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RUEHUJA/AMEMBASSY ABUJA 0305
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 1380
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RHEFHLC/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHINGTON DC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 09 COTONOU 000041 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR AF/W, G/TIP, G, INL, DRL, 
DEPT FOR AF/RSA (LINDA MUNEY) 
DEPT PLEASE PASS USAID 
PARIS AND LONDON FOR AFRICA WATCHERS 
 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM SMIG ASEC PREF ELAB KCRM KFRD KWMN KTIP BN
SUBJECT: BENIN SUBMISSION FOR 2009 TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS REPORT 
 
REF: STATE 132759 
 
------- 
SUMMARY 
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¶1. (SBU) The Government of Benin (GoB) continued to make steady 
progress towards combating child trafficking. The police, gendarmes 
and judges described their efforts to suppress the practice through 
the investigation and the prosecution of traffickers during 2008. 
However, they were unable to provide statistics to back this 
assertion. Also, the government's failure to produce 
prosecution-related statistics makes it difficult to gage GoB 
progress against the practice of child trafficking. 
 
¶2. (SBU) The National Child Protection Coordination and Monitoring 
Working Group (CNSCPE) now ensures a better dissemination of 
information related to child trafficking and protection among 
stakeholders and the general public by creating a website for that 
purpose. 
 
3.(SBU)  The Government of Benin has not yet started the 
implementation of the UNICEF sponsored National Policy and Strategy 
for Child Protection and the 2008-2012 National Plan to Combat Child 
Trafficking and Labor sponsored by the International Labor 
Organization's International Program for the Elimination of Child 
Labor. The delay in the government's approval of the enabling 
decrees ("decrets d'application"), which creates the administrative 
procedures for the movement of children domestically and 
internationally, hampers the actual enforcement of Act No. 2006-04 
relating to the Transportation of Minors and the Suppression of 
Child Trafficking in the Republic of Benin. 
 
¶4. (SBU) The Government of Benin significantly increased the number 
of victims that it rescued and repatriated from other African 
countries and to whom it provided protection and assistance. It also 
notably augmented outreach campaigns to educate people on 
trafficking and strengthened its regional cooperation through 
experience sharing and participation in international forum on human 
trafficking. 
 
¶5. (U) Embassy Cotonou's TIP POC is Christina Day, 
Political/Economic Officer, (229) 21-30-06-50, (229) 21-30-06-70 
(fax). The approximate number of hours spent on this report was the 
following: 
 
Political Assistant - 18 hours 
Political Officer - 10 hours 
Principal Officers - 4 hours 
 
¶6. (U) The points below correspond to the numbering/lettering in 
reftel. 
 
¶7. BENIN'S TIP SITUATION (Question 23) 
 
¶A. Available sources of information on trafficking in persons are 
the Ministry of Family and National Solidarity; The Minors 
Protection Brigade (BPM) under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of 
Interior and Public Security; and the Ministry of Justice, 
Legislation and Human Rights. The UNICEF sponsored National Policy 
and Strategy for Child Protection the 2008-2012 National Plan to 
Combat Child Trafficking and Labor sponsored by the International 
Labor Organization's International Program for the Elimination of 
Child Labor, and the UNICEF sponsored National Survey on Child 
Trafficking also provide relevant and reliable information on child 
trafficking. The CNSCPE's website (www.cnscpe.net) offers a wide 
range of information regarding child protection. National and 
International NGOs including Terre des Hommes, Salesian Sisters, 
Enfants solidaires d'Afrique et du Monde (ESAM), UNICEF, ILO's 
International Program on the Elimination of Child Labor (ILO-IPEC) 
are equally good source of information on the trafficking. 
 
¶B. (SBU) Benin is a country of origin and transit for trafficked 
children.  Although previously categorized as a destination country 
for trafficked children, recent information from various government 
and non-governmental sources indicate that while there are some 
foreign children trafficked to Benin, the total number does not 
 
COTONOU 00000041  002 OF 009 
 
 
appear to be significant.  This evidence is anecdotal, but was 
consistent among different types of sources. 
 
