Kuwait City – Late last month (28/01) IOM, the UN Migration Agency, concluded a five-day workshop for protection service providers of the Public Authority for Manpower in Kuwait.

Entitled Enhancing the Capacity of Labour Inspectors Towards the Identification of Victims of Trafficking, the workshop was the first of two similar gatherings planned under a project funded by the Embassy of the Netherlands to Kuwait, initiated last October.

Several IOM experts and other regional stakeholders and partners contributed their knowledge and experience. Representatives from the Anti-Human-Trafficking Unit of the Ministry of Interior of Kuwait; the Government Shelter for Foreign Workers; Kuwait Social Works Society; the Counter-Trafficking Unit of the Ministry of Interior in Jordan; and the Labour Inspectors Unit of the Labour Market Regulatory Authority of Bahrain were in attendance.

In the closing ceremony, IOM Kuwait Chief of Mission Iman Ereiqat, Deputy Head of Mission of the Embassy of the Netherlands Zumreta Jahic, and Deputy Head of the Public Authority for Manpower Abdullah Al Mutotah expressed their optimism for the positive outcomes of the workshop and their expectations for the project’s impact on the protection and services received by migrant workers in Kuwait.

“This workshop is an embodiment of Kuwait’s commitment to combat Trafficking in Persons. Labour Inspectors have forged an understanding this week of the critical role they play in the Identification of Victims of Trafficking," said Ereiqat at the ceremony.

During the workshop, participants familiarized themselves with the concepts of human trafficking and smuggling, as well as the instruments that international law provides to tackle these crimes. Regarding victim protection, participants were further trained on how to identify and assist victims of trafficking, and which role civil society can play to complement governmental efforts.

Kuwait’s Anti-Human-Trafficking Unit – together with peer organizations attending the workshop – provided valuable insights on their counter-trafficking activities and lessons learned.

At a visit to the Government Shelter for Foreign Workers in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh, participants toured a temporary residence that on any average day hosts 250 domestic workers. They also attended a roundtable discussion on future actions in the fields of counter-trafficking and victim assistance. 

For more information, please contact Iman Ereiqat at IOM Kuwait, Tel: +965 2530 8 164, Email: iereiqat@iom.int