Your generosity keeps Bakhita — St. Louis Empowerment Centre open as a refuge for survivors of human trafficking. With every gift we extend safe shelter, trauma-informed care, and skills training that restore hope and dignity to women and children escaping exploitation.
“Be smart. Be safe. Stop body shop.” Together we can end sex-for-export and shut the door on traffickers.
Support the Sisters of St. Louis (Bakhita Project) by making a direct transfer to our Zenith Bank account.
Please include “Support Bakhita” in your transfer narration so we can acknowledge your gift promptly.
Bakhita Lagos — St. Louis Empowerment Network
Phone: +234 (0)806 555 6555
Email: info@bakhita.org, pnebgbulem@gmail.com
We strive for a society free from human trafficking and unsafe or illegal migration where everyone can live in dignity.
We create awareness, advocate against human trafficking and other injustices, and empower survivors on their journey to healing. Through rehabilitation, reintegration, education, and skills training, we help returned survivors build sustainable livelihoods while working hand in hand with government, national, and international partners.
St. Josephine Bakhita was born around 1869 in the village of Olgossa in the Darfur region of Sudan. In 1877, Arab slave traders kidnapped, sold, and trafficked her. She was bought and sold more than twelve times, enduring immense cruelty at the hands of her enslavers.
In 1883, a Turkish general sold her to Italian Vice Consul Callisto Legani. For the first time she experienced love, care, and affection. She entered the care of the Canossian Sisters in Venice, encountered the Christian faith, and discerned a call to follow Christ. Baptised on January 9, 1890, she took the name Josephine Margaret Fortunata—Fortunata being the Latin translation of her Arabic name, Bakhita.
St. Josephine Bakhita died on February 8, 1947. She was beatified on May 17, 1992, and canonised on October 1, 2000, by St. John Paul II. Her feast day on February 8 calls the world to pray and act for survivors of trafficking.
“Don't become a victim of the trade in persons.”