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Bamako, Mali - 20 November 2017 - Upon request from the Government of Mali and in the context of several multilateral projects, UNODC and the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) have joined forces to provide technical support to the National Coordination Committee on the fight against Trafficking in Persons and Assimilated Practices. The workshop was held from 30 October to 2 November 2017 to strengthen the capacity of Committee members as actors of the national coordination on the fight against trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants, and to develop recommendations and guidelines for the operationalization of the Committee.
In order to encourage interactions between participants and facilitate a dynamic exchange of ideas, the sessions alternated between a plenary session, team work in small groups, and practical exercises based on the training manuals developed by UNODC and adapted to the Malian context. The modules focused specifically on the differences and similarities between human trafficking and smuggling of migrants, the role of the Committee in coordinating the fight against these phenomena and the establishment of a road map to improve its effectiveness.
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Participants to the workshop in Bamako |
Debates at the national level were enriched by the participation of the Permanent Secretary of the National Unit against Trafficking in Persons of Senegal and the General Director of the National Agency for Combating Trafficking in Persons and Related Practices of Niger, allowing for an exchange of regional good practices as well as the challenges encountered in the implementation of activities of National Committees. The multi-agency approach adopted also brought together expert representatives from the International Organization for Migrations (IOM), the European Union (EUCAP) and the Human Rights Section of MINUSMA on behalf of OHCHR.
The training was organized thanks to the financial support of the Netherlands as part of a joint project between UNODC and OHCHR, and by the European Union and Germany as part of the GLO.ACT project jointly implemented by UNODC, IOM and UNICEF.
Since 2010, Mali has been actively involved in the fight against human trafficking through several initiatives. On February 3, 2011, the Government adopted Decree No. 2011-036/PM-RM establishing the National Coordination Committee for Combating Trafficking in Persons and Assimilated Practices. The country also passed law n°2012-023 of 12 July 2012 on combating trafficking in persons and related practices. A National Action Plan (2015-2017) was launched in March 2016 and the National Coordination Committee was allocated a budget of 200 million FCFA for the year 2017 to support the effective implementation of this plan. Despite these important advances and the efforts of national authorities, much remains to be done to ensure that the National Coordination Committee against Trafficking in Persons has the capacity and tools to capitalize on these efforts.
The Global Action to Prevent and Address Trafficking in Persons and the Smuggling of Migrants (GLO.ACT) is a four-year (2015-2019), €11 million joint initiative by the European Union (EU) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). The project is being implemented in partnership with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). GLO.ACT aims to provide assistance to governmental authorities and civil society organizations across 13 strategically selected countries: Belarus, Brazil, Colombia, Egypt, Kyrgyz Republic, Lao PDR, Mali, Morocco, Nepal, Niger, Pakistan, South Africa, Ukraine. It supports the development of more effective responses to trafficking and smuggling, including providing assistance to victims of trafficking and vulnerable migrants through the strengthening of identification, referral, and direct support mechanisms.
For more information:
Definitions and tools on human trafficking and migrant smuggling
www.unodc.org/unodc/en/human-trafficking/glo-act/
Email: glo.act@un.org
Twitter: @glo_act
