There are more than 40 million people trapped in modern slavery today, a quarter of which are children. While the anti-slavery movement has made significant progress in recent years, there is still an important gap between the total number of victims worldwide and those receiving protection or assistance.

This webinar will take stock of local response to contemporary forms of slavery affecting people from vulnerable groups. Discussions will highlight the essential role played by grantees of the UN Voluntary Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery and other civil society organizations.

In light of the report of Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery on displacement, participants will also consider concrete steps that States, humanitarian and development actors, civil society organisations and other stakeholders must take to ensure that displaced persons are not subjected to contemporary forms of slavery and other forms of exploitation.

This online event will mark the launch of a year-long commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the Fund.

Organizers

• Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
• Rights Lab – University of Nottingham

Platform

• Zoom

UN and academic speakers

• UN Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences, Mr. Tomoya Obokata
• Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the Voluntary Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, Mr. Danwood Mzikenge Chirwa
• Rights Lab Associate Director (Law and Policy Programme) and Assistant Professor of Antislavery Law and Policy, Ms. Katarina Schwarz
• Head of the Protection, Policy and Legal Advice section, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Ms. Madeline Garlick

Civil society speakers

• Marinaldo Soares, former victim and community leader (Brazil), and Mariana de la Fuente Gómez, Coordinator, Centro de Defensa de la Vida Carmen Bascaran (Brazil)
• Mariana Meshi, Executive Director, Different & Equal (Albania)
• Jaya Anil Kumar, Research and Advocacy Manager, Humanitarian Organization for Migration Economics (Singapore)

Languages

• English (interpretation to Arabic, French, Portuguese and Spanish)