23 Nov 2022

 Studies conducted in the SADC region indicate that Botswana serves as transit country for the actualisation of human trafficking and smuggling.

 This was revealed by head of anti-human trafficking national coordinating unit, Mr Madoda Nasha in Palapye on Tuesday.

 Speaking at an anti-human trafficking training workshop for social workers, he confirmed that there was an emerging and enduring phenomenon of human trafficking in the country.

  Mr Nasha therefore advised Batswana to be vigilant warning that trafficking and smuggling in persons often happened in ‘people’s eyes’.

Palapye Administrative Authority assistant council secretary, Mr John Sephobe said the workshop was timely as social workers were the main stakeholders in human trafficking issues.

He said the Anti-Human Trafficking Act of 2014 mandated the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development to take care of trafficking in persons and other related incidents victims’ welfare needs.

Mr Sephobe said having to provide services to the relatively new clientele required that social work professionals be equipped with relevant knowledge and skills. 

He said to date, such services had been provided to 105 victims, 94 of whom had been safely repatriated.

Assistant Superintendent Messiah Makola, who is the officer in charge of the Botswana Police Child Friendly Centre, outlined some of the indicators of human trafficking or smuggling victim.

They included not speaking the local language, being fearful and memory loss, the officer said.

Among the workshop’s objectives was empowerment of social workers to effectively intervene in human trafficking cases; help them to understand victims and offer appropriate support; capacitate them to differentiate between trafficking in persons and smuggling as well as to understand the international and domestic legal framework of trafficking in persons.

The workshop was also meant to reinforce collaboration in handling trafficking in persons’ cases among stakeholders at implementation level. ENDS