193 On the protection of women, Section 24 of the Constitution specifically provides for the rights of women. The Marriage, Divorce and Family Relations Act (MDFR) was enacted in 2015. The Act goes to the very root of gender equality and women empowerment, and is in line with the provisions of the CEDAW and the Maputo Protocol. On equality, Section 48 of the Act provides that a party to a marriage is entitled to equal rights as the other in their right to consortium. The Act also protects the property rights of a woman in the marriage and upon dissolution of the marriage. Under Section 71 of the Act, a woman is entitled to the property she owned individually. 194 The MDFR also protects the rights of children. Section 95 of the Act provides that in any proceedings brought by either party to the marriage, the Court shall treat the welfare of the child as paramount. More details on the rights of women are provided in Part B of this report. 195 The Trafficking in Persons Act seeks to eliminate trafficking of women, girls and boys for sexual exploitation and child labour. Section 79 of the Child Care, Protection and Justice Act also criminalizes child trafficking. In August, 2017, the 2017-2022 National Plan of Action against Trafficking in Persons was launched. It targets reduction of trafficking in persons’ cases by 50% by 2022. 196 The enactment of the Trafficking in Persons Act in 2015 will ensure the protection of women and children from exploitation. Trafficking of children is specifically prohibited under Section 15(1) of the Act. The offence attracts imprisonment for twenty-one years without the option of a fine. This is unlike trafficking in persons generally which attracts imprisonment for fourteen years. The Act considers trafficking in children to be an aggravated form of trafficking, hence affording more protection to children. 197 On training, the Malawi Police Service has anti-trafficking training in its curricula for its training schools in Limbe, Mtakataka and Mlangeni Police Training Schools and Zomba Police College. The Department for Immigration trained a number of new immigration officers on victim identification and assistance to potential trafficking victims. The Judiciary conducts trainings on the anti-trafficking law with a particular focus on sentencing guidelines for offenders. The Ministry of Gender, Children, Disability and Social Welfare together with the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) 72