Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, August 30, 2019 – Top officials from the United States and Mongolia held a series of meetings this week to negotiate the terms of a Child Protection Compact (CPC) Partnership, a multi-year plan to address child sex trafficking and forced child labor in Mongolia. If developed jointly by the two governments over the next few months, this partnership may include up to $5 million in U.S. assistance. It would be the fifth CPC Partnership in the world.
Mongolian ministry executives who have responsibility for anti-trafficking efforts, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Justice and Home Affairs, Ministry of Labor and Social Protection, and other members of the National Sub-Council on Trafficking in Persons led the discussions for Mongolia. Representatives of the U.S. Department of State’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (TIP Office) led for the United States.
The potential partnership would build on current efforts of the Government of Mongolia and civil society to combat child trafficking. The TIP Office will look to the Government of Mongolia to contribute resources that ensure fulfillment of the partnership and sustain the improvements made after the partnership ends.
Discussions between the two governments included potential partnership objectives and implementation strategies that could improve the Mongolian government’s capacity to investigate and prosecute cases of human trafficking, identify and respond to forced child labor and child sex trafficking, provide comprehensive services to protect child trafficking victims, and prevent future trafficking crimes.
U.S. Ambassador to Mongolia Michael Klecheski stated, “2019 is the U.S.-Mongolia Year of Youth, and there is nothing more important than working together to combat child trafficking and keep young people safe.”
The U.S. Department of State’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (TIP Office) is responsible for leading the United States’ global engagement to combat human trafficking, including producing the annual Trafficking in Persons Report (TIP Report). The 2019 TIP Report noted that while the Government of Mongolia did not yet meet the minimum standards for addressing human trafficking, it is making significant efforts to do so. Mongolia received a Tier 2 ranking in 2019, an upgrade from Tier 2 Watch List in 2018.
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