Budapest hosts Europe and Central Asia Regional Consultation Workshop on achieving the SDG Target 8.7 with regard to Child and Forced Labour

Media advisory | Budapest, Hungary | 23 June 2017
ILO-BUDAPEST: Regional Consultation Workshop - Achieving Target 8.7 - ILO and OSCE is organizing a high-level Europe and Central Asia Regional Consultation on SDG Alliance 8.7 which will be hosted by the Government of Hungary and funded by the US Department of Labour and Germany. The event will take place in Budapest on 29-30 June 2017 at the premises of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

The purpose of these regional consultation is to highlight the critical importance of Alliance 8.7, a global multi-stakeholder initiative, to assist Member States to achieve Target 8.7 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and to accelerate political and international support for the eradication of child labour, forced labour, modern slavery and human trafficking at the regional level.

These consultations will bring together high level representatives from governments’, workers’ and employers’ organisations from Europe and Central Asia, as well as representatives from diplomatic missions, civil society and the private sector.

The outcome of the consultations is expected to feed into the IV Global Conference on Child Labour on the Sustained Eradication of Child labour (including forced labour and quality youth employment) in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in November 2017 which will support the implementation of Target 8.7 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Most importantly, they will feed into country level initiatives to accelerate achievement of Target 8.7.

The consultations will be held in the presence of Mr. István Íjgyártó, State Secretary of Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Government of Hungary and Mr. Heinz Koller, Assistant Director General of the ILO and Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia.

The ILO estimates that globally there are 21 million men, women and children suffering as victims of forced labour and human trafficking for labour exploitation.  The total illicit profits generated by the use of forced labour worldwide amounts to $150 billion per year.

There are 168 million children – over 10 per cent of the global child population – in child labour. The number has fallen since 2000 but remains at unacceptable levels.
Europe and Central Asia are characterized by relatively high levels of economic development and social security, but the levels vary widely among different countries. Some population groups are extremely vulnerable to labour exploitation. Eastern and Southern Europe and the CIS have the highest incidence of forced labour per inhabitant. Vulnerable groups include young people from underserviced rural areas, migrants and refugees, and ethnic minorities living a marginalized existence economically and socially.

For more detailed technical information, please contact ILO Fundamentals Snezhi BEDALLI at bedalli@ilo.org
For more detailed communication information, please contact ILO DWT/CO-Europe, Veronika Tomka at tomka@ilo.org | (+361) 4732656.

Background

Alliance 8.7 is an inclusive global partnership that aims to provide strategic coordination of the diverse stakeholders with an interest in achieving Target 8.7 of the Sustainable Development Goals.
The mission of Alliance 8.7 is to assist all UN member States to fulfil their commitment to achieve UN Sustainable Development Goal Target 8.7 through: 1/Accelerating timelines; 2/Conducting research and sharing knowledge; 3/Driving innovation; 4/Increasing and leveraging resources