News and press releases

The role of Aarhus Centres in promoting public participation in environmental decision-making, transition towards green economy, and management of hazardous and toxic wastes took centre stage at the 2023 Aarhus Centres Annual Meeting, held in Dushanbe and online on 17 and 18 October.

VIENNA, 18 October 2023 — A new report mapping the online landscape of risks of trafficking in human beings on sexual services websites across the OSCE was launched by the Office of the Special Representative and Co-Ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings to mark EU Anti-Trafficking Day.

A series of four three-day simulation exercises organized jointly by the OSCE Secretariat Extra-Budgetary Support Programme for Ukraine and IOM Mission in Ukraine in September and October helped officials, experts, and practitioners from 12 regions of Ukraine to enhance their practical skills in investigating cases of trafficking in human beings and assisting survivors of the crime.

On 17 October 2023, the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (HCNM) with the OSCE Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, the OSCE Mission to Skopje and the United Nations High Commissioner on Refugees (UNHCR), under the auspices of the 2023 OSCE Chairpersonship of North Macedonia, organized a one-day Conference on Statelessness. The Conference was intended as an exchange forum for over eighty participants representing national authorities, civil society and international organizations, to facilitate practical and informative discussions aimed at sharing good practices to prevent and address statelessness in the South-Eastern Europe region.

On 17 October 2023, the OSCE Presence in Albania presented a project on electoral reform and processes, aiming to contribute to an all-inclusive and participatory electoral process in Albania in line with OSCE commitments and OSCE/ODIHR recommendations.   The OSCE project “Support to electoral

The OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) supported the organization of two panel discussions on the processing of cases related to trafficking in human beings and hate crimes.

On 18 October 2023, the OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe (Office) organized a roundtable event to present and discuss the findings and recommendations of four monitoring reports prepared by civil society national experts (two women, and two men).