EUROPEAN COMMISSION DIRECTORATE-GENERAL JUSTICE AND HOME AFFAIRS

PROJECT AGAINST TRAFFICKING STOP II

Arciconfraternita del SS Sacramento, Maria SS. e S. Gregorio Taumaturgo - Caritas Diocesana di Roma

Address of registered office Street: P.zza San Giovanni in LateranoNr: 6a Postcode: 00184 City: Roma Country: Italy Telephone: ++39 +6 69886105 - ++39 +6 69886501 Fax: ++39 +6 69886381 E-mail: sett.ricerca@chiesacattolica.it

Brief description of the main coordinator activities and general aims

Since its foundation, Caritas' activity has been inspired by the values of social solidarity and care for the poorest. Therefore, its activity is aimed at human and social promotion and aid for disadvantaged people.  Caritas manages services (assistance, prevention, cross-culture medicine, kitchens) and shelters for people of whatever age and race, dealing with complex psycho-social issues (children, young and elderly people, homeless, people with AIDS, immigrants, poor families, victims of trafficking, nomads) in Rome. Caritas is also active in the field of research on marginal groups (such as poor families, immigrants, young "at risk" groups, unemployed), to investigate causes and implications of social unease. Research activity include:
transnational projects supported by the European Commission, in collaboration with partners from EU Member States in the field of HIV/AIDS prevention (1997-1998, "Comparative survey on HIV/AIDS risk behaviours in a population of young marginalized people in three Southern European cities"; 1999-2000 "Comparative survey on HIV/AIDS risk behaviours in a population of young marginalized people in some European countries").
national projects, carried out in the frame of the "AIDS - Social Programme", promoted by the Italian National Institute of Health (1995)
Other activities include specific projects and actions carried out in war areas all over the world to help the populations involved in civil wars (aid, social rehabilitation, reconciliation, fund raising), in strict co-operation with local churches and institutions; vocational training for disadvantaged people and for social workers; sensitisation activities on the issues of Third World countries (e.g., cancelling their debts with developed countries); cross-culture education activity in schools; support for victims of trafficking; initiatives against social plagues such as loan sharks in Rome; the spreading of materials on social and human promotion (among which the yearly Statistic Dossier on immigration in Rome, the yearly report on unease and poverty and the "Guide to Social and Health Services in Rome"). Sensitisation is also pursued with (national and international) public meetings on the issues of marginalisation. Lastly, Caritas officially participates in work meetings with the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Labour, Social Policies, Health, Equal Opportunities.


PARTICULARS OF THE OPERATION

Brief description of the operation

Name of project:

Information to raise the awareness of the public opinion to prevent and fight the trafficking of human beings: dissemination of European approaches to care and to support for victims through seminars and a web portal

Partner-organisation(s)

The Latvian Gender Problem Centre "GENDERS"

Asociación de Ayuda Y Prevención de Drogodepender

BALNE - Bulgaria - Volunteer's Organization

AIDS - i Tugikeskus (AIDS Information & Support Centre)

Stiftelsen Kvinnoforum

Societatea Româna de Televiziune - TVR2

Secours Catholique - Caritas France Dept. Europe/Amerique du Nord

Description of project :

Like in past times, the background of violence and exploitation of women (mostly young) driven to prostitution in foreign countries is made up of ignorance and poor conditions of life in their own homelands, while criminal organisations take advantage of the situation by moving them to rich countries and "protecting" them once there. In the global world, information and international co-operation can somewhat cope with the problem, but can hardly deal with the conniving attitude of women themselves and their families (self-deceiving despite the awareness of risks related). Much work has been done by international organisations, in collaboration with NGOs and volunteer organisations, especially as regards support for social re-insertion of exploited women; yet, due also to the difficulty in raising public debate and awareness on the issues related to sexual exploitation, little is known about the different actions and approaches and their results, or about sensitisation-prevention activities (both in women's homelands and in countries of immigration). For these reasons, the project aims at putting together public and private experiences at a pan-European level, as well as at sharing knowledge as regards both support and prevention.

Therefore, project objectives can be described as follows:

• To determine intervention approaches for women victims of trafficking and forced to prostitution, once they turn to public or private services for help. The research will investigate results obtained in terms of behavioural changes of counselling-based actions (including follow up) taken by NGOs and volunteer organisation, whether in collaboration with the institutions or not

• To foster co-operation among public bodies (ministries, services, police) and NGOs and volunteer organisations, in the field of support for women victims of trafficking and forced to prostitute themselves, through local seminars to be held in each partner country

• To encourage the exchange and dissemination of knowledge and experience through an international conference joining partners in the project, and a comprehensive, exhaustive and easy to access instrument (web portal), suitable to reach the remaining European countries (i.e., other Member States, as well as candidate and third countries).

As regards methods, partners in the project will organise local seminars, to collect information about the most effective actions and best practices in their own countries. Information will include: location of organisations (to be mapped), list of actions taken, collaboration among public and private subjects (esp. as regards reception, inclusion, vocational training and work, passages to get permits of stay and collaboration of victims with the police, return to their homelands). These issues will be considered in the frame of the ecosystemic approach; by this approach, individuals' relationships (e.g., with services or volunteer groups) can be identified and assessed using specific tools (genogram, ecomap), useful to connect potential strengths in view of a change, as well as individual self-efficacy and histories. The ecosystemic approach will thus provide proper criteria for the evaluation of the effectiveness of actions carried out in the participating countries, to be introduced in the closing international conference.

