Beate Andrees

GENEVA – The head of the ILO Special Action Programme to Combat Forced Labour, Beate Andrees, will answer your questions on forced labour in the Middle East on Wednesday 10 April at 13:00 Geneva time (12:00 GMT). Tweet your questions to @ILO, using the hashtag #ILO2013.  Participants are welcome to tweet in English or Arabic, however, responses will be in English only.

The ILO will release a major new report on human trafficking in the Middle-East during a regional conference on the issue in Amman, Jordan on 9-10 April.

Delegates at the conference will consider the findings of the report, entitled “Tricked and Trapped: Human Trafficking in the Middle East,” which provides figures on the number of migrant workers 'tricked and trapped' into forced labour across the region.

“Labour migration in this part of the world is unique in terms of its sheer scale and its exponential growth in recent years,” says Beate Andrees. “The challenge is how to put in place safeguards in both origin and destination countries to prevent the exploitation and abuse of these workers.”

The meeting will bring together government, employer and worker representatives from across the region to discuss responses to forced labour and how to put international anti-trafficking commitments into practice.