KYIV, 19 June 2009 - An OSCE supported conference on ways to rehabilitate and provide state assistance to victims of human trafficking was held in Kyiv today.

Some 150 national and regional officials as well as representatives of non-governmental organizations discussed the necessary steps to develop a state-led National Referral Mechanism (NRM) in Ukraine.

The NRM concept was developed by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights to enable sustainable mechanisms and structures to combat human trafficking and support victims. It also provides guidance on how to monitor and build the capacity of such structures to guarantee needs-based assistance to victims.

"Human trafficking survivors require comprehensive assistance and support," said Ambassador Lubomir Kopaj, the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine. "Such support can be provided only through close co-operation and co-ordination between various governmental stakeholders and governmental agencies and NGOs. A National Referral Mechanism would outline how such co-operation should work to ensure a victim-centred approach."

Tetnyana Kondratyuk, Ukraine's Deputy Minister for Family, Youth and Sports, said: "Ukraine strives to follow OSCE recommendations and introduce such a mechanism to improve the protection of trafficking victims. Our Ministry as an the anti-trafficking co-ordination authority aims to foster cross-sector co-operation and provide adequate state resources to assist trafficked persons."

The conference will be followed by a number of legislative and capacity building efforts in two pilot regions, Donetsk and Chernivtsi, as well as nationally.

The event was organized in co-operation with the Ministry for Family, Youth and Sports, and with financial assistance from the Danish Foreign Ministry as part of the Danish Programme against Human Trafficking in Eastern and South Eastern Europe.