Olasimbo Olasubude Olateru - Olagbegi

Human Rights - Nigeria (West Africa)

As youth director for the Women’s Consortium of Nigeria, Olasimbo has been actively campaigning for the rights of women and children for the last six years. The trafficking of young rural women and children to the urban centres of Africa and beyond is big business in Nigeria. The victims are consigned to a life of abuse and exploitation, which all too often leads to prostitution and HIV/AIDS.

By implementing community outreach programmes, Olasimbo hopes to raise awareness among the poorest and most vulnerable members of society about the issues surrounding human trafficking and provide them with alternative means for income generation. She cites improved education and local employment opportunities as the key, and suggests that trafficking is “principally due to ignorance, particularly on the part of parents and guardians who readily give up their children to traffickers for placement into various forms of labour”.

Olasimbo believes that Oxfam IYP2004 will give her the opportunity to raise the issue of human trafficking in Nigeria on the global stage, as well as equipping her with the skills and determination to continue the fight against this insidious trade.