Sri Lanka’s National Strategic Action Plan to combat human trafficking launched
January 28, 2026 08:48 pm
The National Strategic Action Plan to monitor and combat human trafficking for the period 2026-2030 was officially launched on January 28 at the Cinnamon Life Hotel in Colombo, with the participation of Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya.
The event was jointly organized by the Ministry of Defence, the National Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force (NAHTTF), and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), according to the Prime Minister’s Media Division.
The five-year Action Plan was unveiled under the leadership of the Ministry of Defence, in its capacity as Chair of the NAHTTF, with technical support provided by the IOM.
The National Strategic Action Plan 2026–2030 establishes a unified national framework aimed at preventing human trafficking, protecting and assisting victims, strengthening law enforcement responses, and enhancing accountability.
Addressing the event, Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to strengthening national efforts to prevent and address human trafficking, emphasizing that the Action Plan must move beyond a symbolic launch and be translated into concrete, coordinated, and sustained implementation, the statement said.
She further noted that the launch of the Action Plan is timely, as it operationalizes the four internationally recognized pillars of the anti-trafficking framework, namely prevention, protection, prosecution, and partnership.
The Prime Minister stated that caring for trafficking survivors in Sri Lanka requires a holistic, gender-sensitive, and survivor-centered approach, addressing both immediate protection and long-term recovery.
This includes access to safe shelter, medical care, trauma-informed psychological support, legal assistance, economic empowerment, and skills development to prevent re-trafficking, with particular attention given to women and girls who experience more severe and gender-based forms of violence.
She also emphasized that human trafficking is a structural and social challenge requiring sustained, multi-sectoral action, noting that ministries and government institutions must integrate anti-trafficking priorities into their core strategies and daily operations to ensure accountability, it added.
The event was attended by Attorney General Parinda Ranasinghe Jr., PC; Secretary to the Ministry of Defence and Chair of the NAHTTF, Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha; IOM Chief of Mission for Sri Lanka and the Maldives, Kristin Parco; members of the NAHTTF representing 23 key government institutions; as well as representatives of the diplomatic community, United Nations agencies, and civil society organizations.
