Minneapolis — As part of its Responsible Business strategic initiatives, Radisson Hotel Group this week announced its partnership with ECPAT-USA, the leading policy organization seeking to end the commercial sexual exploitation of children through awareness, advocacy, policy, and legislation. Radisson Hotel Group will join ECPAT-USA’s Tourism Child-Protection Code of Conduct (The Code), a worldwide network of organizations working to end the sexual exploitation of children around the world.
“Our company has long supported efforts against human trafficking, especially programs to protect children against sexual exploitation,” said Inge Huijbrechts, global senior vice president of Responsible Business and Safety & Security, Radisson Hotel Group. “We are proud to join ECPAT’s Code and its global mission.”
According to the International Labor Organization, more than 40 million people are living in slavery worldwide and one in four victims of modern slavery are children.
The Code is the world’s first and only voluntary set of business principles travel and tour companies can implement to prevent sexual exploitation and trafficking of children. The Code is a joint venture between the tourism private sector and ECPAT that provides awareness, tools, and support to the travel and hospitality industry.
“Only by working in partnership with travel industry leaders can we reduce the channels in which traffickers operate,” said Michelle Guelbart, director of Private Sector Engagement at ECPAT-USA. “We believe this partnership with Radisson Hotel Group will help expand our efforts given the company’s global reach and longstanding commitment to ending child trafficking and exploitation.”
This initiative comes in conjunction with the roll-out of Radisson Hotel Group’s fully remastered Responsible Business training program. The training program equips the group’s 1,100-plus hotels in operation with expertise and skills on an array of topics with a special emphasis on the roles hotels play in tackling modern-day exploitation.
