Counter Trafficking Capacity-building for Government Officials, Judicial Authorities, Law Enforcement and NGOs in West Africa

This project aims to support and develop the capacity and cooperation of governments, NGOs and law enforcement/judicial officials in Burkina Faso, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Mali, and Senegal to prevent internal and cross border trafficking in persons, and offer better protection to victims of trafficking. In addition, the project aims to harmonize mechanisms for the protection of victims of trafficking, as well as the judicial proceedings against traffickers.

To this end, IOM will organize a series of participatory training workshops and develop an operational manual gathering accurate information and latest best practices in the field of counter trafficking. The trainings and manual are specifically tailored to the region and intended for government officials, police officers, investigators, judiciary and grassroots NGO involved in counter trafficking. In-country visits will allow two project staff to establish the necessary contacts with national stakeholders involved in counter trafficking. Following these visits, they will select the best participants for the workshops based on their previous training experience and position to have a stronger impact on the realities of the field. These trainings will seek to strengthen the participants’ skills on issues related to the protection and assistance of victims, from their initial identification to their final reintegration; cooperation; and judicial mechanisms to protect the victims and prosecute the traffickers. Participants will be assisted in the establishment of a regional network of providers of counter-trafficking assistance.

The operational manual will be developed during each workshop, and finalized after review and consolidation of the results achieved in the trainings. This manual aims to become a practical tool for the provision of assistance to victims of trafficking in West Africa and prosecution of traffickers. After publication, five hundred copies will be disseminated to national counter trafficking structures in the five target countries.