Meeting of National Anti-Trafficking Co-ordinators and Rapporteurs from the OSCE region concludes in Strasbourg

STRASBOURG, France, 23 May 2018 – Co-organized by the Council of Europe (CoE) and the Office of the OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings (OSR/CTHB), a meeting of National Anti-Trafficking Co-ordinators and Rapporteurs from across the OSCE regional framework concluded at the Palais de l’Europe today.

Participants from 41 OSCE participating States and Partners for Co-operation gathered to identify joint actions on how best to address current human trafficking-related challenges in the OSCE region and foster the implementation of relevant OSCE commitments as well as obligations under the CoE Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings.

“Meetings such as this are a very useful expert platform for streamlining our national and regional responses to human trafficking, and I am glad that today we have the possibility to discuss our mutual challenges and identify opportunities and solutions by learning from each other and establishing closer operational ties,” said Madina Jarbussynova, OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings.

“Regular exchanges between National Anti-trafficking Coordinators of States Parties to the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings are vital for pooling knowledge, strengthening partnerships and promoting the implementation of the Convention,” said Petya Nestorova, Executive Secretary of the Council of Europe Anti-trafficking Convention.

During the morning session, participants discussed the recommendations from this year’s 18th Alliance Against Trafficking in Persons conference and from the most recent report of the CoE Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA), with a thematic focus on human trafficking for labour exploitation, which was followed by an exchange on current THB patterns and trends.

In the afternoon, the discussion focused on ways to strengthen the role of National Co-ordinators and build strategic partnerships that involve civil society and the private sector. The session concluded with participants examining how best to further enhance the role of National Rapporteurs or other national mechanisms for monitoring anti-trafficking activities and policies, as well as identifying a way forward to ensure a more effective and coherent anti-trafficking response both within individual participating States, and across the OSCE area as a whole.