Role of Nigerian Police Force in Combating Child Trafficking in Ogbaru Local Government Area of Anambra State

ABSTRACT This study investigated the Role of Nigeria police force in combating child trafficking in Ogbaru Local Government Area of Anambra State. The researcher hinged this work on the Structural Functionalism, Conflict Theory and Bad Egg Theory. The study adopted a descriptive survey design. The population of this study comprised of all Nigerian police force personnel handling cases related to child trafficking in Ogbaru Local Government Area of Anambra State. Ogbaru town is made up of 4 police stations and a total of 21 police force personnel made up the population of the study. Since the entire population of 21 Nigerian police force personnel was considered manageable by the researcher, this means that there was no sampling technique. Thus, the sample size was equally 21 Nigerian police force personnel in Ogbaru Local Government Area of Anambra State. The instrument for data collection for this study was a structured questionnaire titled Role of Nigeria Police Force in Combating Child Trafficking Questionnaire" (RNPFCTQ). The instrument was validated and found to be reliable using Cronbach-alpha method. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions. The study found out that Nigerian Police Force personnel demonstrate awareness of child trafficking issues and existing protocols within the NPF, efforts to reduce the rate of child trafficking in Ogbaru North Local Government Area have not been effective. Persistent challenges faced by the NPF underscore the need for comprehensive and targeted interventions, collaboration with stakeholders, and strategic reforms to enhance law enforcement capacity and address the complexities of child trafficking effectively. The researcher recommended amongst others that the Anambra State government should enhance and expand training programs for NPF personnel to deepen their understanding of child trafficking dynamics, victim identification, investigation techniques, and legal procedures.