Seminars will last one day, to be divided into two parts:
Thematic workshops with the participation of representatives of the institutions, of NGOs and volunteer organisations and of mass-media. They will introduce reports previously prepared about actions taken in their own country, with respect also to difficulties for services, NGOs and volunteer organisations and associations. and to the awareness of the problem in the institutions and mass-media
Plenary sessions with the participation of policy makers, experts and mass-media representatives. These sessions are intended to provide answers to the issues raised in the workshops, as well as specific (economical, political and social) proposals to jointly cope with the problem, in the light of the ecosystemic approach.

A project leader organisation representative will attend all local seminars, acting as a supervisor. The same national referrals (representatives of the Ministries of Health, Foreign Affairs, Education, Interior, Justice, Welfare, Sport and Youth) will take part in each local seminar. Meanwhile, a web portal will be built, for permanent collection and future dissemination, comparisons and exchange of information among all EU Member States and candidate or third European countries. The web portal will represent a stable confrontation point for organisations of the Member States and all European countries, even after the project's end, and it will stimulate ongoing and reciprocate collaboration. Therefore, it will stand as a milestone for the creation of a pan-European network aiming at spreading and sharing good practices in the field of support for women victims of trafficking and exploitation, as well as fostering the collaboration among all parts involved in the problem (ministries, police, social services, volunteer organisations) at national level, through links with the portal itself. A closing international conference with the participation of partner countries, will introduce results. Directions and recommendations for the governments and the Commission will be drafted, taking into account the most effective local approaches and actions, as well as proposals arising from local seminars.

The conference will last one day, to be divided into three parts:
thematic sessions, with the participation of institutions, volunteer organisations and mass-media, with presentations of the proposals arising from the local seminars
presentation of the web portal, standing as the first step towards the establishing of a pan-European network open to institutions, NGOs, volunteer organisations and citizens (who may consult or provide contributions, in compliance with privacy policies)
plenary discussion among policy makers, experts and mass-media representatives, with elaboration of directions and recommendations for governments and the Commission, also in view of the adopting of specific programmes targeting candidate and third European countries

Expected result and impact of the operation, stating how results will be evaluated :

The following measurable results will be obtained as long as project activities evolve:

• European transnational database, containing information about the most effective intervention models and best practices and approaches used in the field, as considered in the frame of the ecosystemic approach

• List of concrete proposals arising from local seminars

• Web portal, comprehensive and easy to access for permanent dissemination, comparisons and exchange of information among all European countries, standing also as a milestone for the establishing of a pan-European network

• An international conference to discuss the project results “vis a vis”

• List of directions and recommendations arising from the conference, as compared synthesis of the experiences made by public and private subjects in all partner countries in the field concerned

• Local seminars will employ a multidimensional and ecosystemic approach, allowing to properly understand the interactions among all parts involved (institutions, NGOs, volunteer organisations); proposals arising from seminars will therefore target a greater synergy of actions, with a prospective better use of both human and financial strengths.

• The countries which accepted to join the partnership among all those invited include Member States, as well as candidate and third countries seriously affected by the issues related with clandestine emigration, such as trafficking and prostitution. Yet, partners have agreed to enlarge the scope of the present proposal to include all European countries in a pan-European network for the sharing and lasting dissemination of knowledge, in future calls for proposals rounds.

• The complete evaluation process will be a shared internal and external analysis, organised around proper instruments to evaluate results and methods applied. It is based on proper qualitative and quantitative indicators agreed by partners., with the aid of an expert evaluator, in order to optimise its efficacy.

Here is a list of indicators to measure expected results:

• Number of contacts held by each partner with other organisation in its own country

• Number and characteristics of organisations selected and invited to the seminars (dimension, type of services offered, number of clients assisted, etc.)

• Number of contacts with public institutions

• Number and quality of data collected

• Clarity and quality of the web portal

• Number of participants to local seminars and international conference, and level of interest raised (measured with satisfaction questionnaires)

• Quality and quantity of information published in the final report and on the web portal.

Methods evaluation will include project management activities by partners, regarding the progress and correctness of activities developed.
The complete project monitoring will be care of the project leader organisation; some qualitative and quantitative indicators will be employed, among which:

• Correspondence among partners to evaluate participants' involvement

• Respect of dates set in the timetable

• General contributions to the achievement of the project by each partner

• Correct use of available resources

• Efficient use of resources (with respect to objectives and expected results)

Summary implementation timetable for the operation

December 2001 - January 2002: Planning national seminars
Partners start organising seminars as agreed, and contact competent institutions and NGOs/volunteer organisations in their own countries to be invited to the seminars. All participants will prepare a written report to be discussed in a plenary session, according to the instructions given by local co-ordinatorsi
February - September 2002: national seminars in the partner countries
During this period, partners hold seminars in their respective countries, in order to discuss the "state of the art" about the issues considered and to draft directions and specific proposals according to the experiences examined and discussed
July 2002: project activities, preparation of the web portal
While evaluating the progress of project activities and collecting information, partners agree on the steps to be made for the building of the online database and the web portal, which will be used to publish results. At this step, an interim report will be produced too
September 2002: partners forward materials produced to project leader organisation (Caritas Diocesana di Roma), including directions drafted and good practices examples
October - November 2002: Final elaboration of data and completion of the web portal for the online publishing of data themselves, and drafting of the Final Report.
At this step, project leader undertakes the final elaboration of data and the completion of the web portal for the online publishing. The draft of the final report is care of the project leader as well
November 2002: translating and editing of the Final Report, web portal publication and International Conference to introduce the results obtained, with the participation of partner countries

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