New USAID anti-trafficking report announced

TIRANA, Jan 25 – The USAID anti-trafficking program reported the findings of its fourth annual report on the State of Efforts in Albania to Combat Trafficking of Persons.
The report offered an overview and analysis of anti-trafficking policies and programs in Albania related to social services and education.
This year’s report draws on the data and experience of the nationwide network of government and civil society organizations that work with USAID’s program.
U.S. Ambassador John L. Withers II noted the importance of both government and civil society efforts in anti-trafficking.
“By sharing data, and comparing analysis and conclusions, both civil society and government reports and analysis acquire greater legitimacy. This consistency of information presented to the public about trafficking in persons inspires a greater public trust in information that is presented on the issue,” he said.
Albanian Deputy Interior Minister Iva Zajmi thanked the US for the support given to the anti-trafficking efforts of the Albanian government.
The report presents “a very good analysis of the trafficking trends as well as a good presentation of the victim’s profile and the work done by government and non-government structures following the appropriate responsibilities and obligations,” she said.
The report contains an analysis of case data from victims of trafficking collected from Albania’s National Anti-trafficking Shelter Coalition, which challenge a number of commonly held assumptions about the causes of vulnerability to trafficking. Key findings include:
Most victims of trafficking were recruited in their community of origin and by someone they knew personally.
Most victims of trafficking were recruited from the more urban areas of the country, and in the “moderately economically distressed” communities.
Over half of the victims of trafficking assisted in shelters had completed compulsory education.
Over 90 percent of the victims of trafficking in the shelters come from the general Albanian population; only 9 percent were from the Roma and Balkan Egyptian minority communities.
USAID’s CAAHT program seeks to combat the trafficking of women and children by reaching Albania society through activities aimed at national, district, and local community levels.