People smuggling

Trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants, Training manual - Afghanistan

National and international stakeholders responding to human trafficking in Afghanistan, including the Afghan High Commission to Combat Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling of Migrants (henceforth the High Commission on TIP) widely acknowledged, through various meetings, seminars, community interactions, that there is a lack of training material to build the conceptual and response capacity of national stakeholders to identify, refer and assist victims of trafficking (VoTs). The 2016 US Department of State Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report noted that Afghanistan does not fully comply with the minimum standards to respond to the needs of VoTs; victim protection efforts remained inadequate and law enforcement and judicial officials continued to have limited understanding of human trafficking. Furthermore, it stated that the government did not develop or employ systematic procedures for the identification and referral of victims to protective services, although it is making significant efforts to do so.

Various studies conducted by IOM in Afghanistan since 2004, and most recent studies in 2014 and 2016 with the Research Group Samuel Hall, pointed out that NGOs who provided protection services for VoTs suffer from poor capacity and low expertise in TIP, citing lack of clear understanding among key NGOs coordinating services on different roles and responsibilities, a consequence of the absence of appropriate training materials which would build the capacity of NGOs and law enforcement agencies alike. This absence results in gaps on identification and non-referral for services.