Anti-Trafficking in Persons Project [through World Hope International]

World Hope Internationals (WHI) anti-trafficking program in Sierra Leone began in 2004, as part of the Faith Alliance Against Slavery and Trafficking program.

Since that time, the program has conducted large-scale public awareness, education, and victim assistance activities at community, government, and social service levels.

WHI will conduct a follow on one-year program to increase prevention of trafficking in Sierra Leone through community-based public awareness and national partnerships, to strengthen legal system response and legal information processes, to spread awareness of the importance of existing legal framework to address trafficking in order to increase trafficking prosecutions, to increase and protection services for victims in Sierra Leone, and to improve TIP data collection and storage.

WHI proposes the following activities: 1) Identify, network and train community groups, service providers and local law enforcement in communities to form referral mechanisms for cases and TIP victims, 2) Provide direct assistance to survivors; 3) Educate civil society groups about trafficking; 4) Strengthen efforts to prosecute and convict trafficking offenders by working with government and other partners to implement formal procedures to identify trafficking victims among vulnerable populations, such as females in prostitution, migrating children (unaccompanied and accompanied) and illegal immigrants 5) Train Law Enforcement officers and social workers to identify and provide services to trafficking victims, ensuring that all identified victims receive access to care. 6) Expand activities to address legal assistance to victims.