In Lilongwe tomorrow (October 24th) IOM and British Government
officials will hold a three-day workshop for 40 Malawian
immigration officials and travel industry staff aimed at raising
awareness of human trafficking and encouraging action to prevent it
and to protect its victims.

The workshop will be opened by the Chief Immigration Officer of
Malawi, Mr. Elvis John Thodi. Participants will include immigration
and police officials, document checking agencies and airline staff
representing airlines operating at the Lilongwe International
Airport.

Organised by IOM's Regional Office for Southern Africa in
Pretoria, this workshop together with others in Namibia, South
Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe, has been funded by the UK
Government.

The workshops are part of a three-year IOM project to address
trafficking across Southern Africa. The project is the first to
offer a cohesive, regional response incorporating Governments, NGOs
and the private sector.

The workshop will equip Government and travel industry staff
with the necessary skills to identify irregular migration at an
early stage, and in particular to be able to detect and assist
potential victims of trafficking. It also will encourage liaison
between immigration and airline officials which is key to
preventing this damaging trade in human beings.

These workshops are a partnership between the UK government and
IOM to the fullest extent, in that modules are collaboratively
prepared and tailored, and the training is jointly conducted. They
combine IOM's expertise on counter-trafficking and technical
cooperation on migration management for governments with UK Border
and Immigration Agency expertise in forgery detection.

An IOM spokesperson said: "This training has been conducted in
Namibia, and following Malawi, will also address immigration
officials and airline officials in Zambia, Zimbabwe and South
Africa. This project is innovative in that it marks the first time
that airline carriers will receive such training, and IOM hopes to
see a significant impact on the early recognition and appropriate
tailored response to cases that the target group may come
across."

A UK Border and Immigration Agency spokesperson said: "The UK
Government is very pleased to be involved in this groundbreaking
initiative to tackle human trafficking and the misery it causes.
This is an international trade which requires an international
response."

For more information, please call:

Marija Nikolovska

IOM Pretoria

Tel +27-12 342 2789

E-mail: "mailto:mnikolovska@iom.int">mnikolovska@iom.int