A 2-year Australian-funded IOM project
designed to build the capacity of Bangladesh's immigration service
to combat irregular migration and human trafficking is to be
extended by 18 months.

The new phase was announced yesterday at the
launch of an induction training manual for new immigration
officials produced during phase one of the project. The manual is
already in use at the Special Branch Training School – the
Home Affairs Ministry department responsible for training
immigration officers.

The launch, attended by Australian Immigration
and Multicultural Affairs Minister Amanda Vanstone, Bangladeshi
Minister for Home Affairs Lutfozzaman Babar and senior officials,
marked the successful completion of the first phase of a project
that provided both training and equipment for Bangladesh's
cash-strapped immigration service.

The second phase will provide more equipment,
will strengthen investigative and document authentication
capacities, and will continue to train Special Branch staff on
specialized border management issues. It will also establish a
border management committee.

Every year some 250,000 Bangladeshis migrate
in search of work overseas. While the country benefits massively
from over US$4 billion a year that labour migrants send home as
remittances, thousands of Bangladeshi irregular migrants fall prey
to exploitation by human traffickers and smugglers.

For further information, please contact:

Ms. Umbareen Kuddus

IOM Dhaka

Phone: +88 02 8814604

Email: "mailto:ukuddus@iom.int" target="_blank" title=
"">ukuddus@iom.int