Session 06.3 TBC
Tracks
Track 3: Room LG17
| Tuesday, July 29, 2025 |
| 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM |
| LG17 |
Overview
Session under review
Chair: TBC
Speaker
Ms Adesuwa Omozusi
Legal Practitioner
Forest Hill Legal Practice
“Cross Border Child Abduction in Africa: Nigeria as a Case Study- Challenges, Opportunities and International Cooperation."
Abstract
Cross-border child abduction is a complex issue affecting Africa’s most vulnerable citizens. Nigeria with its strategic location and porous borders is a hot bed for child trafficking.
Lack of implementation of child protection policies and laws, corruption and inefficiency in the judicial system, poverty, cultural and social factors facilitate child abduction often for labour or exploitation. A report by the National Agency for the Prohibition of Traffic in Persons (NAPTIP) states that over 50% of abducted children from Nigeria are taken across international borders.
The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) reports that 1 in 5 African Children are victims of child trafficking. This paper will analyze prevalence and trends of cross-border child abduction in Africa with a focus on Nigerian and African regional policies vis a vis the Hague Convention on International Child Abduction and the role of non-governmental bodies towards child protection.
This paper will further examine the challenges, opportunities and international cooperation mechanisms in resolving cross-border child abduction cases in Nigeria and Africa.
Cross-border child abduction, child protection, Nigeria, Africa, international cooperation.
Lack of implementation of child protection policies and laws, corruption and inefficiency in the judicial system, poverty, cultural and social factors facilitate child abduction often for labour or exploitation. A report by the National Agency for the Prohibition of Traffic in Persons (NAPTIP) states that over 50% of abducted children from Nigeria are taken across international borders.
The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) reports that 1 in 5 African Children are victims of child trafficking. This paper will analyze prevalence and trends of cross-border child abduction in Africa with a focus on Nigerian and African regional policies vis a vis the Hague Convention on International Child Abduction and the role of non-governmental bodies towards child protection.
This paper will further examine the challenges, opportunities and international cooperation mechanisms in resolving cross-border child abduction cases in Nigeria and Africa.
Cross-border child abduction, child protection, Nigeria, Africa, international cooperation.
Biography
Adesuwa Omozusi is a Legal Practitioner at ForestHill Legal Practice, Lagos Nigeria, specializing in family law, energy law and human rights law. Her research expertise and advocacy focus on promoting children’s rights and family justice.
A sought-after speaker, Adesuwa delivered a keynote address at the International Society of Family Lawyers World Conference (University of Antwerp, Belgium, July, 2023).
She holds an LLM in Energy Law from the University of Ibadan’s Centre of Petroleum, Energy Economics and Law (CPEEL) and an LLB from Igbinedion University, Nigeria.
A member of the Nigerian Bar Association, Adesuwa brings a unique blend of academic rigor and practical experience to the congress.
