Side Event: Human Trafficking, Modern Day Slavery and the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda

On 17 October 2016, the Inter-agency Coordination Group against Trafficking in Persons (ICAT), together with the Government of Belarus, the Group of Friends United Against Human Trafficking and the Academic Council of the United Nations System (ACUNS), hosted a side event to the 8th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime.

The event was held in the UNODC Headquarters in Vienna and focused on human trafficking, modern-day slavery and the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. Panellists included the ICAT Chair for 2016, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), as well as ICAT Working Group members and partner organisations from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), International Labour Organisation (ILO), United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The side event provided a welcomed opportunity for panellists to showcase existing efforts in combating trafficking in human beings and exchange views for further strengthening and expanding global cooperation in the field. The importance of implementing anti-trafficking measures through the comprehensive and forward-looking framework of the Sustainable Development Goals was also promoted.