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Pathfinders Justice Initiative, Inc.® (PJI) is an international non-government organization dedicated to the prevention of modern-day sex slavery (sex trafficking) and liberation of enslaved women and girls through the direct eradication of root causes. We currently work in Nigeria and with Nigerian survivors globally to build a best practices model for the world. We are registered and in good standing as an NGO with the Corporate Affairs Commission in Nigeria and as a New York State 501(c)(3) non-profit.  Learn more.

About The Founder

R. Evon Benson-Idahosa, the founder and Executive Director of PJI, is a Nigerian native, a leading expert on the subject of modern day slavery in sub-Saharan Africa and a trained English Barrister and American lawyer. When her passion and compassion called her to address sex trafficking (modern-day sex slavery) and gender-based violence, she left her work as a partner in a New York defense law firm to became a full-time activist.  Her commitment is to develop a generation of women who are confident in who they are, what they bring to the table and what they can achieve. She is a firm believer that if you empower women and engage men as allies for gender justice, you can change any society.

 

Ms. Benson-Idahosa is a dynamic speaker, an ‘outside the box’ trainer/facilitator and a published writer whose voice amplifies thousands of young voices via PathFinders’ long running campaigns, including #Not4Sale. She also lends her expertise as an advisor/consultant to organizations as well as state, national and international governments on the issues of sex trafficking and gender based violence. (She currently serves/has served as a consultant to Nigeria’s Parliament, the UK Home Office (via its Modern Slavery Project), the United Nations’ Special Rapporteur on Trafficking and the Edo State Government, Nigeria.)  Ms. Benson-Idahosa’s work has been featured on CNN, CNNi, BBC, Al Jazeera, CCTV-America, ABC, NBC, SiriusXM Radio, Channels Television and The Huffington Post LIVE and she has been named one of New York’s New Abolitionists (www.newyorksnewabolitionists.com). Ms. Benson-Idahosa, a Huffington Post blogger, is a 2019 recipient of France’s Emerging Leaders Program award, a 2018 TEDx speaker, a 2018 ‘The Platform Nigeria’ speaker, a 2017 Vital Voices Global Freedom Exchange Fellow, a 2016 United States White House State of Women “Nominated Changemaker” and been nationally recognized for her efforts in seeking an end to gender based violence in the developing world.  Click here for our speaker/training request form or email her at reidahosa@pathfindersji.org.

OUR MISSION

Our mission is to prevent modern-day sex slavery (sex trafficking) and liberate enslaved women and girls through the direct eradication of root causes.

OUR VISION

PJI envisions a world where a fundamental change of human consciousness eliminates the demoralization and subjugation of women and girls. We envision the first generation of women and girls who experience full freedom of choice in education, occupation, financial mobility and physical movement.

OUR CORE VALUES
Compassion
PJI believes that the sexual exploitation of women and girls amounts to a violation of their fundamental human rights.  As such, the liberation of women and girls is the primary compass that guides PJI.  PJI reaches beyond pity into the realm of Compassion, as we believe that neither one’s gender nor place of birth should determine or limit human rights or opportunities.
Accountability
Through lobbying and advocacy, PJI demands accountability from both government and non-government institutions tasked with protecting survivors of gender-based violence. PJI provides them with the necessary training and data to act on behalf of survivors. PJI works arm in arm with these institutions toward the successful prosecution of perpetrators and the protection of survivors.
Access
PJI believes that empowerment and education are powerful accelerators out of poverty, a factor that often forces the women we serve to view prostitution as an alternative. As such, we strive to empower and educate marginalized young women so that they are awakened to and have access to additional viable possibilities. Via customized survivor-centered interventions, female survivors of violence and sexual exploitation receive free medical, counseling and legal services as well as vocational skills and financial literacy training, start-up business capital, job placement and/or education scholarships. Perpetrators are also offered rehabilitation/counseling on a voluntary basis.
Community Transformation
PJI believes that lasting change only comes through partnering with local communities in community transformation. Through the TruthTellers arm of the organization, community awareness of the issues is raised and local communities are urged to partner with PJI in mass mobilization efforts to effect sustained change.