Some 37 representatives of Serbian ministries, government agencies and civil society organisations met in Belgrade on 10 April 2025 to discuss progress in the implementation of the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings, on the basis of the third evaluation report issued by the Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA) and the related Committee of the Parties’ recommendation.

The round-table meeting was co-organised by the Anti-Trafficking Division of the Council of Europe and the Ministry of the Interior of Serbia. At the opening of the meeting, Mr Nenad Simić, Serbia’s National Coordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, presented the draft Law on the Prevention and Suppression of Human Trafficking and Protection of Victims. Ms Petya Nestorova, Head of the Anti-Trafficking Division of the Council of Europe, noted the support that the Council of Europe has been providing to Serbia through the project “Strengthening anti-trafficking action in Serbia”, implemented within the joint programme of the European Union and the Council of Europe “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye”.

The discussions focused on trafficking victims’ access to legal aid, compensation and specialised assistance, measures to strengthen the criminal justice response to human trafficking and the protection of vulnerable victims, steps taken to combat trafficking for the purpose of labour exploitation and the prevention of child trafficking.

Serbia is expected to report to the Committee of the Parties on the measures taken to comply with the third-round recommendation by 16 June 2025.

 See also: GRETA and Serbia