PRESS RELEASE: IOM Trains Rwanda’s Law Enforcement Officers on Identification, Investigation and Referral of Victims of Trafficking

KIGALI, 25 MAR 2019 - The officers were selected from the Directorate General of Immigration and Emigration (DGIE), Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB), Rwanda National Police (RNP) and the National Public Prosecution Authority (NPPA).

The training was meant to strengthen the capacity of law enforcement agencies on identification of victims of trafficking as well as investigation of human trafficking related cases.  The training curricula was developed through close discussions with the Law Enforcement Agencies in Rwanda and is based on the IOM Training Needs Assessment 2018. The training is part of a project entitled “Improving Knowledge, Enforcement and Coordination of Counter Trafficking ‘’ (2017-2019) funded by the United States Department of International Development (USAID).

IOM works with One UN partners and Rwanda’s Ministry of Justice on strengthening the response to trafficking in persons.

“Intra-agency cooperation is the most vital component of a counter trafficking initiative and should reflect the geographical nature of the trafficking process in its investigations, cooperation and prosecution must stretch over origin, transit and destination states” stated Mr. Marcellino Ramkishun, Regional Thematic Specialist on Border Management at IOM Regional Office in Nairobi.

Also participants from the DGIE expressed their satisfaction about the ToT: "the training has showed us gaps in the Rwandan work against trafficking which needs to be addressed so that victims of trafficking can be assisted and followed up".

Some key achievements from the project include: the establishment of a Technical Committee on Counter Trafficking which consists of representatives from all relevant Government agencies and which increases the coordination of the efforts to combat trafficking in the country; the first research on trafficking in persons conducted in Rwanda which will be published soon. The research report will serve as a baseline study and for informed and evidenced based programming in the future.

In 2018 the Government of Rwanda adopted and promulgated the country’s first ever counter trafficking law relating to the prevention, suppression and punishment of trafficking in persons and exploitation.

IOM continues to actively support the Government of Rwanda in all its migration related efforts.

For further information please contact: Alia Hirji, IOM Rwanda: Email: AHirji@iom.int Tel: +250 789096997