Oct. 11 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump will speak Thursday afternoon about his administration's efforts to curb human trafficking at the annual meeting of his Interagency Task Force.
Trump will speak at the White House beginning at 2 p.m. EDT.
The task force is comprised of 15 agencies of the federal government responsible for coordinating U.S. efforts in the fight.
Human trafficking exploits millions worldwide via unpaid labor or sex abuse and demeaning the human value of their lives, the White House and International Labor Organization say.
There could be as many as 25 million forced into labor, according to the ILO -- and children are especially vulnerable, accounting for 25 percent of all victims.
In the United States, 518 people have been identified as victims of human trafficking over the last year resulting in 578 convictions.
"My administration will focus on ending the absolutely horrific practice of human trafficking," Trump said. "I am prepared to bring the full force and weight of our government, whatever we can do, in order to solve this horrific problem."
