In an operation involving the Minister of State for Youth and Children Affairs, Hon. Florence Nakiwala Kiyingi, the Uganda Police has today intercepted 13 girls who were being trafficked from Karamoja to Kampala.
According to the Minister, the girls aged between 5 and 15 were moving in a Kampala-bound taxi when police flagged it down and conducted a search in the wake of heightened vigilance.
The driver and conductor of the taxi are currently at Soroti Central Police Station where they are recording statements.
The police action comes as part of the increased efforts by Hon. Nakiwala to bring a halt to the trafficking of children from districts in Karamoja region to Kampala and other parts of the country for the economic benefit of the vice perpetuators.
Nakiwala said they received a tipoff that many girls have been prepared to be moved to Kampala over this Easter holiday, hence the amplified vigilance.
She however warned that they have deployed security agents along routes leading to Karamoja to counter the movements.
Nakiwala has been at the centre of ridding the Kampala streets of vulnerable children. Many have been absorbed into reception centers managed by the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development.
Others have been taken on by licensed Children’s Homes whiles others have been resettled back into their families.
The Ministry also runs a vocational training centre in Napak district where many have been enrolled to acquire various skills.
The number of street children in Kampala has been swelling of late due to lack of funds for the operation.
However, Parliament is currently reviewing a supplementary budget worth 3.4 billion that will go a long way in boosting the resettlement drive.
