The Advisory Group to the Joint Project “Supporting Malta in the design and implementation of a new National Anti-Trafficking Strategy” held its third meeting (online) on 3 October 2023 with the participation of the European Commission’s DG-REFORM, the Ministry for Home Affairs, Security, Reform and Equality of Malta, and its Human Rights Directorate and Human Rights Initiatives Unit. The members of the Advisory Group agreed to establish four Working Groups which will be responsible for the drafting of the four pillars of the new Anti-trafficking Strategy, namely:

1.            national anti-trafficking framework;

2.            targeted prevention and early identification of victims;

3.            effective investigations and prosecutions of traffickers;

4.            comprehensive victim protection, access to justice and remedies, and strategic partnerships.

The Working Groups will be composed of key actors from relevant ministries, civil society organisations, the private sector, academia and international organisations. The first draft of the new Anti-trafficking Strategy will be discussed in November 2023. The Working Groups are also expected to prepare proposals of actions for the future national action plan which will reflect the agreed strategic goals.

This activity was carried out in the framework of the Project “Supporting Malta in the design and implementation of a new anti-trafficking strategy”, which aims to contribute to the ongoing policy reform for combating trafficking in human beings in Malta. The project is co-funded by the European Union via the Technical Support Instrument, and implemented by the Council of Europe, in cooperation with the European Commission.