Vienna, 22 November 2022 – It is crucial for humanitarian agencies and international organizations to safeguard fundamental human rights for the most vulnerable human trafficking victims. Today, the ongoing conflict in Eastern Europe and the consistent high vulnerability of women and children to being trafficked, not just in conflict zones but around the world, make these priority areas for combating human trafficking.
They are therefore the priority areas of the latest grant cycle of the United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund for Victims of Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (UNVTF). This voluntary trust fund is managed by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
Today, the trust fund announced the selection results of ‘sub-grant programme two’, which falls under its sixth grant cycle. The announcement was made at the 24th UNVTF board meeting in Vienna. The grant aims to assist vulnerable victims of trafficking in persons through funded projects lasting up to two years.
Ninety-five proposals from civil society organizations were reviewed, with five projects eventually selected. The grants awarded amount to a total of USD 281,871. The selected projects will be implemented in five different countries with fair geographical distribution. They will provide to human trafficking survivors shelter, material assistance, legal advice, psychosocial assistance, vocational training and access to the formal financial and educational system, as well as assistance with family reunification and/or repatriation.
The awarded grants will go to the following projects:
Caritas Ukraine (Ukraine): this project will screen, protect and assist 40 vulnerable victims of human trafficking among the people affected by war.
Association for the Development of Alternative Practices for Education and Reintegration (Romania): the project plans to support 100 girls and women accommodated in public centres in Bucharest.
Sustainable Development Organization for Women (Afghanistan): this project aims to assist 370 human trafficking survivors as well as protect young women and girls from all forms of human trafficking through awareness-raising activities.
Women, Infants and Children Care Initiative (Nigeria): this project will assist 115 human trafficking survivors as well as facilitate social reintegration and prevent risk of re-trafficking for survivors.
Amel (Lebanon): this project is to provide preventive and responsive support to 60 of the most marginalised and hard-to-reach (potential) victims of human trafficking.
UNVTF’s global grant programme continues to protect fundamental human rights for human trafficking victims. Sub-programme one provided emergent humanitarian aid through funding civil society organization projects operating on the front lines.
Since 2010, over 45,000 survivors of trafficking have directly benefited through more than 145 UNVTF-funded projects, implemented by in-situ civil society partners and frontline grassroots organizations across more than 60 countries.
For more information, please visit the UNVTF website.
