Accra: The Anti-Human Smuggling and Trafficking in Persons (AHSTIP) Unit of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS), Aflao Sector Command and its partners have pledged to work together to fight human trafficking in border communities.
According to Ghana News Agency, human trafficking, which involves the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of people, has become rampant through some routes in the Volta Region. The commitment was made during a school outreach programme at Three-Town Senior High School (SHS) at Denu, organized by the Handmaids of the Divine Redeemers Sisters Foundation (HDRSF) and the International Centre for Safe Migration (ICSM) in partnership with the AHSTIP Unit.
The outreach was part of the ‘Amewuga’ advocacy campaign against human trafficking in border communities. It aimed to raise awareness on human trafficking, mobilize community action, build resilience among women, girls, and children against modern-day slavery, and improve support systems for victims. Sister Regina Ignatia Aflah of HDRSF highlighted their commitment to promoting education and protection to enable women and girls to achieve their potentials.
Deputy Superintendent of Immigration (DSI) Justice Kudzo Normeshie expressed the Unit’s readiness to promote gender-responsive migration management to protect women, girls, children, and the youth from exploitation and abuse. Assistant Commissioner of Immigration (ACI) William Bannerman-Williams Hans thanked the sponsors for their commitment and assured of future partnerships.
The programme, attended by about 2,300 students, teachers, and management members of Three-Town SHS, included a dramatization by the school’s drama group to highlight the elements of human trafficking and cyber trafficking. Some students expressed gratitude for the education and promised to share the lessons to ensure vigilance against these human rights violations.
The project ‘Amewuga,’ based on an Ewe cultural value that emphasizes the worth of human life over money, resonates with the target audience, including commercial motor riders, drivers, and border residents. It aligns with the policy mainstreaming of migration risks at the Aflao Sector Command.
