girls are demanding that federal and state government departments commit to implementing a public awareness campaign that reaches remote communities, to ensure all girls and their families know the risks of trafficking and sexual exploitation. Esther is hopeful that the campaign will make a difference.

My hope is that trafficking will stop. People donโ€™t know enough about it. As far as the Planโ€™s work is concerned, I know that something will come out of it โ€“ something good and special. I know that if all the community comes together with one voice, then the government will hear us.

Estherโ€™s name has been changed to protect her identity.