A series of IOM trainings will begin next week in Mozambique and
Mauritius for law enforcement officers, immigration officials and
social workers. It is aimed at helping participants fight human
trafficking and to protect its victims, including children.

The training in Mozambique is a continuation of support to help
disseminate information on the country's recently adopted
counter-trafficking law, drawn up with IOM's assistance.
Participants, selected from four provinces in southern Mozambique,
will also learn how to interpret and apply the law properly.

In Mauritius, the training, funded by the British High
Commission, marks the first of this kind of cooperation between IOM
and the Mauritian Police Force. It will develop and eventually host
such events in the country. Participants here will include
representatives from each division and district of the police
force, as well as government officials from the Ministry of Labour,
Ministry of Women's Rights, Child Protection and Family Welfare,
the State Law Office, and the Office of the Ombudsperson for
Children. 

In both countries, law enforcement and social workers will be
equipped with the necessary skills to identify irregular migration
at an early stage, and in particular to detect and assist potential
victims of trafficking.

It is expected that the training will also lead to the creation
of new links for cooperation and referral mechanisms between
different law enforcement agencies. These will be crucial to
ensuring a coordinated and proactive response to human
trafficking.  To this effect, social workers will be trained
to work closely with law enforcement to fully meet the protection
needs of victims.

The training is part of IOM's Southern African Counter
Trafficking Assistance Programme that addresses human trafficking
across the region.  SACTAP, funded by the Norwegian government
and the US State Department's Bureau of Population, Refugees and
Migration (PRM), is the first programme in Southern Africa to offer
a comprehensive and cohesive regional counter-trafficking response,
engaging government institutions, civil society organizations and
the private sector.

For more information, please contact:

Nely Chimedza

IOM Maputo

Tel +258 21 310 779

E-mail: "mailto:nchimedza@iom.int">nchimedza@iom.int 

or

Michael Newson 

IOM Port Louis

Tel +230 213-3304

E-mail: "mailto:mnewson@iom.int">mnewson@iom.int

or

Mariam Khokhar

IOM Pretoria

Tel + 7 795 01 7854

E-mail: "mailto:mkhokhar@iom.int">mkhokhar@iom.int