Cairo, 12 September 2021 –The International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Egypt, in cooperation with the ‘National Coordinating Committee for Combatting and Preventing Illegal Migration and Trafficking in Persons (NCCPIM&TIP)’, has launched the second phase of the programme “Training for National Councils Staff on Responding to Victims of Human Trafficking” in Cairo.

The launching event of the training was attended by Mr Laurent de Boeck, IOM Chief of Mission to the Arab Republic of Egypt, Dr Sahar El Sonbaty, Secretary-General of the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood, and Ambassador Naela Gabr, Chairperson of NCCPIM&TiP. The training was attended by 45 participants from the National Council for Childhood & Motherhood, the National Council for Women, and the National Council for Human Rights.

“We just witnessed yesterday the launching by H.E. the President of Egypt of the first-ever National Strategy of Human Rights in Egypt,” said Mr Laurent de Boeck, “this is an opportunity to mention how, at every level, we see the engagement of the Government in defending the needs of protection for all citizens in the country, and this programme reflects such engagement” added de Boeck.

During her opening remarks, H.E Ambassador Naela Gabr pointed out that as part of the Egyptian holistic counter-trafficking approach, Egypt is keen to build the national capacities of the relevant stakeholders to provide the protection services for Victims of Trafficking (VoTs) as well as reintegrating the victims into the society. Her Excellency also added that Egypt pays special attention to support and protect the most vulnerable groups from exploitation especially women and children, this comes in line with the implementation of the H.E President El Sisi’s directives on strengthening the VoTs’ protection services in Egypt.

“IOM is glad to associate with all front liners, dealing with specific people in vulnerable situations, who have been victims of trafficking. As front liner, each worker is engaged to identify the best solutions to inhumane issues,” said de Boeck, IOM wants to take this opportunity to commend the commitment to offer such services and welcome our partnership with the National Committees for Women, Childhood and Motherhood, and Human Rights.

The training programme included sessions on the definition, acts and forms of trafficking, and their consequences, risk factors for victims of trafficking, case management approach including the identification & intake, registration, and referral mechanisms and as well as assessment to provide the victims with psychosocial support over the phone vs. in-person.

The training aims to provide comprehensive protection for victims of trafficking and other vulnerable groups so that they can have a safe and humane life. Therefore, five rounds of trainings are set to take place during the upcoming months in four different governorates (Cairo, Alexandria, Aswan and Ismailiya). Those capacity building sessions will train 140 trainees, including caseworkers and case managers as well as coordinators of the helplines of the three National Councils who work directly with victims of trafficking and vulnerable groups.

 “We thank IOM for organizing this training. It is very comprehensive, and we would like to pass this information and knowledge we gained to other members of our team who also work directly with victims of trafficking. It would also be beneficial if the psychosocial workers receive this training from specialized trainers just like we received it as managers,” said one of the participants.

The training was made possible through the generous support offered by the European Union under the project “Regional Development and Protection Programme (RDPP)”, and by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark under the project “Strengthening the Sphere of Protection for Victims of Trafficking and Vulnerable Migrants in Egypt While Preventing Irregular Migration and Human Trafficking (SPHERE ll)”.

The training contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically Goal 3 "Good Health and Wellbeing”, Goal 8 “Decent Work and Economic Growth”, Goal 10 “Reduced Inequalities”. The training comes in line with the objectives of the Global Compact for Migration (GCM), Objective 10 “Prevent, combat and eradicate trafficking in persons in the context of international migration” and Objective 7 “Address and reduce vulnerabilities in migration”.

For more information, please contact Mariam Salim at IOM Egypt, Tel: +20 1012 428 527, Email: msalim@iom.int