The Senate has called on the Federal Government to urgently begin diplomatic and humanitarian efforts to repatriate Nigerian women and their children currently held in Libyan prisons.
The resolution followed a motion by Senator Asuquo Bassey (Cross River South) on the need to protect Nigerians from trafficking, slavery, and human rights abuses in Libya.
Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan (Kogi Central) added a prayer urging the Nigerian Immigration Service and Nigeria Correctional Service to collaborate with their Libyan counterparts to secure the release of Nigerian female inmates and their children born in detention.
The motion, seconded by Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, was unanimously adopted.
Akpoti-Uduaghan lamented that many of the affected women were victims of human trafficking who escaped captivity only to end up in prison.
She said many suffered sexual abuse by prison officials, resulting in pregnancies, stressing that their children “must not be condemned to lives of neglect for circumstances beyond their control.
”Presenting the motion, Bassey expressed worry that irregular migration through Libya had become a dangerous route for thousands of Nigerians, exposing them to trafficking, slavery, ransom extortion, and other human rights violations.
Following deliberations, the Senate urged the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Humanitarian Affairs, alongside NAPTIP, to establish a comprehensive reintegration and protection programme for returnees.
The plan would include psychosocial support, vocational training, and business start-up assistance to help them rebuild their lives.
The Senate also called for stronger diplomatic engagement with Libya and regional cooperation through the African Union, ECOWAS, and the United Nations to ensure the safety of Nigerians in detention and accountability for abuses.
Senator Adams Oshiomhole further urged the National Orientation Agency to intensify awareness campaigns on the dangers of irregular migration, a motion seconded by Senator Ned Nwoko.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio commended Bassey for the motion and directed the Committee on Legislative Compliance to monitor the implementation of all resolutions.
He described the plight of Nigerians in Libya as “a stain on the nation’s conscience that must be erased.”
Meanwhile, National Assembly leaders, including Bamidele and House Leader Prof. Julius Ihonvbere, have joined a new Male Feminists Network (MFN) launched by the African Centre for Leadership, Strategy and Development to combat Gender-Based Violence (GBV).
The network, supported by figures such as Prof. Attahiru Jega and Senator Shehu Sani, aims to mobilise men as allies in building a society free from violence, discrimination, and inequality.