International Justice Mission Receives $5 Million Grant to Fight Sex Trafficking

Bill & Melinda Gates funded project to focus on communities where human trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation is a significant problem

Washington, D.C. -- Human rights organization International Justice Mission has received a $5 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to create a replicable model for combating sex trafficking and slavery. The initiative, named Project Lantern, will allow International Justice Mission to open a new office in a community affected by trafficking. Where trafficking flourishes, victims are at greater risk of infection with the HIV/AIDS virus. IJM will develop a model for working with local law enforcement officials in fighting trafficking in that community that will then be shared with stakeholders in the anti-trafficking community to be replicated around the globe.

To read the full press release, visit the International Justice Mission Web site.

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Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people’s health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people—especially those with the fewest resources—have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life. Based in Seattle, Washington, the foundation is led by CEO Jeff Raikes and Co-chair William H. Gates Sr., under the direction of Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett.

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