Together with the Combating Transnational Criminals and Illegal Immigrants Center of the Royal Thai Police, IOM hosted a 5-day Training of Trainers on Inter-Agency Cooperation in Countering Transnational Organized Crime (TOC) from 23 – 27 May 2022 in Pattaya, Thailand.

The training was designed to strengthen inter-agency cooperation in law enforcement, prosecution and social protection to combat TOC, focusing on migrant smuggling and trafficking in persons. The training brought together 20 police officers from various police agencies, six social workers and five prosecutors with the goal of forming an informal network between agencies and serving as a platform to address the challenges they face in handling TOC cases.

“Thailand is a key country of transit and destination for many documented and undocumented migrant workers, especially from neighbouring countries. There are organized crime groups who exploit, smuggle or traffick migrants seeking jobs in Thailand or use Thailand as a transit country to smuggle them to other countries. Combating the smuggling of migrants and TOCs is a priority for different government stakeholders in Thailand. Thus, strengthening the inter-agency cooperation is very important to enhance the protection of migrants,” expressed Pol. Lt. Gen. Prachuab Wongsuk, Assistant Commissioner General of the Royal Thai Police.

“To combat trafficking and other transnational crimes effectively, inter-agency cooperation among government agencies is critical – to detect, arrest and prosecute criminals but also to protect victims. This week’s training will therefore focus on reinforcing cooperation practices among law enforcement, prosecution, and social protection services to help you adopt and implement new practices into your daily activities,” echoed Geraldine Ansart, Chief of Mission at IOM Thailand.

This activity is implemented under the project “Supporting the Government of Thailand to Improve Migration and Border Management Structures in the Midst of Rapid ASEAN Integration,” funded by the IOM Development Fund.