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  • 1 year ago
Support has been provided to over 100 victims of human trafficking in the country through a three year multi-stakeholder programme which was recently concluded.


It also provided training to hundreds of people in the private and public sectors.


Alicia Boucher has more in this report.
Transcript
00:00International organizations, government ministries and local entities came together to address
00:06the issue of human trafficking in Trinidad and Tobago.
00:09This was done under the Joint Access Support and Coordination, or ASC, program, which began
00:15in 2021 through the International Organization for Migration.
00:19According to the IOM, over the three-year span of the program, more than 100 human trafficking
00:24victims were able to access a range of support services, including mental health and psychosocial
00:30support such as counseling, which was done on a continuous basis.
00:35Apart from that, the ASC program also provided vocational skills workshops, which were done
00:41based on feedback from the victims in a bid to equip them to sustain themselves in the
00:46future, as well as English language tutoring.
00:50Sexual and reproductive health care was another service which several survivors were able
00:55to access.
00:56The IOM states that among other accomplishments of the program was the full refurbishment
01:02of two shelters which act as essential safe spaces for survivors.
01:07Capacity building in the areas of child protection, gender-based violence and psychosocial support
01:13was also a focus executed through the training of over 800 public and private sector participants.
01:20At the closing ceremony of the ACS program on September 20th, officer in charge of IOM
01:26and TNT Desiree Jordan-Whiskey spoke to the approach needed to address the problem.
01:32Programs like this one underscore the multifaceted nature of the support required for victims
01:38of gender-based violence and human trafficking and the importance of developing holistic
01:43approaches to address this issue.
01:45Funding for the ACS program was provided by the Migration Multipartner Trust Fund and
01:51implemented by the IOM, UNICEF and the United Nations Population, or UNFPA.
01:56UN resident coordinator Joanna Kazana said the legal framework to deal with human trafficking
02:02is in place, however there is a but.
02:05The effectiveness of anti-trafficking legislation depends on its consistent implementation and
02:11consistent law enforcement.
02:13We jointly are enhancing institutional arrangements for counter-trafficking efforts, particularly
02:18through the development of key policies such as migration policy, anti-smuggling policy
02:24and labour migration policies.
02:26She also signalled the UN's aim to have procedures standardised.
02:31Colleagues in IOM and other agencies are working together to implement comprehensive standard
02:37operating procedures to guide the treatment of survivors of trafficking, ensuring that
02:42there is a uniform approach across the different sectors of law enforcement, social services,
02:47health and community-based.
02:50TV6 News has been informed that a digital case management system will be launched in
02:55the not-too-distant future by the counter-trafficking unit of the TDPS through the program.
03:01The IOM tells us that the majority of human trafficking victims in the country are from
03:06Venezuela but over the years they have engaged victims from other Spanish-speaking countries,
03:12including Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Colombia.
03:15Alicia Boucher, TV6 News.
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