Ibadan Journal of the Social Sciences
Volume 15, No. 2, 2017
DOI: 10.36108/ijss/7102.51.0250
‘From Charity Homes to Baby Factories’, the Evolvement of Baby Factories in Abia State, Nigeria
Rasidi Akanji Okunola, Oyeduni Oyefi and Chinedu Ernest Dinne
Department of Sociology, University of Ibadan, Nigeria
Abstract
Baby factory is becoming a common feature in south eastern Nigeria. This is more worrisome within the backdrop of the fight against sexual abuse and the law against child trafficking in Nigeria. The criminal act is not only flourishing, but also beating the dragnet of security operatives in the geopolitical space. It is against the backdrop that this paper explored the evolvement of baby factories in Abia state, Nigeria. This cross-sectional exploratory survey employed intra-method triangulation to collect data through key informant interviews, in-depth interviews and unobtrusive observation from 25 purposively selected respondents in Abia state. Findings revealed that most of the baby factories started as charity homes and evolved into baby factories which was caused by socioeconomic factors like ‘get-rich-quick syndrome, ungodliness greed Oil the part of owners and operators of baby factory, infertility and barrenness, cultural value placed Oil having children in African homes, psychological trauma of not having children Oil the part of patronizers of baby factory, while poverty, stigmatization attached to getting pregnant outside wedlock, peer influence 011 the side of victims of baby factory. Dropping out of school, risks of contracting sexually transmitted diseases are the effects of baby factory. In view of curbing the menace, stiffer penalties should be meted out to offenders of baby factories while law enforcement agencies should cooperate and collaborate with the public for intelligence gathering.
Keywords: Baby factory, human trafficking, socioeconomic factors.