Commonwealth MPs to legislate against modern slavery

Ugandan MPs will be joined by their counterparts in Ghana, Nigeria, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Kenya and Pakistan, among other countries, in a seminar at Westminster area in London, organised by the UK branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA UK).

The seminar starts today and ends on Thursday December 14. It is aimed at providing a platform to develop and review how modern slavery, human trafficking and forced labour are legislated against.

According to Mark Scott, the CPA UK Communications officer, a number of UK parliamentarians will also be participating in the seminar, including those involved in the passing of the 2015 Modern Slavery Act.

Scott added that recent research from the Walk Free Foundation and the International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that there are around 40 million victims of modern slavery, human trafficking and forced labour worldwide.

Vernon Coaker MP, who is Co-Chair of the UK All Party Parliamentary Group on Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking, said: "It is unacceptable that modern slavery and human trafficking still exist in the world today. Parliamentarians have an important role to play in ending this shameful practice and I welcome the opportunity to work with colleagues from across the Commonwealth to see how we can scrutinise, review and strengthen legislation to combat it."  

In Uganda there are particularly challenges relating to forced labour in agriculture, services and industry as well as sex trafficking from neighbouring countries; with Sub-Sahara Africa recording the highest rate of child trafficking in the world.