IOM’s counter-trafficking workshops were an eye opener for participants and heightened awareness of the many nuances of the trafficking in persons (TIP) phenomenon in South Africa, according to external impact evaluation experts.

The trainings were delivered by IOM’s Southern African Counter-Trafficking Assistance Programme (SACTAP), between December 2007 and December 2010. The workshops were intended to improve government’s ability to prevent and combat trafficking in persons while equipping them to protect and assist victims of trafficking.

The project successfully enrolled 5 Government Departments, namely the Departments of Home Affairs, Social Development & Health, Justice and Constitutional Development, including the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and the Lower Courts Magistrates Commission and the South African Police Service (SAPS), Department of Labour, and the South African Revenue Services, SARS. Additionally, Non-Governmental Organizations and South African media organizations were also trained on particular roles that they can play to address the crime of trafficking in persons.

In total, 2,563 individuals underwent the capacity building and training programme, with the majority from Gauteng and Kwa Zulu Natal provinces. IOM’s approach was to allow for the creation of ownership by the beneficiaries of the programme, and as such selection of who should be trained, lay in the hands of the government departments involved. The South African Police Services, Department of Social Development and the Department Home Africa each sent more than 500 people to the counter-trafficking training workshops.

Some sessions were characterized by a mix of institutions, resulting in a rich exchange of knowledge and more information being developed than when representatives of a single department attended as sole participants to a workshop. Due to this inclusive nature, the workshops enabled different stakeholders to meet, share knowledge and exchange information, creating a basis for future cooperation between different entities.

In addition, the programme developed capacity building manuals specific to the needs of the particular departments involved. The material was based on IOM’s expert knowledge and counter-trafficking efforts globally, but more importantly tailored to the particular context of South Africa, and what trafficking in persons in, through and within the country entails.  The manuals ranging from a generic one to those for Social Development and Health, and South African Police Services among others, were further accredited by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) and are intended to become integrated within training efforts for new recruits and existing officials of the various departments.

According to the independent external evaluation of the project, the knowledge acquired appears to have been integrated into the daily work of many of those officials who have been trained. Those interviewed for the evaluation, reported a clearer view on the TIP phenomenon and their enhanced ability to provide necessary support to victims.

At the national level, the majority of departments seem to have implemented new ways to handle issues related to TIP. For example, some departments have created central coordination units that enhance their cooperation with other departments and ensure that TIP activities are better managed. Other departments have set up coordinating desks to ensure that there are resources allocated for TIP initiatives.

The programme was funded by the European Union as part of its umbrella funding to the ‘Assistance to the Government of South Africa to Prevent and React to Trafficking in Persons’ programme, within which IOM was responsible, in close coordination with the National Prosecuting Authority, for Result Area 3: Capacity Building and Training.

For further information, please contact Puseletso Mompei at pmompei@iom.int, +27 7168 999 66 or Pauline Birot, IOM’s Counter Trafficking focal point in South Africa at pbirot@iom.int, + 27 12 342 2489