Hanoi (VNA) – The Department of Drug-Related Crime Prevention and Control under the Border Guard Command of Vietnam and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in Vietnam on October 2 jointly organised a ceremony to launch a project to enhance capacity to prevent and combat human trafficking in Vietnam's land and sea border areas in the face of the risk of human trafficking and related cross-border crimes.

The project, funded by the US Department of State, will be implemented in two years by the US Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs.

Currently, the number of Vietnamese people migrating abroad to work is increasing. Taking advantage of this need, human traffickers are increasingly using online platforms to recruit, defraud, coerce and exploit victims to work for online fraud establishments operating in border areas of Southeast Asian countries.

With the task of managing 5,036 km of land border and 3,260 km of coastline, the border guard is the frontline force in preventing and combating cross-border crime.

From the success of previous cooperation projects between the Border Guard Command of Vietnam and the IOM, this project aims to strengthen the capacity of the border guard force, especially frontline officers in border areas, to detect, investigate and handle human trafficking cases, as well as to identify, protect and support victims of trafficking, especially in the context of crimes shifting to cyberspace.

Within the project’s framework, a new set of training documents on combating human trafficking and protecting victims will be developed for frontline officers. The documents, which updates information on new laws, crime trends and specific cases, will be used for 16 training courses for more than 600 frontline border guards on crime prevention, control and immigration control nationwide.

The project is expected to create opportunities to promote cross-border cooperation between the Border Guard force and regional partners, enabling the exchange of effective handling methods, professional knowledge and practical experience that have been successfully applied in the investigation and prosecution of cross-border crimes.

Besides, the project provides communication skill training for frontline staff to better popularise information about safe migration, reducing illegal migration in vulnerable communities in border areas.

According to IOM Chief of Mission in Vietnam Park Mi-hyung, human trafficking is a global problem that requires close and effective coordination among all stakeholders. This project is an important part of IOM's support to the Government of Vietnam not only to strengthen border and migration management, but also to contribute to the realisation of of the objectives of the national programme on prevention and control of human trafficking in the 2021-2025 period with a vision to 2030 and the plan for implementing the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, of which Vietnam is an active member.

INL Vietnam Director Ryan McKean said that by equipping frontline border officers, their key role in preventing and combating human trafficking will be promoted. The project will also contribute to training and providing essential equipment to support border guards in carrying out this important task, he added.

Colonel Vu Xuan Dai, Vice Director of the Department of Drug-Related Crime Prevention and Control under the Border Guard Command of Vietnam highlighted the significance of fostering international cooperation in preventing and combating organised and transnational crime in general and human trafficking in particular.

ไ He said that in the coming time, the department will continue to actively implement approved cooperation activities to enhance the efficiency of human trafficking combat./.