§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what action her Department is taking to stop child trafficking. [40239]
§ Clare ShortOur response focuses on eliminating the poverty that causes child trafficking, and supporting and encouraging the work of governments, business, voluntary agencies and international organisations, such as the International Labour Organisation and UNICEF, which addresses this issue. It includes £3 million of support for specific ILO operations in Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and China.
§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment her Department has made of the levels of exploitation of children by aid workers in Africa. [40243]
§ Clare ShortMy Department has not undertaken any direct assessment of the level of exploitation of children by aid workers. No level of exploitation is acceptable in any circumstance. We welcome the attention the recent report of UNHCR and SCF-UK on exploitation amongst refugee children in West Africa has brought to this issue.
§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what action her Department is taking to educate people living in Africa about the dangers of child trafficking. [40238]
§ Clare ShortDFID is supporting the work of agencies such as Anti-Slavery International and Save the Children that collaborate with local civil society organisations to raise awareness of the issues of child labour and trafficking.
§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what action she is taking to help developing countries implement the International Labour Organisation conventions on child trafficking. [40237]
§ Clare ShortDFID is supporting the work of the International Labour Organisation to help developing countries implement Convention 182, on the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, which includes trafficking, both through our four year Partnership 647W agreement, and through support to specific ILO operations such as the regional programme in Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and China.
§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what conclusions she has drawn form the UNHCR report into the sexual exploitation of children by aid workers in Africa. [40242]
§ Clare ShortThe initial findings of the UNHCR and Save the Children-UK Assessment Mission are very disturbing. We welcome their openness in bringing this issue to public attention and strongly endorse the Framework for Action adopted. The agencies implicated by the allegations in the report must take urgent action to stamp out any exploitation uncovered of the people that they are there to protect.
§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the levels of child trafficking in each of the last five years. [40240]
§ Clare ShortThe covert and illicit nature of child trafficking makes it very difficult to establish accurate statistics, but there is wide agreement and growing concern that evidence of the practice is growing in all regions of the world.
§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assistance her Department is providing to UK charities working in Africa to prevent the sexual exploitation of children by their overseas staff. [40244]
§ Clare ShortUK charities and other aid agencies clearly have to take responsibility for the conduct of their staff, both those from the UK and those who are recruited locally. They need to ensure that they have policies and procedures in place to prevent the recruitment of unsuitable individuals, to monitor their programme operations, and to take action against staff who abuse children or misuse their authority in any other way.