Moldovan Government will receive USD 3.45 million from the Government of Japan and the United Nations Trust Fund for Human Security for the assistance of victims of trafficking in human beings. Up until 2011the Moldovan authorities should use the money in several social projects which would spot the phenomenon, Info-Prim Neo reports. Kaarina Immonen, UN Resident Coordinator in Moldova, told a press conference on Thursday that Moldova is still one of the poorest countries in Europe and places among the last in the rankings concerning the living standards. “This mostly affects children and women, who become victims of trafficking in humans”, Immonen asserted. She pointed out that one of the main motives of the victimization of Moldovans is the domestic violence. Thus, the money received by the Government will be directed for preventing situations of violence in socially vulnerable families, where most of conflicts occur, Deputy Minister of Social Protection, Family and Child Lucia Gavrilita mentioned. Starting 2006, 217 victims of trafficking received assistance, the official added, mentioning that in the last period the number of victims decreased slightly. The US Department of State estimates that about 7500 citizens of Moldova become victims of trafficking in human beings each year (about 1% of the 750,000 working abroad). The rest are unidentified. 2227 Moldovan citizens have been repatriated up until now, most of them women and children. It was established that 70% of these people were victims of domestic violence. The Government of the United States has recently announced that the situation concerning the trafficking in humans has improved in Moldova, placing the country on a better position in the US report on the trafficking in human beings. The project has been worked out by the United Nations Development Program, the United Nations Population Fund, International Organization for Migration and the OSCE Mission in Moldova in cooperation with the Ministry of Social Protection, Family and Child.