The criminal landscape of trafficking in human beings has significantly changed with the increasing availability of technology and generalised access to the Internet. Countries monitored by GRETA (Council of Europe Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings) have reported increased use of technology for recruiting, exploiting and controlling victims of human trafficking, while evidence of such misuse of ICT remains limited.

To support institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina in addressing the impact of technology on human trafficking, the Council of Europe anti-trafficking project organised the seminar "Online and technology-facilitated trafficking in human beings" on 25 March, in Sarajevo.  

Forty professionals that included representatives from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, police agencies, prosecutor's offices, lawyers, labour inspectorates, as well as international organisations and non-governmental organisations were introduced to the GRETA report „Online and technology-facilitated trafficking in human beings“ by the author, Professor Paolo Campana from the University of Cambridge. The report provides analysis and guidance on how to enhance the criminal justice response by improving the detection, investigation and prosecution of ICT-facilitated trafficking in human beings. Mr Campana presented the conclusions and recommendations of the report in the light of the BiH context.

Furthermore, law enforcement representatives presented real-llfe cases in Bosnia and Herzegovina and discussed challenges in the identification and investigation of online trafficking in human beings. The participants empasized the importance of multi-sectoral cooperation and capacity-building of all relevant actors (police officers, prosecutors and judges). Enhanced cooperation with private companies and the non-governmental sector was considered as essential.

The Council of Europe project “Strengthening anti-trafficking action in Bosnia and Herzegovina” is implemented in the framework of the Council of Europe’s Action Plan for Bosnia and Herzegovina (2022–2025), funded by voluntary contributions.