Each week the Freedom Fund curates the most insightful and timely news stories about modern slavery. Below are this week’s slavery articles.

Business and religious groups join forces to end modern slavery
The Age, 2 December 2016
Australian businessman Andrew Forrest has challenged business leaders to wipe slavery out of their supply chains and backed calls for tougher rules in Australia. He has joined forces with faith groups calling for new legislation to outlaw modern slavery and forced labour. 18 national faith leaders have called on the Australian government to pass an act to discourage slavery-like conditions.

Child labour is part of most of what we buy today: what can we do?
The Guardian, 24 November 2016
No business wants child labour in its supply chain. Yet with an estimated 168 million children in some form of labour globally, it is an uncomfortable reality of globalised commodities that businesses cannot afford to avoid. This news brief unpacks child labour in Africa, where one in five kids are employed against their will.

Ethiopian women face new threat of human trafficking as economic gains slow to trickle down
Thomson Reuters Foundation, 24 November 2016
Girls in Ethiopia are often regarded as a financial burden on their families, and many are expected to drop out of school and find employment.  Human traffickers have increasingly lured young women away from getting an education with promises of finding work. But many girls end up being exploited as maids and sex workers.

Modern slavery risks hit home for UK firms
Ethical Corporation, 17 November 2016
As companies become aware of the sharp rise in forced labour in UK supply chains, there are concerns that firms will move more purchasing overseas to protect their brands. UK Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner Kevin Hyland says the role of the private sector in tackling modern slavery “cannot be underestimated”.

Why supporting frontline NGOs is key to fighting modern slavery
Thomson Reuters Foundation, 24 November 2016
Too often, grassroots NGOs are overlooked by donors because they are perceived as too small or risky. Yet these frontline organisations are the ones making a measurable difference in people’s lives. This week, the Freedom Fund celebrates a milestone: we have now granted ten million dollars to organisations on the frontlines in the fight against slavery.

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For more news and updates about the Freedom Fund, visit our Newsroom. You can also view issues of our monthly slavery research bulletin here.