UNODC Facilitates Establishment of Network of Law Enforcement and Judiciary Trainers on Countering Trafficking in Persons

On 6-8 November 2023, UNODC organized a Training of Trainers Workshop on Trafficking in Persons in Tashkent region, Uzbekistan. The workshop aimed to prepare subject-matter practitioners from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Prosecutor General’s Office and the Supreme Court as national instructors, with the goal of providing sustainable capacity building in the field in Uzbekistan.

Participants engaged in rigorous training sessions, discussions, and hands-on exercises led by UNODC experts in the field, including Dr. Reda Sirgediene, UNODC Regional Adviser for Central Asia on Countering Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling of Migrants and Mr. Mustafa Erten, Chief of UNODC Regional Center for Combating Cybercrime in Doha & Head of Office in Qatar.

Mr. Mustafa Erten introduced participants to adult learning methodology, covering Bloom’s Taxonomy and Gagné’s Nine Levels of Learning, as well as explaining application of teaching methods to meet the unique needs of adult learners and enhance training effectiveness.

Under the guidance of Dr. Reda Sirgediene participants delved into international conventions and treaties, including the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons Especially Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, national legislation and regulations of Uzbekistan, detection, investigation, prosecution, adjudication of trafficking in persons cases, victim-centered approach, financial investigations, international cooperation and data protection. Through interactive sessions, participants were equipped with knowledge and skills to prepare training materials and conduct their own seminars using various teaching techniques and tools.

The workshop concluded with discussions on plans for training sessions and training materials prepared by the participants themselves and a certificate granting ceremony.

In response to requests made by national authorities, UNODC initiated collaborative meetings and facilitated consultations and field working sessions to develop a comprehensive and practical handbook on investigation, prosecution, and adjudication of trafficking in persons cases for law enforcement and judiciary of Uzbekistan. The training agenda of this workshop and of the coming events in regions of Uzbekistan will be based on this handbook.

This initiative is organized within the framework of the UNODC Global Programme against Trafficking in Persons, implementing the UNODC Programme for Central Asia 2022–2025, under the financial support of the U.S. State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs.