Bujumbura, 28 July 2023 – Two days ahead of this year’s World Day Against Trafficking in Persons (WDATIP) 2023, the Government of the Republic of Burundi, with the support from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), is launching a 5-year National Action Plan (NAP 2023-2027) for Counter-Trafficking (CT).  

The Prime Minister's Chief of Staff, Police Colonel Datus Nyandwi, is chairing the launch ceremony at the Kiriri Garden Hotel in Bujumbura, where the document that was developed under the auspices of the National Commission of Concertation and Follow-up for the Prevention and Suppression of Trafficking in Persons (NC) will be welcomed by key actors on counter-trafficking, such as the President of the NC, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, a representative from the U.S. Embassy as well as the IOM Chief of Mission. The launch is an occasion to bring together operational, governmental, and multilateral actors involved in the fight against human trafficking in Burundi. 

Trafficking in Persons (TIP) is a transnational crime and grave human rights violation that occurs worldwide in a diversity of settings. In Burundi, trafficking victims are commonly subjected to forced labor, slavery-like practices, forced marriages, or sexual servitude. Risks of TIP in the country are particularly exacerbated by recurrent climate-induced emergencies – such as sudden-onset disasters like floods, droughts, and landslides – driving displacement and threatening people’s livelihoods.  

In line with the 2023 WDATIP campaign’s theme “Reach Every Victim of Trafficking, Leave No One Behind”, Burundi’s National Action Plan for the period of 2023 to 2027 aims to reach every victim of trafficking through strengthened identification, tailored assistance and protection, as well as community awareness raising. The NAP builds on recent progress supported by the partnership of the NC, IOM and other actors, such as the introduction of new Standard Operating Procedures to combat TIP, the expansion of judicial training programs and the translation of a CT related law into Kirundi. Critical for guiding Burundi on the challenges that remain, the NAP will address, amongst others, the need for ground-level awareness raising campaigns that support trafficking prevention, the establishment of dedicated protection centers for victims of trafficking, work towards enhanced identification capacity of victims as well as strengthened multilateral and cross-border partnerships to leave no one behind. 

The Prime Minister's Chief of Staff says: "On behalf of His Excellency the Prime Minister of the Republic of Burundi, I am launching a dynamic appeal to all the national and international, bilateral and multilateral partners present here today, asking you to take ownership of this action plan and to combine our efforts to ensure its effective and efficient implementation.” 

After 10 years of Tier 3 rankings in the U.S Department of State’s Trafficking in Persons Report, the 2023 report saw Burundi’s position maintained at Tier 2, the second year in a row. Progress made was also achieved through the projects implemented by IOM, with the financial support from the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). To sustain this result and further contribute to objective 10 of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration and target 8.7 of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, continuous commitment and support from partners remain crucial. 

For more information, please contact:
Grace Kaze, IOM Burundi Migrant Protection and Assistance Officer, dkaze@iom.int 
IOM Burundi press notes are available at www.eastandhornofafrica.iom.int and www.reliefweb.int