Director General/Executive Director
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Two years ago, UNODC signed an agreement with the European Union for a new partnership to strengthen rights-based, people-centred criminal justice responses to human trafficking and migrant smuggling.
In this time the international community has struggled with the largest mass movement of people since the Second World War. The vulnerabilities of refugees and migrants to traffickers and other criminals is well known to you.
The "Global Action to Prevent and Address Trafficking in Persons and the Smuggling of Migrants" is needed more than ever.
I am very pleased to be here at this meeting that will highlight the progress that has been made since we launched this project last May, and most importantly, facilitate dialogue and exchange between the countries involved to further enhance project implementation.
Our work under GLO.ACT, using the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and its Protocols as its firm foundation and carried out with our partners IOM and UNICEF, has helped to gather the best available data on the current situation with respect to human trafficking and migrant smuggling in all thirteen countries involved in this project.
The reports produced provide recommendations, proposed plans for implementation and means to monitor progress.
I welcome the appointment of government focal points for the project, who are with us here today.
We are also pleased to note that all thirteen countries have moved forward with implementation. Activities include:
Our project is also helping to strengthen regional coordination, including through a workshop this month on migrant smuggling by sea with a focus on judicial cooperation in Malta which brought together prosecutors, judges and central authorities from Algeria, Egypt Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia and Turkey.
Distinguished participants,
This work to improve responses to human trafficking and migrant smuggling is helping to address one of the critical challenges facing the international community today.
I am pleased and proud that UNODC and the EU have been able to build on our long-standing cooperation in preventing and combating trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants with GLO.ACT.
I thank our partners in this project, and I wish you every success with this meeting and in your work ahead.
Thank you.