A/HRC/10/64 page 21 D. Operationalizing the Recommended Principles and Guidelines on Human Rights and Human Trafficking 86. OHCHR is currently considering whether further tools, for example, a practical implementation guide, could be developed to support States and others in ensuring that responses to trafficking are effective, in conformity with international standards and reflect established and emerging good practices. Such a tool could also provide practical guidance on a review of national action plans against trafficking in persons from a human rights perspective. IV. CONCLUSIONS 87. The sheer scope of the problem of trafficking almost defies description. Every year, millions of human beings are tricked, sold, forced or otherwise coerced into situations of exploitation from which they cannot escape. They are the commodities of a transnational criminal industry which generates billions of dollars and operates with virtual impunity, due to inefficient law enforcement, compounded, in many cases, by corruption and complicity. The pool of potential victims in every part of the world is expanding due to widespread inequalities, lack of employment opportunities, insecurity of food and livelihoods, violence, conflict, discrimination and poverty. 88. The partners in UN.GIFT have endeavoured to raise alarm bells and mobilize actions to counter the trafficking of human beings through the Vienna Forum and increased coordination of activities between United Nations entities involved in combating trafficking, and there have been encouraging developments at the national, regional and international levels. Through United Nations human rights mechanisms, Member States have increasingly reported on progress and on the measures undertaken to combat trafficking from a human rights perspective. 89. However, attempts to deal with the human consequences of trafficking remain largely ineffective. Some anti-trafficking efforts have even been harmful to the very people they aimed to protect, as victims of trafficking at times become “collateral damage” in law enforcement operations. With the increasing international focus on human trafficking worldwide in recent years, it has been recognized that it will not be possible to effectively counter the global trade in human beings without shared commitments to human rights, human development and human security, and that human rights must be at the centre of any credible anti-trafficking strategy. 90. Trafficking in persons is a human rights violation that can only be overcome if all players, inside and outside Government, can work together on a basis of sound information about the phenomenon and understanding of its causes and consequences and the effectiveness of various interventions. Progress has been made in improving coordination at the regional and international levels, but further efforts should be made to share best practices and implement best strategies. There is a need for a truly integrated response to the problem at the national and international level, including within the United Nations. -----