According to a draft of a 2005 ILO study (unpublished), almost 90 
percent of Beninese children who are trafficked are trafficked 
internally.  Of the children trafficked externally, the majority go 
to Nigeria (60 percent) with another contingent (20 percent) going 
to Gabon. The existing statistics on the extent of the trafficking 
problem are approximate, because findings of surveys conducted so 
far are partial or focus on a particular region of the country. 
However, according to the UNICEF sponsored National Survey on Child 
Trafficking published by the Ministry of Family and National 
Solidarity, the number of trafficked children aged 6-17 living in 
Benin during the six-month period (April-September 2006) covered by 
the study was 40,317 children, representing 2 percent of the 
population of Beninese children of that age range. Ninety-two 
percent (92 percent) are victims of internal trafficking. The 
trafficking concerned mostly girls (86 percent) and Beninese 
children (93 percent). Victims of domestic labor exploitation in the 
households where they were placed account for 43 percent. Victims 
came from poor families, and the majority of them did not receive 
formal education or were school drop-outs. They were mostly 
trafficked for domestic labor, vending, farming, and handicraft 
activities. They worked everyday and slept at their working place. 
They were ill-treated and underfed. 
 
In the West African region, four main routes have been identified 
for child trafficking. Those are: the Benin-Nigeria-Cameroon-Gabon 
route; the Benin-Nigeria-Gabon route; the Benin-Togo-Nigeria-Gabon 
route; and the Benin-Niger-Libya route. Children are also trafficked 
to Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Congo and Guinea Bissau.  Children were 
largely trafficked for labor (girls often to work as domestics in 
homes).  Children ages 6-17 were trafficked, though more than 40 
percent of trafficked children were over the age of 15.  Internal 
trafficking largely brings children from rural areas to the urban 
south. According to a study conducted in July 2006 by Plan Benin, 
the first destination for internally trafficked children is Cotonou, 
the capital city of Benin (53,3 percent) followed by Parakou (11 
percent) and Porto-Novo (8,7 percent). The majority of externally 
trafficked children go to Nigeria (60,8 percent), followed by Cote 
d'Ivoire (20 percent) and then Gabon (4,4 percent). 
 
¶C. (SBU) The continuing motivation for child trafficking in Benin 
remains economic conditions coupled with the traditional system of 
"vidomegon."  Traditionally, vidomegon children are sent to live 
with richer relatives, usually in urban areas, to provide them with 
better opportunities (work, school, training, or just more food). 
This practice has led to labor exploitation and the vulnerability of 
young girls to increased sexual exploitation.  Parents who allow 
their children to be trafficked often believe it is an economic 
necessity and/or will provide a better life for their children. The 
employers of trafficking victims include farmers, traders, 
handicraftsmen, owners of small industries, and civil servants. 
Polygamy, illiteracy, forced marriage, non registration of birth, 
corruption, and HIV/AIDS also account for child trafficking in 
Benin.  Children who are trafficked internationally are often 
transported by car or boat. 
 
¶D. (SBU) According to the UNICEF sponsored National Survey on Child 
trafficking, most of internal trafficking victims are girls (89. 7 
percent). Transnational trafficking involves 48 percent of girls and 
52 percent of boys. Children living in the northern regions of Benin 
are more vulnerable to trafficking. 
 
¶E. (SBU) Traffickers are often members of the community and/or 
relatives.  They may also be formerly trafficked children who have 
returned to their village and find work by trafficking other 
children. Trafficked children generally come from poor rural areas 
and are deceitfully promised educational opportunities or other 
incentives. 
 
¶8. THE GOVERNMENT OF BENIN'S ANTI-TIP EFFORTS (Question 24) 
 
¶A. (SBU) The government acknowledges that child trafficking is a 
problem in Benin. 
 
