Country: South Africa

Organization: Masimanyane Women''s Support Centre

Innovation: This strategy's innovation lies in the approach of influencing the development of effective, appropriate legislation through local and national advocacy.It builds community accountability by creating awareness, developing skills and capacity to fight trafficking at the community level. The strategy works at the grassroots but links this level to national and regional initiatives. In addition, international advocacy has been initiated through the use of international networks and by producing an NGO Shadow report which is to be submitted to the United Nations CEDAW committee. The report will inform the CEDAW committee who will make recommendations to the South African government in respect of anti trafficking policies and programmes.

Impact: The programme aims to influence the development of appropriate legislation which has the potential to create systemic change nationally and this will provide a good model which can be replicated on the rest of the African continent. In addition, communities are being given the information skills and capacity to identify possible trafficking risks and to rescue identified victims. The training provided to communities creates the opportunity to develop appropirate, effective prevention strategies and assists in the development of safe, secure support services for survivors of trafficking. In the medium to long term this will lead to sustainability of the anti trafficking programmes.

Tipping Point: We have worked in all nine provinces of our country raising awareness on trafficking. We have developed a large bank of activist trainers who are provided with the skills necessary to conduct community awareness programmes and to build community support for anti trafficking programmes. A national roundtable was arranged Government, community leaders and activists participated. We discussed strategies needed to ensure appropriate legislation. We have compiled a report which is to be submitted to parliament shortly indicating what communities want as legislation to ensure that trafficking ends. Our research has been documented and the report will be submitted to the U.N.CEDAW committee requesting them to influence government policies.

Replication: This programme is easily replicable because it hinges on the training of people who are active in communities and who work to ensure the protection of community members. The building of a critical mass of people who are able to build community support for the programme helps to spread the information and skills base reaching many people in communities. The legilsation will protect all people while the public education programmes can be translated and used in all communities.The use of research reports for policy and programme development is replicable across the country and even regionally and internationally. The Provincial govenment adopted anti trafficking as a core programme after it attended Masimanyane's Roundtable on trafficking.

Sustainability: Sustainability is ensured through the information sharing, skills development and capacity building component of this programme. Communities will have sufficient knowledge and information to be able to identify possible trafficking risks and they will be able to respond appropriately to those risks. When government develops appropriate legislation vulnerable individuals and groups will be afforded protection under the law. The buyers of trafficked persons and the sellers of such eprsons will be liable for prosecution making this activity a criminal offense. If properly implemented traffickers will be deterred.

Position in the Human Trafficking Mosaic of Solutions:

Factor: Vulnerability of High-Risk Populations

Principle: Creating Value-Driven Communities