“If the awareness activities do not continue, the camps will become even more vulnerable to human trafficking,” said Mr. Golam Mahammed Bhuiyan, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs, Bangladesh. He made this remark during his visit to the Counter Trafficking Activities implemented by Young Power in Social Action (YPSA) with support from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in the Rohingya camps on 8 December 2025.
The purpose of his visit was to observe the ongoing counter-trafficking interventions in the Rohingya camps and to identify additional measures required to strengthen the fight against human trafficking.
The YPSA counter-trafficking project team, led by Mr. Jishu Barua, Assistant Director and Counter Trafficking Focal of YPSA, presented the organization’s activities and achievements in the Rohingya camps of Cox’s Bazar. In addition, he briefed the visiting Joint Secretary on the engagement of YPSA with all layers of the Counter Trafficking Committees, including Counter Trafficking Committees of national, district, sub-district union. Mr. Jishu added that YPSA has been providing assistance to the union and sub-district level Counter Trafficking Committees in their initiatives including conduction of monthly meetings in line with the National Plan of Actions (NPA) of the Bangladesh government.
During the visit, Mr. Bhuiyan interacted with participants of various counter-trafficking initiatives, including community awareness sessions, youth training programs, and capacity-building activities for health workers.
In the exit meeting with the YPSA Counter Trafficking team, Mr. Bhuiyan said, “If I did not come to visit these effective activities with my own eyes, I might not have known about such effective, beautiful and lifesaving activities on anti-trafficking issues at the community level.” He praised YPSA’s ongoing interventions and emphasized the importance of continuing such effective and timely efforts. He highlighted that these initiatives are crucial for ensuring the safety and protection of the Rohingya community, who fled to Bangladesh from Myanmar in August 2017 to escape persecution and violence.
Brief on YPSA’s Counter Trafficking Activities in the Rohingya Camps:
YPSA in association with International Organization for Migration (IOM) has been implementing a project titled “Prevention and Response Activities Implementation on Counter Trafficking Issues” since June 2018. Currently, YPSA is operating prevention and response activities in 11 Rohingya camps and host community in Cox’s Bazar. The major activities under the project include the following.
- Community sensitization on anti-human trafficking issues
- Capacity building of the stakeholders including youths, law enforcement agencies – APBn, Police, CID, NSI, PBI Tourist Police, VDP (Village Defence Party), journalists, teachers, religious leaders, Counter Trafficking Committees (CTC), students, humanitarian actors etc.
- Consultation meeting with the legal practitioners and officials of local administration to ensure justice for the victims of trafficking
- Victim Identification and case management
- VoT assistance for reintegration
