A/HRC/36/63 the conflict-affected areas, including the Jebel Marra area in Darfur, where they had not been given access in the previous five years. H. Situation of South Sudanese refugees in the Sudan 53. According to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), more than 417,000 South Sudanese refugees had arrived in the Sudan since the conflict broke out in December 2013. Of those, more than 28,000 had arrived in the first two weeks of May 2017. In 2017, almost 137,000 refugees had arrived from South Sudan, which was more that the total number of arrivals during 2016, according to UNHCR. 54. During the first half of May 2017, almost 20,000 South Sudanese refugees had sought shelter and assistance in the Sudan as a result of the hostilities in Kodok in the Upper Nile State of South Sudan, according to United Nations humanitarian agencies, including the United Nations Development Programme, the United Nations Population Fund, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, UNHCR, the Word Health Organization, the World Food Programme and the United Nations Children’s Fund. In September 2016, the Government of the Sudan recognized South Sudanese as refugees following the signing of a memorandum of understanding with UNHCR. The Independent Expert is of the view that this was a step forward that will provide opportunities to enhance solutions for refugees and provide much-needed support to refugee-hosting communities. 55. However, the Independent Expert is concerned about the absence of adequate assistance and the continuing influx, which may cause the South Sudanese refugees to decide to seek refuge in other countries with a view to improving their situation or may put them at risk of being targeted by traffickers. The Independent Expert calls on the Government of the Sudan and the humanitarian community to increase their assistance to the South Sudanese refugees in the Sudan. I. Illegal migration and human trafficking 56. The Independent Expert held meetings with the International Organization for Migration and the Government of the Sudan in relation to migration and human trafficking in the country. Information gathered showed that the Sudan was a country of origin, transit and destination for irregular migrants owing to its geographical location in Africa. In addition, it was a hub for the north-eastern route for nearly all Eritreans, Ethiopians and Somali migrants who intended to cross to Europe. Those migrants were often subjected to severe exploitation and abuses. Refugees, asylum seekers and other migrants residing or transiting through the Sudan included Chadians, Ugandans and Nigerians. 57. The Government informed the Independent Expert that migrants, unaccompanied minors, refugees and asylum seekers, primarily from Eastern and Western Africa, were highly vulnerable to trafficking and forced labour. In addition, human trafficking and smuggling had a regional dimension reaching far beyond the Sudan, which served as transit point in the eastern Africa migratory route into Northern Africa and towards Europe. 58. The Government adopted an Anti-trafficking Act in 2014 with a view to addressing that phenomenon. Nonetheless, the Independent Expert notes that gaps remain in the government policy to combat illegal migration. For instance, the Anti-trafficking Act criminalized the seduction, transportation, kidnapping, reception, holding or grooming of people with the intention of exploiting them or using them in illegal acts. However, it failed to define what constitutes exploitation, which in international law includes forced labour and forced prostitutions of others. In addition, the government anti-trafficking unit lacked resources and its investigative capacity remained insufficient. 59. The Independent Expert calls on the international community to provide the Government with the technical cooperation necessary with a view to enhancing its antitrafficking services and recommends a regional approach in order to address the phenomenon. 10