NEXUS in Macedonia for National Round Table Discussion (June 2015)

SKOPJE, MACEDONIA, 12 June 2015 – NEXUS participated in a National Round Table Discussion in Skopje, Macedonia on the Reintegration of Trafficking Victims, hosted by King Baudouin Foundation (KBF) and partner NGOs Equal Access and Open Gate. NEXUS’ Senior Researcher and Regional Technical Advisor to the TVRP presented findings from Beyond Trafficking, an impact evaluation of the TVRP conducted by NEXUS Institute.

The objective of the roundtable discussion was to share the results and achievements of the Trafficking Victims Re/integration Programme (TVRP), which was implemented in Macedonia from 2006 to 2015, and to formulate ways forward for national stakeholders to build on and continue reintegration efforts in the country beyond the scope of the TVRP.

The TVRP was launched in 2006 by the King Baudouin Foundation (KBF) in Belgium to enhance the scope and capacity of reintegration programs for trafficking victims in the Balkans. From 2011, the TVRP was co-funded by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).

Grants totaling 1.5M€ were awarded to 15 NGOs between 2007 and 2014. NEXUS was the Regional Technical Advisor for the TVRP from 2006 to 2015. The objectives of the TVRP were:

To support programs which will result in the sustainable reintegration of trafficking victims;
To build the capacity of NGOs to provide reintegration services and support;
To encourage cooperation and synergies with government services and national referral mechanisms;
To identify effective and human rights centered models of and approaches to reintegration of trafficking victims;
To promote sustainable reintegration programs beyond the TVRP.

In Macedonia, two NGOs were supported to provide reintegration services – Equal Access and Open Gate. From 2007 to 2015, these NGOs provided long term, comprehensive reintegration services to 215 victims of trafficking. This included men, women and children and victims of trafficking for sexual exploitation, forced labor, begging and criminal activities. The TVRP also supported victims’ family members; a total of 313 family members were assisted in Macedonia.