¶B. (SBU) The Ministry of Family and National Solidarity is the lead 
 
COTONOU 00000041  003 OF 009 
 
 
agency for anti-trafficking efforts. The Ministry of Justice, 
Legislation and Human Rights and the Ministry of Interior and Public 
Security are also very involved. Other ministries are somewhat 
involved, including the Ministry of Labor and Civil Service and the 
Ministry of Health. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, African 
Integration, Francophonie and the Beninese Diaspora handles 
transnational trafficking cases. 
 
¶C. (SBU) Resource limitations remain a major obstacle for the 
government to address the problem of trafficking.  The Ministry of 
Family and National Solidarity (the lead agency for trafficking) has 
had serious resource limitations that hinder its efforts.  The 
Ministries of Justice and Interior (judicial system and police) also 
suffer from limited resources.  Police officers and community 
leaders regularly complain they lack funds to buy essential 
resources, such as vehicle fuel, needed to investigate trafficking 
cases. 
Benin has only eight courts of first instance, where trafficking 
cases are heard, and the courts struggle to complete their yearly 
caseload.  This leads to extensive pre-trial detention in many cases 
and a lack of manpower to conduct thorough investigations.  The 
Minors Protection Brigade, a specialized unit in the Ministry of the 
Interior that deals with children's issues, is a dynamic but still 
small and under-funded unit. 
 
Resource limitations also prevent the government from taking a 
larger role in helping victims, though the government does have a 
referral system in place to ensure care for victims of trafficking 
by NGOs. 
 
¶D. (SBU) The government established the National Child Protection 
and Monitoring Working Group (CNSCPE) to monitor its 
anti-trafficking efforts.  The government tasked the National 
Commission for Children's Rights and the National Commission for 
Human Rights, both part of the Ministry of Justice, with assessing 
anti-trafficking activities. In March 2008, the Government of Benin 
presented a comprehensive report on the activities it carried out to 
fight human trafficking in the framework of the ECOWAS Action Plan. 
The Ministry of Justice periodically collects child trafficking 
statistics and delivers them to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and 
the Benin Press Agency for circulation. The Minors Protection 
Brigade (BPM) has a new child trafficking database called "Enfants 
du Benin" (Benin's Children) that will help tracking and processing 
child trafficking cases. The BPM's data base is functional though 
further training of BPM's personnel is required before it can be 
used fully.  The Family and Child Watchdog Office (OFFE) at the 
Ministry of Family and National Solidarity also maintains a database 
on child trafficking. In 2008, the EU Cooperation and Technical 
Assistance Bureau (BCAT) assisted the Ministry of Family and 
National Solidarity in creating a website for the CNSCPE to 
centralize and disseminate comprehensive information on child 
protection. The CNSCPE issues a quarterly newsletter to provide 
stakeholders with information on activities that it carries out to 
advance child protection and welfare. Nevertheless, some actors 
believe that the CNSCPE does not work at its full potential. 
 
¶9. INVESTIGATION AND PROSECUTION OF TRAFFICKERS (Question 25) 
 
¶A. (SBU) On April 5, 2006, during his first day in office, President 
Yayi signed into law Act No. 2006-04 relating to the Transportation 
of Minors and the Suppression of Child Trafficking in the Republic 
of Benin. The law contains a comprehensive definition of trafficking 
("traite") and applies to children trafficked both internally and 
externally. It enumerates several types of prohibited exploitation 
including all forms of slavery, debt servitude, forced or obligatory 
labor, use of children in armed conflict, for organ donation, for 
prostitution, in pornography, for illegal activities, and for any 
work that is harmful to a child's safety, health, or well-being. It 
punishes both traffickers and accomplices. The law reinforces an 
existing law stipulating that all children must have an identity 
document to enter Benin and special written authorization to exit 
Benin if not accompanied by their parents. The law can punish 
transportation providers for not checking for this documentation. 
 
