Today, Deputy Minister Benedetto Della Vedova took part in the meeting of the Steering Committee on combating trafficking and serious exploitation, presided over by the Minister of Equal Opportunities and Family, Elena Bonetti.
The aim of the Steering Committee is to draw up guidelines for programming and financing actions to prevent and combat human trafficking, firstly by preparing a new National Plan of Action against trafficking and serious exploitation for the period 2021-2023.
“The battle against human trafficking,” reiterated D.M. Della Vedova, “is a priority issue in Italian foreign policy, in light of the increase in migratory flows in recent years, as well as the ties with organised crime and terrorist organisations.”
The Deputy Minister referred to Italy’s roles in the major international forums, for promoting initiatives based on collaboration between Countries of origin, destination, and transit, with an approach based on respecting the victims and their needs, with particular care being taken of women and children, including unaccompanied minors.
In order to step up this action, D.M. Della Vedova stressed the need for a drive internally, in relation to gathering and sharing data. In addition, the National Plan of Action against trafficking and serious exploitation for the period 2021-2023 must be adopted as soon as possible. This Plan, concluded Deputy Minister Della Vedova, is a tool that is useful not only for defining inter-institutional strategy and relations in this regard, which are essential for effectively and strategically dealing with a phenomenon as complex as this, but also for further valorising the actions going on in an international context.
