From 17-18 May, the Office facilitated the participation of a large delegation of the Government of Azerbaijan and civil society at a regional conference on “Building Partnerships to Combat Human Trafficking and Forced Labour” in Tbilisi. The conference was a joint effort of the ICMPD, ILO, IOM and the OSCE. The two-day conference, led by the ILO, brought together representatives from the South Caucasus and other OSCE participating States. Participants discussed lessons learned and good practices in combating THB. The event created a unique opportunity for practitioners from law enforcement agencies and service providers to learn about innovative approaches in combating human trafficking and to discuss the challenges of identifying victims and prosecuting perpetrators of trafficking and forced labour. From 31 May to 1 June, the Office in Baku, the OSR/CTHB, the IOM and the Anti-trafficking Unit of the Ministry of Internal Affairs conducted a workshop for regional law enforcement agencies from the Astara, Lankaran, Lerik and Yardimly districts of Azerbaijan. More than 20 law enforcement representatives participated in the event and discussed current trends in trafficking and forced labour in Azerbaijan. On 17 August, the Office visited the shelter for street children established and run by the Azerbaijan Children Union. The Office paid this visit in the framework of the Office’s countertrafficking and forced labour activities with a purpose to analyze the situation in regard to the exploitation of marginalized groups as potential victims of trafficking and forced labour. This activity was part of an increase of monitoring visits to NGO-run shelters for children and women and an effort to seek funding to support the efforts of the Government and civil society organizations in combating human trafficking and forced labour. On 23 August, which is the International Remembrance Day of Victims of Human Trafficking, the Office gave a presentation at the “Blue Heart” anti-trafficking campaign organized by the Clean World Public Union. The purpose of the event was to support the victims of trafficking and raise awareness among all layers of society in Azerbaijan about the forms and threats of trafficking. Along with the Office’s support, the event was also supported by high-level Government bodies, members of the Parliament, other international organizations and bilateral representations operating in Azerbaijan. On 25 August, the Office met with representatives of the U.S. Embassy and American Bar Association (ABA) to discuss possible co-operation on anti-trafficking training for prosecutors, judges and lawyers. The parties agreed to develop a long-term training programme on trafficking in human beings and forced labour, with the initial events to be organized jointly in the coming months. On 7 September, the Office met with the NGO Reliable Future, active in the field of child protection. The Office visited several centres that the NGO operates comprising a juvenile diversion centre, a children’s clinic and a rehabilitation centre for child victims of abuse, including sexual abuse. The Office was going to continue its regular visits to the NGO-run centres and shelters. On 13 September, the Office and a number of its international partners, such as the American Bar Association (ABA), the IOM and the U.S. Embassy met to discuss ongoing activities and co-ordinate upcoming initiatives on anti-trafficking and forced labour. Participants discussed training courses for law enforcement agencies on the identification and prosecution of trafficking, as well as courses for judges, lawyers and service providers for victims of trafficking. The parties agreed to conduct joint activities on counter-trafficking and forced labour. On 16-17 September, as a follow-up to the “Online Investigative Journalism Course”, organized by the Office’s Democratization Unit on 13-15 September, the Office organized a two-day course for investigative journalists on reporting human trafficking and forced labour 88