GUINEA BISSAU: TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS PROPOSAL

UNCLAS DAKAR 000869 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR G/TIP, INL, AF/RSA AND AF/W ACCRA FOR USAID/WA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM ASEC ELAB KCRM PREL SMIG PU SUBJECT: GUINEA BISSAU: TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS PROPOSAL REF: STATE 028157 ¶1. Embassy,s trafficking in persons (TIP) project proposal for Guinea-Bissau follows. This year, G/TIP proposed to downgrade Guinea-Bissau to Tier Two Watch List in the annual Trafficking in Person,s Report. Guinea-Bissau has demonstrated improvement in its anti-trafficking efforts since it appeared on the report for the first time last year, but much more needs to be done. Guinea-Bissau is already devoting funds to TIP. Without outside assistance like this proposal from UNICEF, Guinea-Bissau will not be able to make any significant improvements. ¶2. Now is a particularly urgent time to support trafficking projects because Guinea-Bissau had to cancel the entire academic year due to prolonged school closures. When school is not in session, children are at their most vulnerable to be recruited for Koranic schools in Senegal, which are often a front for traffickers who force children to beg. Teachers did not show up to work most of the year because the Government did not have enough money to pay their salaries. This is typical in Guinea-Bissau where even the military gets paid many months late. ¶3. Project summary. Full proposal will be sent via e-mail. (NOTE: Because there is a potentially long delay between the time the project was submitted and the time it may be funded, some components may be revised. The situation on the ground can change from year to year. END NOTE.) ¶A. Name of applicant: UNICEF ¶B. Requested funding amount: USD 135,000 for one year. A second year is proposed at USD 165,000 ¶C. Project title: Child Protection ¶D. Project duration: One year with a second phase for year two. ¶E. Abstract: Guinea-Bissau is a country that does not offer regular schooling to children because teachers are often not paid salaries. Schools are often closed for several months per academic year. This coupled with the fact that Guinea-Bissau is an impoverished war-torn nation that has little to offer in the way of public services, traffickers from Senegal and other countries prey on parents who want to send their children away for a good Muslim education. Children are forced to beg on the streets of Dakar, subjected to abuse unless they can earn about a dollar per day. The project will assess the magnitude of the problem and better detail the methods, routes, and means of traffickers. Working with affected communities, UNICEF and local NGOs will educate parents about the realities and risks of sending their children away for schooling. A public awareness campaign will be launched. In terms of protection, the project will establish transit centers for repatriated victims, provide psychosocial support, and reintegrate victims into families and schools. On the law enforcement side, police and border officials will be recruited to recognize and stop trafficking at the borders, and detain and arrest traffickers. A policy and legal review will also be included to help the Government shore up its laws pertaining to trafficking. Expected results include strengthened child protection networks; two new transit accommodation centers; 80 percent of border guards trained on trafficking; and support for victims. JACKSON