The provisions of the law referring to the requirements for the 
movement of children require the issuance of enabling decrees 
("decrets d'application"), which create the administrative 
 
COTONOU 00000041  004 OF 009 
 
 
procedures for the movement of children domestically and 
internationally. In 2007, the National Child Protection and 
Monitoring Working Group drafted and amended the three decrees which 
will regulate the movement of minors domestically and 
internationally. However, after considering the decrees in 2008, the 
Council of Ministers sent them back to the Ministry of Family and 
National Solidarity and requested amendments to bring them into line 
with Act No. 2006-04 related to the Transportation of Minors and the 
Suppression of Child Trafficking in the Republic of Benin. This 
situation delays the full application of the anti-child trafficking 
legislation. 
 
Parents who aid traffickers may receive a term of imprisonment of 
three months to two years. Anyone transporting a child within the 
country without appropriate documentation can be punished with six 
to eighteen months imprisonment and a 50,000 - 300,000 FCFA fine 
(USD 100 - 600). Illegally transporting a child outside Benin is 
punishable by one to three years imprisonment and a 500,000 - 
1,500,000 FCFA fine (USD 1,000 - 3,000). 
 
Under the law, trafficking is punishable by ten to fifteen years 
imprisonment. Punishment increases to ten to twenty years if the 
trafficking is aggravated by fraud, abuse, violence, rape or other 
aggression, or if the child cannot be recovered. If a trafficked 
child dies, the trafficker can receive life in prison. The law also 
punishes employers who are aware their employee is trafficked with 
three months to a year in prison and/or a 200,000 - 1,000,000 FCFA 
fine (USD 400 - 2,000). Attempted trafficking carries the same 
punishment as trafficking. Subsequent offenses will double the 
applicable punishment, and accomplices are subject to the same 
penalties as traffickers. The child trafficking law does not cover 
adults who are trafficked, but there are existing laws against 
kidnapping that can provide protection to adults. Other laws that 
cover child trafficking include the December 11 Constitution of the 
Republic of Benin; the Penal Code; Act No 98-004 on Labor in the 
Republic of Benin; Act No 2003-04 of April 3, 2003 on Sexual and 
Reproductive Health; Act No 2003-03 of March 2003 on the repression 
of the practice of Female Genital Mutilation; Act 2002-07 of June 14 
on the Code of Persons and Family; Act 2006-19 of September 5, 2006 
related to the repression of Sexual Harassment and the Protection of 
Victims in the Republic of Benin. 
 
¶B. (SBU) As stated above, penalties for those who traffic children 
for sexual exploitation include ten to twenty years imprisonment. 
Additionally, under the penal code, individuals involved in child 
prostitution, including those who facilitate and solicit it, face 
imprisonment of two to five years and fines of 2000 USD to 20,000 
USD (1,000,000 to 10,000,000 FCFA).  Under the penal code those who 
facilitate adult prostitution and individuals who profit financially 
from adult prostitution, including traffickers and brothel owners, 
face penalties including imprisonment of six months to two years and 
fines of 800 USD to 8,000 USD (400,000 to 4,000,000 FCFA) depending 
on the severity of the offence. 
 
¶C. (SBU) Penalties for labor exploitation, the predominant reason 
for child trafficking in Benin, depend on whether or not aggravating 
factors are involved. Exploiting children for labor can be 
prosecuted under different statues in Benin including the 
Constitution, the Family and Persons Code, the Penal Code, the Labor 
Code, the General Collective Convention on Labor, the Social Code, 
case law, and a wide range of other legislation and government 
decrees.  In addition to the penalties for child trafficking, those 
who engage in labor exploitation of both adults and children may be 
prosecuted under the Labor Code.  The penalties for violations of 
the labor code include imprisonment of two months to one year and/or 
fines of 280 USD to 700 USD (140,000 to 350,000 FCFA). 
 
¶D. (SBU) The penalty for rape is 1 - 5 years incarceration, though 
the penalties can increase depending upon the age of the victim (the 
most severe penalties for children under the age of 13) and the 
extent of the assault. Many recent rape cases have received up to 
twenty years in prison, depending on the circumstances. 
 
