File photo of the Alberta Legislature building in Edmonton. The province has announced a $20.8 million investment to combat human trafficking, October 2, 2022. (Photo: LNN)

By Justin Goulet/LethbridgeNewsNOW

Province investing over $20 million to combat human trafficking

Oct 3, 2022 | 8:34 AM

EDMONTON – The Government of Alberta is investing $20.8 million in new funds over the next four years to fight human trafficking.

The province said Oct. 2 that it is implementing the Alberta Human Trafficking Task Force’s five recommendations to better protect and help vulnerable Albertans to stop their exploitation at the hands of traffickers.

Specifically, the $20.8 million will:

• Establish and implement an Office to Combat Trafficking in Persons and a centre of excellence for research and data collection.
• Support a new grant for coordinated community support and Indigenous-led and culturally appropriate services.
• Fund civilian positions through the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams, whose roles would be focused on assisting victims and survivors throughout the investigation process.
• Collaboratively implement other related task force recommendations.

Officials stated that human trafficking “is more prevalent than what statistics show due to the hidden nature of the crime, high levels of fear amongst victims and survivors, and challenges with data collection and information sharing.”

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Premier Jason Kenney said, “Human trafficking is a modern form of slavery. Today’s step reinforces Alberta’s determination to stamp out this terrible exploitation.”

Paul Brandt is Chair of the Human Trafficking Task Force. He stated, “I am pleased to see next steps come to fruition and thankful that the government is providing funding to start implementing this critical work and make a difference in the lives of so many vulnerable people.”

According to the province, police services across Canada reported 2,977 incidents of human trafficking between 2010 and 2020. The Alberta Human Trafficking Task Force report can be seen at the Government of Alberta website.

The news conference announcing the $20.8 million investment can be viewed below.