The United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) has urged the Mozambican Parliament to prioritise legislation against human trafficking.

Unicef representative in Mozambique Leila Pakkala, said on Wednesday trafficking in the country had reached alarming proportions, and there were no laws in place to prosecute anybody caught in the act. However, proposals for a child protection law and a law against human trafficking were before parliament.

"Unicef urges parliament to prioritise the debating of these laws on their agenda," she said.

The call comes as Mozambican authorities visit South Africa to probe trafficking of three girls to that country under the guise of study opportunities.

Two of the girls have been rescued, while a third is still not accounted for, but the alleged trafficker is in police custody.

"This episode [rescue of the girls] calls for our urgent attention to the problem of child trafficking and abuse.

"We call for urgent adoption of the legal instruments that will reinforce the protection of children against abuse and sexual exploitation," she said.

Pakkala said Unicef and other international organisations were funding government and civil society's establishment of advocacy programmes on the problem.

"The approval of the law that will protect children and criminalise human trafficking will create an environment where children and victims of trafficking are protected...," said Pakkala.

Victims usually find themselves involved in prostitution or in cheap labour as domestics and previous reports have shown that South Africa is a trafficking destination.