The National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI) has warned Nigerians against travelling through the Sahara Desert without proper documentation, saying irregular migration exposes people to serious dangers.

The commission’s Field Coordinator for Kano and Jigawa, Luba Liman, gave the warning on Thursday during the second quarterly review meeting of the Technical Working Group of the Adolescent Health and Information Project (AHIP) ROOTS Programme in Kano.

Liman said the commission was not against Nigerians travelling abroad but wanted them to use safe and legal migration channels.

“We are not discouraging them from migration. We are trying to curb irregular migration, whereby they travel through the Sahara without documents,” she said.

She urged intending migrants to obtain the necessary documents and seek proper information before embarking on journeys to other countries.

According to her, many Nigerians who attempt to reach other countries through irregular routes face hardship and are eventually forced to return home.

Liman disclosed that 5,780 returnees had arrived through Kano routes from January to date in 2026, although not all of them were from Kano State.

She said the returnees arrived through both land and air routes, with 2,067 coming by road, mainly from Niger and Agadez.

She urged Nigerians to learn from the experiences of returnees and make informed decisions before travelling abroad.

“Some of them listen to the advice because they have already seen for themselves that Nigeria is not the only country facing this problem,” she said.

Also speaking, the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) warned that many young Nigerians are being deceived into human trafficking through irregular migration, exposing them to forced labour, exploitation and other forms of abuse.

The Public Enlightenment and Sensitisation Officer, Umar Muhammad, said traffickers usually lure young people with false promises, leaving them unaware that they are being recruited for exploitation.

“They don’t know that traffickers are deceiving them. At the end of the day, they become victims of human trafficking,” he said.

He revealed that the command had handled 139 trafficking-related cases from January to date and secured nine convictions.

“From January till date, we have recorded 139 cases and secured nine convictions, with offenders receiving prison sentences of not less than six years for offences including child abuse, labour exploitation and human trafficking,” he said.

He urged young people to seek accurate information before travelling abroad.