We’ll secure release of Nigerian women with children in Libyan prisons – PCI Executive Director

Executive Director of Patriotic Citizen Initiatives (PCI), Comrade Osita Osemene, speaks with Stanley Ihedigbo on the organization’s work in combating irregular migration and human trafficking, supporting voluntary returnees, and advocating for humane migration policies.

Patriotic Citizen Initiatives (PCI) is a civil society organization dedicated to protecting vulnerable Nigerians and promoting safe migration. The organization provides shelter, psychosocial support, legal assistance, and livelihood training for voluntary returnees and survivors of human trafficking. It operates at both community and policy levels—running a male shelter for returnees, coordinating reintegration efforts, and partnering with government agencies, international organizations, and CSO networks to restore dignity and reduce repeat irregular migration.

Can you share some success stories of rehabilitated returnees and how they have reintegrated into society?

PCI specializes in supporting voluntary returnees. Since inception, we have assisted over 15,000 returnees from Libya, Morocco, Algeria, and other North African countries through our partnership with the International Organization for Migration (IOM). We have also supported returnees from European countries such as the Netherlands, Denmark, and Switzerland.

Many of these returnees passed through the PCI Male Shelter, where they received mentorship, psychosocial support, and startup funds to begin small businesses of their choice. Others completed livelihood training programs and received toolkits or grants to launch enterprises in tailoring, catering, and food supply—now sustaining their families.

For women who returned with children, PCI provided family tracing and reintegration support. Their children were enrolled in schools, while the mothers received vocational and parenting training to promote family stability and economic independence.

Young men at the PCI Male Shelter also benefited from counselling and job-readiness training, which enabled their placement in apprenticeships and employment opportunities across Lagos. Many now live independently, serving as advocates in their communities and speaking at awareness events to discourage irregular migration.

What are the major challenges PCI faces in rehabilitating returnees, and how do you address them?

Our greatest challenges include limited funding, social stigma, and restricted economic opportunities for returnees.
To address these, we link beneficiaries to public and private sector jobs, provide psychosocial support, and sensitize communities to reduce stigma. We also offer small grants and vocational training to create immediate livelihoods, and monitor progress through structured case management to demonstrate impact and attract donor support.

How does PCI help returnees overcome trauma and stigma?

We adopt a holistic psychosocial approach—providing individual and group counselling, case management, medical referrals, legal aid, and temporary shelter. We engage faith and community leaders to publicly endorse returnees, helping to reduce stigma. Additionally, we organize peer support groups, provide livelihood training, and connect beneficiaries to microfinance opportunities. Economic stability plays a crucial role in healing trauma and rebuilding confidence.

How will PCI assist the Nigerian government in securing the release and reintegration of Nigerian women with children detained in Libya or other countries?

Through advocacy and coordination, we will collaborate with NAPTIP, IOM, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Nigerian consular missions to advocate for safe voluntary return and evacuation where necessary.

We will provide family tracing, pre-departure counselling, logistics, and reception services on arrival—such as shelter, medical checks, and psychosocial care.

Upon their return, PCI will ensure child welfare services, including nutrition, immunization, and birth registration, while mothers receive vocational training, legal assistance, and reintegration follow-up.

What about young Nigerian men wasting away in foreign prisons?

We are working with IOM and legal aid partners to enhance case documentation, consular access, and advocacy for fair treatment or voluntary return.
For those returning, PCI provides pre-departure counselling, shelter, legal aid, livelihood training, and family reintegration—helping them rebuild their lives and discouraging re-migration or re-offending.

What is PCI’s relationship with International Organization of Migration (IOM) and National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP)?

We maintain strong working relationships with both organizations through referrals, joint reception and reintegration activities, and participation in state taskforces. We also share data (with consent), coordinate repatriation logistics, and build the capacity of frontline workers to improve case management and impact.

Some Nigerians say unqualified people lead NAPTIP. What’s your view?

As a civil society organization, PCI recognizes that leadership appointments in NAPTIP are the sole responsibility of the Federal Government. However, we consistently advocate for competent, credible, and visionary leadership across all public institutions.

Effective and transparent leadership directly influences the quality of protection and reintegration services offered to victims and returnees.
Our focus remains on constructive engagement, partnership, and capacity building to ensure that, regardless of leadership changes, agencies like NAPTIP can effectively deliver on their mandates.

Many Africans continue to risk their lives crossing the Mediterranean. What are the root causes, and how can countries collaborate to stop this trend?

The causes remain unemployment, poverty, insecurity, conflict, poor education, climate pressures, and false information about life abroad.

Countries must work collectively through regional development programs, youth employment initiatives, and safe migration pathways. Investments in vocational training, cross-border social protection, and joint law enforcement against human smugglers are essential. Equally important is coordinated return and reintegration support—giving young people viable alternatives at home.

What are the impacts of voluntary return on individuals and communities, and how does rehabilitation mitigate them?

Voluntary return often leads to psychological trauma, family disruption, loss of income, and social stigma.
Our rehabilitation efforts provide healing through counselling, livelihood restoration, and family reunification. By training beneficiaries as peer educators, we strengthen communities, reduce re-migration, and minimize the long-term social and economic cost of unmanaged return.

How can governments and organizations like PCI collaborate more effectively to support returnees?

Partnerships should be built on referral pathways, data sharing, joint training, and funded reintegration programs.
Governments should sign MOUs with CSOs, embed them in state taskforces, and support regular coordination and monitoring.

At the international level, cooperation among IOM, UN agencies, and regional bodies is essential to uphold protection standards, facilitate voluntary return, and fund sustainable reintegration programs.

You recently received the “Champion of Human Rights and Migration” Award. What does this recognition mean to you?

This award recognizes PCI’s efforts in shelter services, psychosocial support, and community-based reintegration. It affirms our belief that every returnee deserves dignity, opportunity, and a second chance to rebuild their lives.

How does PCI see its work evolving in the coming years?

Our vision is to build a Nigeria where migration is by choice, not desperation.
We plan to expand our shelter and reintegration programs to more states, establish regional hubs, and strengthen livelihood empowerment through partnerships with the private sector and vocational institutions.

We will intensify advocacy, community engagement, and policy dialogue, ensuring our programs are data-driven and impact-oriented. Ultimately, PCI aims not only to help people return—but to help them rebuild and thrive.

We want to remain a symbol of hope and transformation—turning painful migration stories into testimonies of resilience and national pride.

Finally, your advice to policymakers, stakeholders, and the public?

Migration management must be humane, preventive, and developmental.
Invest in job creation, education, and safe migration pathways.

For returnees, prioritize dignified reception and sustainable reintegration.
Support CSOs delivering frontline services and scale up models that work.
Together, we can turn migration from a story of loss into one of empowerment and progress.