¶E. (SBU) During January and February 2008, the Minor Protection 
Brigade (BPM) arrested six child traffickers. On August 7, 2008 in 
the commune of Materi, northern Benin, security forces arrested a 
trafficker who attempted to cross the Benin-Burkina Faso border with 
 
COTONOU 00000041  005 OF 009 
 
 
three children destined for labor exploitation in Burkina Faso. The 
BPM brought a total of 58 individuals involved in child trafficking 
to the Court of Cotonou. [NOTE: These statistics do not include 
those made by other branches of the Beninese police force. 
Comprehensive arrest figures are not available. END NOTE] 
 
During an October 2008 visit to courts and to gendarmes in central 
and northern Benin, judges and gendarmes told Post that they had 
handled child trafficking cases during the year. However, they were 
unable to provide statistics on arrests, prosecutions and 
convictions of offenders. The Office of Civil and Penal Affairs 
under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Justice, Legislation and 
Human Rights has failed to provide Post with statistics on the 
prosecutions of child traffickers, because its lacks money to fund 
the collection of those data from the eight courts of Benin. (NOTE: 
Post sent the Ministry of Justice a diplomatic note to ask for 
prosecutions statistics and to outline the importance of such 
statistics in the assessment of the government's fight against the 
trafficking. To date, the Ministry of Justice has not responded. END 
OF NOTE) 
 
¶F. (SBU) Unlike in 2007, the GOB did not provide a specialized 
training for government officials on how to recognize, investigate 
and prosecute instances of trafficking during the period covered by 
the report. However, senior police officers are familiarized with 
child trafficking issues as part of their training in the police 
academy. 
 
¶G. (SBU) The government cooperates with other governments on 
trafficking investigations and prosecutions. Benin and Nigeria 
signed a Cooperation Agreement on the Prevention, Repression and 
Elimination of Trafficking in Persons (in particular women and 
children) on June 9, 2005. The Joint Nigeria-Benin Committee to 
Combat Child Trafficking meets on a regular basis (twice a year). 
The committee met on November 3-5, 2008 in Lagos, Nigeria to discuss 
child-trafficking issues and to draft a 2008-2009 Joint Action Plan 
on country response to trafficking in persons, particularly in Women 
and Children. This meeting was part of the joint special plan of 
action drafted by Benin and Nigeria to stop the trafficking of 
children from Zakpota, Benin, to Abeokuta, Nigeria. The committee 
met with the board of the Association of the Beninese Community in 
Abeokuta that plays an important part in the identification, 
interception and repatriation of Beninese children who are 
trafficked to stone quarries in Abeokuta. According to Terre des 
Hommes, a Swiss NGO that takes the lead in the repatriation and 
shelter of Beninese victims from Abeokuta's quarries in Nigeria, the 
Beninese Ministry of Family, the BPM in conjunction with the 
National Agency for the Prohibition of Traffic In Persons and Other 
Related Offences (NAPTIP) and the Beninese consulate in Nigeria 
repatriated 55 trafficked victims from February to September, 2008. 
From March 3 to April 4, 2008 delegates from Mali visited Benin to 
share experience with the BPM. 
 
¶H. (SBU) Anecdotal evidence indicates that traffickers (for example, 
from Nigeria) intercepted at the border are handed over to the other 
country's authorities without a formal extradition process. However, 
under the June 2005 Benin - Nigeria cooperation agreement on child 
trafficking, a trafficker may either be prosecuted in the country 
where he/she is arrested or extradited to his/her country of 
origin. 
 
¶I. (SBU) There is no direct evidence of government involvement in 
trafficking, and tolerance among government officials for 
trafficking seems to be lessening. Given the societal tolerance for 
the practice of vidomegon, however, many government officials were 
themselves vidomegon children, and are resistant to the idea that 
vidomegon could be improper. At the same time, however, an 
increasing number of local officials are becoming aware of the 
problems and hardships associated with trafficking and are 
differentiating the traditional practice of "vidomegon" from the 
crime of child trafficking. 
 
