The “Association of Albanian Girls and Women” (AAGW) is a nonprofit humanitarian organization created by and for victims of human trafficking in Albania. It is estimated that there are over 6,000 Albanian girls and women who are currently or who formerly have been victims of illegal trafficking for the purpose of enforced prostitution, one third of whom are younger than eighteen. More victims are arriving all the time. The average age is seventeen; the youngest girls are fourteen. These girls and women are the beneficiaries of AAGW, but they are also its members and leaders.
A primary aim of AAGW is to help former victims of trafficking reintegrate into Albanian society. AAGW promotes this goal by supplementing and supporting job training, job placement, and handicraft production programs. Equally important, since AAGW is an organization run by and for trafficked women, its daily operation also offers important leadership and managerial experience and provides a voice for this marginalized group in Albanian society.
AAGW is a tool for personal empowerment. These victims of trafficking have been robbed of their human dignity. AAGW seeks to help them restore it. As members of their own association, these young women are the experts on trafficking; they know best how to determine their own needs and propose solutions for lasting change. AAGW gives them this opportunity. (http://www.aagw.org, 2010-06-11)