IOM Minsk Conducts Training for Hotline Operators

On 12-13 May 2015, IOM Minsk conducted the training for operators of IOM hotline on safe travel and stay abroad as well as for operators of hotlines of La Strada Programme (IPA “Gender Perspectives”) and of the Department on Citizenship and Migration of the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Belarus.

The main goal of training was to improve operators’ communication by phone, in particular to improve the quality of the voice. Voice, intonation and correct pronunciation are the first things that hotline beneficiaries face and encourage them for a positive talk, which contributes to the positive image of hotlines in general. During the training Zinaida Bondarenko, expert on the quality of voice and articulation, conducted several exercises to improve operators’ quality of voice, articulation, correct pronunciation, stress and pausing in the message, etc.

After the training followed a working meeting of hotline specialists focused on the following issues but not limited to: identification of a victim of human trafficking and their referral to the relevant agencies, work with beneficiaries that may have suffered from human trafficking and record of such cases in the hotline statistics; cooperation of the hotlines with the Department of Citizenship and Migration and other issues related to safe travel abroad.

The training was organized with the support of USAID.