Edo State governor, Godwin Obaseki, has called for closure of illegal entry points into Nigeria to curb nefarious activities of some illegal migrants.
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The governor made the call while declaring open the 2019 Comptroller-general of Immigration’s Annual Conference in Benin City, the Edo State capital.
Obaseki said Nigeria must join other countries in tightening their porous borders to prevent illegal migration, saying, “There are about 1,490 illegal entering points into the country and this is encouraging illegal migration into the country. Some of these illegal migrants commit crimes in the country and even have the Nigeria Voters Card. It is worthwhile for any country to develop a policy on migration as it is necessary to manage a country’s economy.”
On the other hand, the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) says it has so far registered a total of 27,046 migrants into its e-migrant registration database.
Muhammad Babandede, comptroller-general of Immigration, made the disclosure at the ongoing 2019 annual conference of the service with the theme, “Migration Management in a Developing Economy: The Role of Nigeria Immigration Service” in Benin City.
Babandede, who said the service rolled out the migrants’ e-registration centres in 22 states of the federation, noted that of the registered figures 17,875 were irregular migrants representing 66 percent, while 9,170 were regular migrants, representing 34 percent.
Obaseki, however, commended the NIS for the introduction of the National Biometric Identity Card for INTRA-ECOWAS Travel and Biometric Registration of Foreign Nationals as a new security measure in the country.
He said the theme of the conference was apt as it would afford stakeholders the opportunity to evaluate their roles in combating illegal migration and deliberate a way forward.
Delivering a paper presentation at the conference, entitled ‘Government’s Effort at Curtailing Irregular Migration: The Edo Experience,’ the governor said the state was committed to supporting policies aimed at reducing illegal migration.
He listed four modalities put in place by the state to combat illegal migration to Europe, to include Returnees Management; Resettlement and Reintegration; Advocacy and Awareness Promotion; Promotion of Human Rights and Development of the state’s economy.
The governor said youths in the state were being trained and empowered with vocational skills and linked to jobs, while the basic education sector has been reformed to discourage citizens from embarking on illegal migration.
Earlier, Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, said the Federal Government was working towards the introduction of a better technology for the issuance of the Nigerian passport such that there would not be physical contact between the passport seeker and passport provider.
