On May 28th, 2024, the secretariat of the National Contact Point(NCP) of Bulgaria took part in a joint conference of the anti-trafficking department of the Council of Europe and the Office of the Special Representative and Coordinator of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the Bulgarian National Commission on Combating Human Trafficking – “Strengthening the Role of the Private Sector in Combating Human Trafficking and Labor Exploitation in Supply Chains” held at Event Space 2020.

More than 50 government officials, business and civil society representatives gathered in Sofia to discuss joint efforts to tackle human trafficking for the purpose of labor exploitation. The event encouraged dialogue and increased action towards the implementation of ethical supply chains in Bulgaria.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The conference examined the critical role of the private sector in meeting these challenges and presented policy and legal developments in human rights due diligence. It also facilitated the exchange of best practices and lessons learned to identify and mitigate the risks of human trafficking and labor exploitation in supply chains.

The Secretariat of the National Contact Point – Bulgaria took part in the last panel of the conference, together with the participation of Darinka Georgieva, Executive Director of the Bulgarian Network of the UN Global Compact, Mr. Angel Bangachev, Director, Head of the “Legal and Business Solutions” Department in PwC Bulgaria and Mr. Malt Drewes, coordinator of the German Business and Human Rights Assistance Service, whose moderator was Mrs. Petya Nestorova.

The panel specifically touched on human rights due diligence in the private sector and the impact of the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD). NCP – Bulgaria presented the activity and structure of the contact point, together with the OECD Guidelines for Responsible Business Conduct of Multinational Companies and the OECD Guidelines for Due Diligence of Multinational Enterprises. During the discussion, the opportunities through which NCP could be useful to business were mainly touched upon. Joint efforts and the role of the private sector in combating human trafficking and labor exploitation were strongly emphasized at the conference.