By Omar Bah
The International Organization of Migration (IOM), in partnership with NAATIP and UNODC Tuesday commenced a four days intensive training for over twenty law enforcement personnel on enhancing the identification, investigation, prosecution and trial of alleged traffickers, at the Kairaba Hotel.
According to the IOM country’s PRM Project Assistant, Caroline Crawford the four-day training aims to train law enforcement officers not only on the identification, investigation, and prosecution of alleged traffickers, but also on ensuring respect for alleged victims’ rights.
She said the training workshop is funded under the project ”Protecting Vulnerable Migrants in West and Central Africa ” a regional project funded by the department of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) of the Department of State of the Government of the United States of America.
“The IOM and its partners are with the believed that expertise gained from the training will be extremely useful for investigators in The Gambia, and as well provide a great opportunity for participants,” she said.
She said the assistance provided by the project covers the whole of West and Central Africa with The Gambia benefiting from capacity-building activities of government actors, civil society and the media.
Meanwhile, the executive director of the National Agency Against Trafficking in Persons (NAATIP-The Gambia) Tulai Jawara-Ceesay said the Gambia government forming of NAATIP-The Gambia which is under the Ministry of Justice in Banjul, in 2007 by an Act of the National Assembly, is a clear manifestation that the country is willing to comply with its international commitment.
She said NAATIP has since “made remarkable progress in terms of operations and actions, and presently has adequate staff on the ground; a well-developed plan of action; and a fully functioning board of directors”.
“It is also important to note that, despite all the efforts made over the years, the issues of irregular migration, human trafficking in all forms still remains a challenge all over the world,” she said.
She said every year millions of women and children are been trafficked in countries around the world, “It is estimated that the trafficking in person is around $32 billion industry per year, second to only drug trafficking.”
