30 Jan 2017

A senior government official dealing with curtailment of trafficking in persons, has called on all to take part in the fight against human trafficking.

Speaking at the end of a three-day workshop on human trafficking, organised for Non-Governmental Organisations in Gaborone recently, Mr Madoda Nasha who is a deputy manager, trafficking in person in the Ministry of Defence, Justice and Security said there was evidence that human trafficking existed in the country and that Botswana was used as a conduit to traffic people outside.

He noted that though there was evidence that there was trafficking of people within the country, it was usually difficult to deter such incidents as victims would had sometimes been tricked into this trap.

Mr Nasha however regretted that investigations had demonstrated that Botswana was one of the countries that human traffickers use to illegally convey victims of this crime to neighbouring countries especially South Africa.

Mr Nasha called for concerted efforts by all stakeholders especially the civil society in arresting the situation. He said as a ministry they were equally committed to fighting this problem and would continue to consult with NGOs in the course of this fight.

For her part, programme officer in the same ministry, Ms Samantha Munodawafa, said she was happy that the workshop attendants were eager to pass on the information learnt to their fellow members and various communities across the country.

She said as a way forward they would closely work with many stakeholders, including the United Nations Office on Drugs (UNODC), which also formed part of the workshop facilitators.BOPA