President Jacob Zuma of South Africa has signed into law the Bill of Prevention and Combating of Human Trafficking, giving South Africa a single statute that tackles human trafficking holistically and comprehensively.

The spokesperson to the President, Mac Maharaj on Monday said the legislative frame work dealing with this issue had been fragmented until now, adding that the new law provides for a maximum penalty in the case of conviction.

Maharaj explain that the legislation dealing with sexual offences addresses the trafficking of persons for purposes of sexual exploitation only, while the Children’s Act addresses the trafficking of children specifically.

He stressed that the legislation also focused on the plight of the victims providing them with protection and assistance to overcome their traumatic experiences.

Maharaj however noted that the operation mode of the new legislation signed into law is dependent on regulations that are required to be made by a number of role-playing departments such as Home Affairs, adding that plans are already on to put the Act into operation as soon as possible.