¶J. (SBU) The embassy is not aware of any arrests or prosecutions of 
government officials for trafficking in persons crimes. 
 
¶K. (SBU) Prostitution in Benin is not in and of itself a criminal 
offense. Under the penal code there are no penalties imposed on 
 
COTONOU 00000041  006 OF 009 
 
 
prostitutes; however, those who facilitate prostitution and 
individuals who profit financially from prostitution, including 
traffickers and brothel owners, face penalties including 
imprisonment of six months to two years and fines of 800 USD to 
8,000 USD (400,000 to 4,000,000 FCFA) depending on the severity of 
the offence. Individuals involved in prostitution with minors under 
the age of 18, including those who facilitate and solicit it, face 
imprisonment of two to five years and fines of 2000 USD to 20,000 
USD (1,000,000 to 10,000,000 FCFA). 
 
¶L. (SBU) The embassy is not aware of any accusations that Beninese 
troops participating in international peacekeeping missions engaged 
in trafficking while deployed abroad. 
 
¶M. (SBU) Benin has no identified problem of child tourists coming to 
the country. However, there are credible reports that tourists 
visiting the Pendjari National Park in northern Benin use the 
service of under aged prostitutes. It is not clear whether these 
tourists operate through a local or an international network, or 
whether they come to the region primarily for sex tourism. 
 
¶10. PROTECTION AND ASSISTANCE TO VICTIMS (Question 26) 
 
¶A. (SBU) The Ministry of Family and National Solidarity, Ministry of 
Interior (Minors Protection Brigade), Ministry of Justice, Ministry 
of Foreign Affairs and various international donors and NGOs have 
developed a system to assist and repatriate (and/or reintegrate) 
victims of child trafficking. The Minors Protection Brigade (BPM) 
generally takes initial custody of trafficked children who are 
already inside Benin. After an initial interview to ascertain if the 
child is a victim of trafficking, the victim is referred to one of a 
network of NGO shelters. The BPM brings charges against the 
traffickers if there is enough evidence, and the NGO works with the 
Ministry of Family and National Solidarity to reunite children with 
their families.  This process can take some time, depending on the 
circumstances.  Each child is treated individually, and is not sent 
back to his/her community of origin until there is someplace for 
him/her to go (either back to school, into vocational training or an 
apprenticeship, or other "reinsertion").  The government also uses 
the Ministry of Family and Children's network of "Social Promotion 
Centers" (Centres de Promotion Social (CPS)) to provide basic social 
services in each of Benin's 77 communes, including for trafficking 
victims. Each commune (municipality) has its own center with a local 
representative and a social protection committee. During 2008, the 
GOB repatriated a total of 172 trafficking victims from western and 
central Africa and proceeded with their reintegration. 
 
¶B. (SBU) The Ministry of Family and National Solidarity collaborates 
closely with NGOs and other donors who provide services to child 
victims. Typically, the government refers children to NGO-run 
shelters. However, the Minors Protection Brigade has a 
government-built shelter on its premises that is fully equipped to 
handle up to 160 children (80 boys and 80 girls). This is intended 
as a transit facility for recovered trafficking victims where 
children will stay while their cases are processed prior to 
placement in a long-term shelter. The BPM's Shelter (Centre 
d'Accueil et de Transit) became operational in May 2007. It is 
temporarily staffed with 7 personnel provided by three local 
anti-child trafficking entities. During the period covered by the 
report, the BPM's shelter took care of 222 victims. According to the 
regulations of the center, trafficked children should not stay 
longer than one week. However, the shelter often keeps victims 
beyond this limit of time before handing them over to NGOs' shelters 
for reintegration. The BPM's shelter offered victims legal, medical 
and psychological assistance. 
 
¶C. (SBU) The Ministry of Family and National Solidarity collaborates 
closely with NGOs and other donors that provide services to child 
victims. The Ministry of Family and National Solidarity is one of 
the most under-funded ministries in the government. Nevertheless, it 
has signed partnership agreements with international and local NGOs 
and facilitates their funding by donors. 
 
