Thank you for the incredible support during the recent United States government foreign aid funding freeze. It meant so much to us at UP Zambia and we are happy to share that our work with victims of human trafficking is progressing well.
Every week, our team has been at legal help desks in correctional facilities, screening migrants to assess whether they may have been smuggled or trafficked.
On Monday, 14th April 2025, under the Comprehensive Bilateral Anti-Trafficking Project, better known as the Joint Trafficking in Persons (JTIP) project, our team travelled to Chongwe for an interactive session with community leaders at the Kanakantapa Resettlement Scheme Administration Centre.
We sat down with village headmen, neighbourhood representatives, Kanakantapa Resettlement Scheme Administration Centre representative, and the Zambia Police. Why Chongwe? It’s one of the key focus districts under the project. The main goal? To have open, honest conversations about the current trends in child abuse and how they link to child and human trafficking. Kanakantapa is a farming hub, which can sometimes also exploit vulnerable persons or families in cheap labour on their farms.
What stood out? Many community leaders had witnessed signs of trafficking and gender-based violence (GBV) but had not recognized them for what they were. This session empowered them with the knowledge and tools to better identify and respond to these issues in their communities.
The JTIP Project is funded by the United States Department of State and implemented by UP Zambia which was also awarded to Save the Children Zambia, and the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA).