By Priscilla Oye Ofori

Accra, June 13, GNA – The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, has reiterated the need for a national Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to tackle human trafficking.

It said the SOPs in assisting victims of trafficking provided a coordinated framework for stakeholders involved in the identification, protection and prosecution processes relating to human trafficking.

Dr Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, the sector minister, made the call at a four-day regional experience sharing mission on trauma-informed care and shelter operationalisation in Accra, organised by the Ministry in collaboration with Expertise France under the MIGRET Project.

The mission brought together stakeholders from Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and Guinea to strengthen cross-border collaboration as they shared experience for learning purposes in the fight against human trafficking.

Human trafficking according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime is the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of people through force, fraud or deception, with the aim of exploiting them for profit.

Dr Lartey said the SOPs would foster regional cooperation amongst participating countries.

This SOP guide consists of chapters on identification and screening protocols, systematic investigation of cases of child trafficking, and providing comprehensive, gender-sensitive and trauma-informed assistance.

It aligns with national legislation on Trafficking in Persons (TiP), including the 2005 Human Trafficking Act (Act 694), the 2009 Human Trafficking Amendment Act (Act 784) and the 2015 Human Trafficking Legislative Instrument 2219 (L.I. 2219).

Although contextualised to Ghana, it is framed by international standards, best practices and guiding principles.

The Minister said the experience sharing venture would present an opportunity for experts from the various law enforcement agencies to provide insight, opinions and suggestions on dealing with human trafficking cases effectively.

She said it was also a platform for Ghana to share its practices on victim care, reintegration and shelter management with the delegation from the two countries.

‘‘I believe at the end of the experience sharing mission, learning countries would be able to share data and resources which would aid in increased and effective collaboration and enable them to operationalise their shelters more efficiently,” she added.

Dr Lartey commended the Expertise France team for collaborating with the Human Trafficking Secretariat on the project “Support the fight against human trafficking in the states of the Gulf of Guinea.”

The project resulted in the provision of the transit shelter for trafficked victims in Aflao, renovation and refurbishment of the Human Trafficking Secretariat and Trauma Informed Care Centre, refurbishment of the Adult and Children shelters, capacity building programmes for over 600 stakeholders and partners.

She said human trafficking was a crime and an abuse of the rights of many, stealing victims’ freedom, identity and had psychological effects no matter the type of exploitation experienced by the victim.

The Minister said two shelters, the Adult and Children’s Shelters, had been operationalised since 2018 and 2019 respectively, to cater for victims of trafficking since they were entitled to protection and access to justice.

Dr Lartey said 703 victims had been rehabilitated and reintegrated successfully since the operationalisation of the shelters.

She stressed the government’s resolve to empower and protect the vulnerable in society.

Madam Sweta Bonnet, MIGRET Project Director, Expertise France, noted that one of the major challenges identified in the fight against human trafficking in Côte d’Ivoire was building an environment that enabled victims to rebuild their lives and regain their dignity.

She said in partnership with the Ivorian authorities, they decided to draw on solid experience from Ghana to ensure that the centre they wanted to build was worthy of welcoming victims in compliance with international standards, while considering national realities.

Madam Bonnet applauded Ghana’s implementation of a structured and effective approach in the management of its three shelters, which she described as a model worthy of emulation.

GNA

Edited by Samuel Osei-Frempong