¶D. (SBU) The Government of Benin provides assistance to foreign 
trafficking victims before proceeding with repatriation in their 
respective home countries. 
 
 
COTONOU 00000041  007 OF 009 
 
 
¶E. (SBU) (See paragraph B) 
 
¶F. (SBU) The Ministry of Family and National Solidarity maintains a 
network of social welfare centers (CPS) at the municipal (commune) 
level, which provide assistance to the victims of child trafficking. 
A Ministry of Family and National Solidarity employee at the 
departmental level (each roughly equivalent to a state) supervises 
each center. The centers have had a varied amount of success in 
stopping trafficking 
 
¶G. (SBU) On November 18, 2008, the Government of Cameroon in 
conjunction with the GOB arranged the return to Benin of 21 Beninese 
who where rescued from the shipwreck that occurred off the coast of 
Londji in Cameroon. Among those were 9 trafficked children who the 
BPM sent to shelters for reintegration.  During the year, in 
cooperation with the concerned countries, the brigade rescued 222 
trafficking victims en route to and from the following countries: 
Nigeria, Gabon, Ctte d'Ivoire, Cameroon, Mali, and the Republic of 
Congo. 
 
¶H. (SBU) The government does not have a mechanism for screening for 
trafficking victims among those engaged in the commercial sex 
trade. 
 
¶I. (SBU) As noted above, almost all identified trafficking victims 
in Benin are children. The rights of these victims are respected, 
and they are not treated as criminals. 
 
¶J. (SBU) Victims are encouraged to assist in the investigation and 
prosecution of traffickers, but this is complicated by the fact that 
most victims are children. The protection of child victims is 
guaranteed during the judicial process. The Minors Protection 
Brigade reports it is sometimes unable to get all the facts in a 
case without subjecting victims to more trauma. Child trafficking 
victims do not take part in their trafficker's trial unless the 
judge requires it for a specific purpose. Parents and members of the 
community are reluctant to bring charges against traffickers. 
However, with the new anti-child trafficking law the government can 
prosecute traffickers without the consent of the parents or 
victimized child. There is no victim restitution program. 
 
¶K. (SBU) The government did not provide specialized training for its 
officials during the period covered by the report. (See paragraph F, 
section on Investigation and Prosecution) 
 
¶L. (SBU) The Ministry of Family and National Solidarity works with 
NGOs and donors to provide shelter and helps to reintegrate victims 
of trafficking into their communities. For example, the Ministry (in 
conjunction with UNICEF) has a vocational school pilot program that 
trains children in a trade. The Ministry also tries to work with 
schools to reintegrate children, and maintains contact with the 
schools to follow up on children to prevent them from being 
trafficked again. 
 
The government works closely with civil society on trafficking 
issues. UNICEF takes the lead among international organizations and 
has a close working relationship with the government. Given Benin's 
resource limitations, the government relies heavily on and 
cooperates closely with NGOs to provide many services in the area of 
child trafficking. On October 23, 2007, the EU launched a 
Cooperation and Technical Assistance Bureau (BCAT) consisting of 4 
locally recruited employees and one expatriate worker. This entity 
is to provide the Ministry of Family and National Solidarity with 
technical assistance in the area of child protection through a 
4-year action plan. Its objectives include strengthening the 
institutional capabilities of the ministry, coordinating with other 
actors involved in the fight against child trafficking, and 
assessing the government's progress in curbing trafficking. In 2008, 
the BCAT, in conjunction with the Ministry of Secondary Education, 
Technical and Vocational Training, established centers in the 
international market of Dantokpa in Cotonou, and in the markets of 
Parakou and Malanville to make victims feel more secure and to 
provide them with vocational training for a successful 
reintegration. 
 
