STAFF CORRESPONDENT

Ferdousi Akter, a survivor of human trafficking, said it took her years of struggle to move from being rescued to rebuilding her life and supporting others with similar experiences.

Speaking at a workshop, Ferdousi described what she called a long and difficult journey.

“First a victim, then a survivor, then a champion survivor, then taking responsibility as a caregiver,” she said.

The dissemination workshop titled “A Survivor Care Model Led by Individuals with Lived Experience: From Experience to Expertise,” was organised by Justice and Care at a city hotel on Tuesday.

Practitioners, officials and development partners attended the event to discuss how lived experience can be professionalised to strengthen survivor care.

Ferodusi said she had endured “countless shocks,” but those experiences now help her connect with survivors in ways outsiders often cannot.

She said survivor care begins from the earliest stages and continues as survivors try to restart their lives. This includes rescue, repatriation, peer mentoring, family counselling, physical follow-up, rehabilitation support and development-oriented training.

“When a survivor plans to start life anew, we are not only caregivers. We become companions on the journey,” she said, adding that families often accept support workers more easily when they recognise shared experience and trust.

Her focus, she said, is safety and dignity, while planning support around survivors’ situations, mental states and hopes.

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