EXPOSURE ON BABY FACTORY/BABY SALES; A VIOLATION OF THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN AND GIRLS in Imo State.

Series on Baby Factory

Article 1: EXPOSURE ON BABY FACTORY/BABY SALES; A VIOLATION OF
THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN AND GIRLS in Imo State.

Written by Faith Kalagbor.

Baby factory is diversification of child trafficking which is trade on human beings and
it is one of the various forms of violence against women and girls. It is a new
systematic abuse pattern that promotes infant trafficking, neo-slavery and the
exploitation of young women with unplanned pregnancies in Nigeria. The terms baby
factory, baby sales, and child harvesting are often used interchangeably to refer to the
systematic sales of Human children typically for adoption (illegal) and lineage
continuity, and atypically for diabolical purposes including rituals.
Since its first discovery in Imo state in the year 2013, the trend has witnessed an
increase in occurrence due to prevalent economic and social factors associated with
Eastern Nigeria. Social factors such as stigmatization and labeling of young unmarried
girls with unplanned pregnancies, childless married women and married women in dire
need for specific gender, especially male children as the narrative of the patriarchal
the system has embellished, hence the higher bidding in sales of male infants than female.
Young girls who end up in baby factories due to social factors are often victims of
kidnap whilst in search of means of aborting the babies while married women and
couples in the aforementioned predicament, due to desperation, patronize baby
factories the most as it is a cheaper and quicker option as opposed to surrogacy,
in vitro fertilization, assisted reproductive technology or adoption through social
services.
The economic narrative reveals cases of young girls from a low-income background who
may likely want to keep their babies but are faced with choosing abortion or cajoled
into staying at baby factories in exchange for care till delivery after which they are paid
off to give up their babies for adoption, cutting all ties. Research shows that some
young girls after their first child being raped by a paid client or partner with a baby factory
owners and then coerced to remain there, confined in an environment where they only
have contact with those who are paid to provide various services for them including
medical.
The prevalence of this inhumane act which is a form of violence against women and
girls, informed our decision at Alliances for Africa, to create awareness on the growing
the trajectory of this perilous act and the existence of the Baby Protection Law signed in
response to prosecuting perpetrators of baby sales in the state and putting an end to
this menace. We, therefore, urge the general public to be watchful and promptly repor 

any illegal monetary transaction on babies or illegal caregiving homes for babies and
young pregnant girls.
We say NO to BABY FACTORY & ALL FORMS OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND
GIRLS.