¶M. (SBU) UNICEF, ILO, the European Union, DANIDA, the French 
Embassy, French Volunteers, Terre des Hommes, Silesian Sisters, 
 
COTONOU 00000041  008 OF 009 
 
 
Catholic Relief Services, World Education and a large group of other 
international and local organizations work with trafficking victims. 
They provide awareness campaigns, shelters, training, and other 
services to victims. Although there is a discernible growth in 
political will and awareness among national officials to address 
trafficking issues, at times some local authorities are reluctant to 
cooperate. Local NGOs are working successfully at the local level by 
enlisting the help of Parents' Associations in schools and 
community-level social protection committees mentioned above. 
 
¶11. PREVENTION (Question 27) 
 
¶A. (SBU) From October 2006 to December 2008, a total of 177,850 
people including transporters, members of Local Committees to combat 
child trafficking, teachers, local authorities, law enforcement 
agents, social workers and religious leaders were sensitized to the 
trafficking through the USAID and UNICEF funded project "on 
combating child trafficking through an integrated approach". The 
project targeted northern communities. The Office of Childhood and 
Adolescence at the Ministry of Family coordinated this effort. 
 
¶B. (SBU) Agents of the Minors Protection Brigade screen travelers at 
some of Benin's border crossings. Border agents and gendarmes 
monitor the borders for trafficking victims and have had some 
success in arresting traffickers and returning trafficked children. 
They also rely on community whistleblowers to draw their attention 
to suspicious cases involving the transportation of children along 
border routes. 
 
¶C. (SBU). There is now a mechanism to coordinate and facilitate 
communication between the various actors on child trafficking 
related matters. By presidential directive dated March 15, 2006 
(order No 503/MFPSS/SGM/SPEA/SA), the then Ministry of Family and 
Children put in place a National Child Protection and Monitoring 
Working Group (CNSCPE). This body, which meets quarterly and is made 
up of representatives from government agencies, national and 
international NGOs, and development partners, is tasked with 
centralizing all information related to child protection activities, 
assuring the coordination and monitoring of stakeholder activities, 
and proposing solutions to the problems these actors face. The task 
force established four technical committees to study specific issues 
regarding child protection: "Trafficking and Exploitation", 
"Juvenile Justice", "Violence and Harmful Practices Affecting 
Children" and, "Orphans and Vulnerable Children". In addition to 
elaborating terms of reference and annual work plans of their 
activities, committee members meet on a quarterly basis to discuss 
specific issues pertaining to their areas of responsibility. The 
Watchdog to Combat Corruption (OLC) serves as a public corruption 
task force. It has a National Strategic Plan to Combat Corruption 
intended for government officials, NGOs, and ordinary citizens. 
 
¶D. (SBU) The government completed drafting and editing of the UNICEF 
sponsored National Policy and Strategy for Child Protection in 
October 2007. This policy document centers on a number of principles 
intended to provide coherence, focus and direction to all activities 
undertaken by the government regarding the prevention, 
rehabilitation and reintegration of vulnerable children. Currently, 
the government is expected to budget for the activities planned in 
the document to have it actually implemented. The 2008-2012 National 
Plan to Combat Child Trafficking and Labor, funded by the 
International Labor Organization's International Program for the 
Elimination of Child Labor is already printed and the government 
plans to popularize it. In 2007, the government released also a 
Children's Code that brings together all legislation and decrees 
pertaining to child welfare and assures that they respect the UN 
Convention on the Rights of the Child.  The document defines the 
legal framework needed to protect children in the criminal, social, 
and administrative arenas.  The measures defined in the code also 
seek to tackle issues including children's social reintegration, 
repatriation, rehabilitation, and vocational training. 
 
¶E. (SBU) Non applicable 
 
¶F. Post is not aware of any measures taken by the Government of 
Benin to reduce the participation in international child sex tourism 
by nationals of the country. 
 
 
COTONOU 00000041  009 OF 009 
 
 
¶G. (SBU) The Beninese troops that are deployed abroad as part of 
peacekeeping missions are trained through the Department of State's 
African Contingency Operations Training Assistance (ACOTA) program. 
The training provides them with strict rules to follow in the field 
to avoid involvement in trafficking and exploitation. 
 
BROWN