Partnership To Fight Human Trafficking
By SARAH HILOMEN-VELASCO, http://www.mb.com.ph
February 4, 2012,

MANILA, Philippines — Two organizations in the Visayas region have joined forces to stop the illegal human trade.

The Millennium Challenge Account – Philippines (MCA-P) and the Visayan Forum Foundation have signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) as they wage war against human trafficking.

The agreement covers the MCA-P project areas of Western and Eastern Samar.

MCA-P is a Philippine entity implementing the $434-million grant from the US funding agency, Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), aimed at reducing poverty through economic growth.

The Visayan Forum is a non-profit organization working for the protection of vulnerable migrants, including victims of human trafficking, forced labor, and other modern-day forms of slavery.

Ma. Victoria E. Anonuevo, MCA-P managing director and chief executive officer, revealed that the agreement will be a prelude to eventually ending trafficking in persons (TIP) in the country. “This MOA is only an initial but nonetheless a significant step towards safeguarding our project areas against this modern-day slavery that victimizes mostly the poorest sectors of our society,” she said.

Ma. Cecilia Flores-Oebanda, Visayan Foum president, expressed confidence that the public-private partnership in the fight against human trafficking will achieve results. “Visayan Forum believes that this partnership will have a lasting impact not only on the communities covered by MCA-P but because this will serve as a model for private sector innovation in the war against human trafficking,” she said.

The Visayan Forum noted that the Philippines has been reported to be vulnerable to TIP because of the “culture of migration.” The country is said to be the third leading source of migrant workers in the world.

Read full article @ www.mb.com.ph