March 5th, Amman 

A delegation of Tunisian officials participated, last week from the 28th February to the 3rd March, to a Study tour in Amman, Jordan to examine the Jordanian experience on the field of protection of victims of trafficking (VoTs), and especially in managing governmental shelters for VoTs. 

The visit, which was facilitated by IOM Mission in Tunisia and Jordan, focused on sharing experiences on the institutional and legal framework governing protection of VoTs and shelter management. It also identified opportunities for strengthening cooperation between both countries on the field of counter trafficking in persons. 

The Tunisian delegation included the President of the recently created National Commission against trafficking, and representatives from the Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Social Affairs and Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The delegation had the opportunity to meet and exchange with Jordanian government officials, including representatives from the Legal Committee under the Jordanian National Committee in Combatting Human Trafficking, the Ministry of Justice, the head of the Counter Trafficking Unit and representatives from the Ministry of Social Development in charge of the protection and assistance to VoTs, as well as with two Jordanian civil society organizations with a large experience on this field. 

Tunisia is a country of origin, transit and destination for trafficking in persons. In the last years, Tunisian nationals have been identified as VoTs both in Tunisia and abroad, most commonly into forced labor, forced prostitution and domestic work. A number of foreign VoTs have also been detected in Tunisia, most of them women coming from sub-Saharan Africa, having been trafficked into domestic work. 

In the past months, the Government of Tunisia has made significant efforts to fight trafficking and protect victims. The Law n°61-2016 to Prevent and Fighting Trafficking in Persons has been enacted in August 2016, and the National Commission against trafficking in persons has been formally established in February 2017. One of its major priority will be to implement the National Action Plan against trafficking, developed earlier in 2015, including setting national measures to improving protection and assistance to VoTs in the country.Since 2011, IOM Tunisia supports the Government of Tunisia, in straight coordination with the Ministry of Social Affairs and the National Commission against TIP, in the implementation of counter-trafficking public policies. 

This Study Tour is one of the activities foreseen under the 12-month IOM-funded project “Reinforcing assistance and protection of victims of trafficking in Tunisia with adapted shelters and capacity building activities”, aimed at adapting two governmental shelters for hosting victims of trafficking or potential victims (people at risk of trafficking), as well as providing specialized capacity-building support to the personnel of the shelters and civil society organizations on protection to VoTs. 

As Tunisia, Jordan is a country of origin, transit and destination of migrants and refugees. For this reason, the visit of the Tunisian delegation was relevant and fruitful for both sides, bringing the opportunity to share best practices and innovative solutions. IOM aims to reinforce the regional cooperation across the Middle East and North Africa in terms of harmonizing the legislation and the measures to respond to Human Trafficking. Jordan is a host country for migrants and refugees. In the light of the Syria crisis, the risk of exploitation and trafficking increases for vulnerable groups, such as refugees and migrants. 

"During the Study Tour, the Tunisian delegation learned a lot on the Jordanian experience on counter-trafficking and protection of victims. The bilateral exchanges related to the implementation of the anti-TIP Law in Jordan has been positive and will definitively serve as a good practice to consider for Tunisia”, said Hélène Le Goff, Counter-Trafficking Project Manager at IOM Tunisia. 

For further information, please contact Hélène Le Goff, IOM Tunisia, Tel: +216 71 860 312, Email: hlegoff@iom.int and Laura Sisniega, IOM Jordan, Tel: +962 797048167, Email: lsisniegacrespo@iom.int