The United States has reiterated its commitment to working with Bangladesh to implement its National Plan of Action to combat human trafficking. The United States, through the US Agency for International Development and Bangladesh’s Counter Trafficking in Persons programme, partnered with the Forensic Training Institute of the Bangladesh Police Criminal Investigation Department to sponsor a five-day anti-trafficking in persons investigation skills training.

In collaboration with the Forensic Training Institute, the Bangladesh’s Counter Trafficking in Persons programme developed a training curriculum on best practices for handling and investigating Trafficking in Persons cases and assisting trafficking victims in filing cases against perpetrators. The training, held from October 27-31, was the third anti-human trafficking investigation course since August this year, said the US Embassy in Dhaka on Saturday.

Twenty-three police officers from 20 trafficking-prone districts actively participated in the classroom and scenario-based training held at the Forensic Training Institute in Dhaka and conducted by the Bangladesh’s Counter Trafficking in Persons programme, which is funded by USAID and implemented by Winrock International, a US non-governmental organisation.

At the closing ceremony of the training, USAID Bangladesh mission director Derrick Brown reaffirmed the US government’s ongoing commitment to work with the government of Bangladesh to combat human trafficking, including providing training for improved investigations that lead to strong prosecutions and speedy convictions.

Mission Director Brown said putting more traffickers behind bars will give hope to vulnerable groups at risk of being trafficked and send a strong signal to would-be traffickers that they will be found and punished for their crimes.

As part of those efforts, the Bangladesh’s Counter Trafficking in Persons programme has invested more than $8 million to support Trafficking in Persons shelter homes and judicial sector capacity building.