Modern Human Slavery: An Update

Evening Presentation by MATT FRIEDMAN, Human Trafficking Expert & CEO, The Mekong Club
Drinks reception at 6.30pm
Presentation at 7pm
Close at 8pm

Every five seconds, a person enters slavery somewhere in the world. One minute it might be a 15-year-old girl forced into prostitution, the next a young boy forced onto a fishing boat to work 18 hours a day for years without coming to port. It is estimated there are over 35 million people trapped in slavery - 65 percent of this - 23.5 million - in Asia alone. In absolute terms, six out of the top 10 countries with the highest number of people in modern slavery are in Asia - India, China, Pakistan, Indonesia, Bangladesh and Thailand. A leading international expert on human trafficking and slavery will provide insights and a comprehensive update on human slavery across Asia. Matt Friedman will explore the changing human trafficking paradigm in Asia; the relationship between human trafficking and slavery; regional trends and patterns and new, emerging responses and funding trends. He’ll outline the role of the private sector and what is really needed to win the fight.

Matt Friedman is an international human trafficking expert with more than 25 years’ experience as a manager, program designer, evaluator and frontline responder. He is currently Chief Executive Officer of The Mekong Club, an organization of Hong Kong-based private sector business leaders who have joined forces to help fight human trafficking in Asia. Mr. Friedman was previously Regional Project Manager at the United Nations Inter-Agency Project on Human Trafficking (UNIAP) in Thailand, an inter-agency coordinating body that linked the United Nations system with governments and civil society groups in China, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam. Prior to this, he worked for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in Thailand, Bangladesh and Nepal where he designed and managed country and regional human trafficking programs. Mr Friedman also offers regular technical advice to numerous governments working to stop slavery, and is the author of nine books.