Human trafficking occurs in almost every country in the world, but it takes on particularly abhorrent dimensions during and after conflict. It is defined as the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, or receipt of people through the threat or use of abduction, abuse of power or vulnerability, deception, coercion, fraud, force, or giving payments or benefits to a person in control of the victim for the purpose of exploitation. While many trafficking victims are exploited within their countries of residence, other victims are trafficked across regions More than 72 percent of detected victims are women and girls; Western and Central Europe and North America, Central America, and the Caribbean have particularly high rates of detected women and girls. Some forms of trafficking are particularly prevalent in the context of armed conflict, such as sexual exploitation, enslavement, and forced marriage; forced labor to support military operations; recruitment and exploitation of child soldiers; and removal of organs to treat injured fighters or finance operations.Traffickers also target forcibly displaced populations. On migration routes, human traffickers deceive people into fraudulent travel arrangements and job opportunities. Migrants face unique danger as they go through holding points and informal settlements or accept unsafe employment opportunities. Refugee women and girls are at particular risk of sex trafficking and forced marriage.

Trafficking in Persons (TiP) is a core protection issue violating the dignity and integrity of the person, endangering their life and physical security. It is a serious crime and a grave violation of human rights. In normal times, TiP is widespread, and in emergencies the risk and prevalence is known to rise. This document explains why there is an elevated risk of TiP during the Covid-19 pandemic, who is likely to be most affected, and what operational approaches can be adopted to prevent, mitigate or respond to TiP by Movement actors. It also includes advocacy messages for consideration in engagement with government, donors and the wider humanitarian sector. Underpinned by our Fundamental Principles, these messages call for a more comprehensive and coordinated prevention and response to TiP. This guidance complements the Covid-19 Impact on Trafficking in Persons Factsheet, developed for a general Red Cross Red Crescent audience, by providing more technical and detailed advice. It should be read in conjunction with the Global Protection Cluster Anti-Trafficking Task Team ‘COVID-19 Pandemic: Trafficking in Persons (TIP) considerations in internal displacement contexts’. Existing Movement guidance on responding to the needs of trafficked people and migrant workers are referenced at the end of this document.

Efforts to counter the COVID-19 pandemic have seen unprecedented restrictions on movement being imposed in many countries, both at borders and within countries. Some communities and policymakers have adopted increasingly hostile attitudes towards migrants, whom they perceive as contagion risks. Barriers to movement are therefore not only state-imposed but can also be community led. While these measures are reducing migration and the smuggling business in many regions in the short term, they are also heightening migrant-protection risks. Such measures are also likely to swell the profits of the smuggling industry in the medium term. COVID-19, and the measures introduced to control it are likely to increase the drivers for movement; the vulnerability of migrants at any point in their journey; the militarization of borders; and the further reduction of safe and legal routes. As the policy environment becomes more hostile to migration, the operating risks and prices of smuggling look set to rise. This may drive out operators with a lower risk appetite and attract organized-crime groups, who are more likely to exploit migrants for ever greater profit. To avoid emerging into a post-pandemic landscape characterized by a dramatically more severe migrant crisis and a more lucrative and professionalized smuggling market controlled by organized crime, it is key to monitor and mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on migrants and refugees throughout the pandemic.

Trafficking in persons constitutes a grave crime against the individual. The absence of comprehensive data presents a major issue, including in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries. Many cases go unreported as victims are too afraid to testify, cannot escape exploitation, are expelled once identified or do not seek official protection. Trafficking in persons from refugee camps and shelters after disasters is also of concern. Trafficking does not only occur across international boundaries, but also internally.This background note presents an overview of concepts and trends on trafficking in persons in ACP countries. Innovative initiatives taken by ACP countries are highlighted as they provide example of best practices that may be of interest for various stakeholders.

In a medical context, first aid is the kind of emergency care given to an injured or ill person before treatment by specifically trained medical personnel becomes available. People providing first aid take first steps to identify problems and to stabilize and prepare patients for further treatment by experts.Law enforcement first responders fighting human trafficking carry out similar functions. They take first steps: • To identify human trafficking • To stabilize and control the human trafficking situation • To prepare victims and pass information on to investigators Those providing medical first aid need to know how to instantly and temporarily treat injuries and illnesses. Similarly, law enforcement officers providing first aid need to know how to instantly and temporarily deal with crimes and incidents.The kind of emergency treatment that law enforcement officers provide in cases of human trafficking is similar to that provided in other criminal cases, but there are some important aspects specific to human trafficking that officers need to know about. This kit provides the necessary information to allow officers to take the vital first steps to protect the victims and catch the criminals involved.

This report is one of several studies conducted by UNODC on organized crime threats around the world. These studies describe what is known about the mechanics of contraband trafficking – the what, who, how, and how much of illicit flows – and discuss their potential impact on governance and development. Their primary role is diagnostic, but they also explore the implications of these findings for policy.These studies are based on a number of data sources. UNODC maintains global databases on crime and drug issues, based mainly on the official statistics provided by Member States. This allows cross-national comparison and trend analysis. For example, UNODC has extensive time series data on drug production, seizures, and consumption, and by analyzing these data, a comprehensive picture can be drawn. This information is supplemented with data from other international organizations and Member States, as well as open source material. For the present study, analysts in the field were able to interview public officials on a range of topics, and much of the qualitative insight in this report comes from these interviews. The present study addresses Central America and the Caribbean, as the region is defined by the United Nations.

In 2016, the Office of the OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings (OSR/CTHB) launched the project “Combating Human Trafficking along Migration Routes”. The project sought to develop a training exercise that would improve the investigation and prosecution of cases and enhance the identification and protection of victims, particularly those along migration routes. The result was a groundbreaking training programme with three distinctive features: The exercises use live actors to create simulations of real cases that are explored over the course of a week by first-line practitioners. The training format is built around a multidisciplinary approach that brings together practitioners from a variety of fields—including prosecutors, law enforcement, social services, NGOs, and financial investigators—to train in close collaboration. The exercises include trainees from multiple countries, incorporating cultural differences and cross-border challenges into the storylines. These features put a strong emphasis on the human interaction that is so fundamental to this field of work; it is this human interaction that helps develop strong professional networks among the participants—across disciplines and borders

While no government has a fully comprehensive response to modern slavery, all countries in the Europe and Central Asia region have either mantained or improved their response since the publication of the 2016 Global Slavery Index. Most notably, the Netherlands has retained its position as having the world's strongest response to modern slavery, taking the most steps of any nation to address the problem and, for the second consecutive time, being the only country anywhere to receive an "A" rating. The Netherlands national response is strong across indicators of victim support, criminal justice responses, and addressing risk, including society safety nets and protection for migrants, a feature missing in many countries of destination. Netherlands was closely followed by the United Kingdom, Belgium, Sweden, Croatia, Spain, Norway, and Portugal, all of which took significant action against modern slavery in the previous two years.

At the UN level, progress towards the SDGs is measured by a global indicator framework and Voluntary National Reviews, where governments report on their own activities against these indicators. This approach is hampered, however, by the lack of indicators on all forms of moden slavery under SDG 8.7, as well as the voluntary nature of this reporting. Without clear indicators to measure progress toward the 2030 goal, governments are not able to report systematically and consistently, nor can they be held to account. In the absence of official indicators, this report, Measurement, Action, Freedom, provides an independent assessment of 183 governments and their responses to the challenge of modern slavery. In it, governments are assessed against their ability to identify and support survivors, to establish effective criminal justice systems, to strengthen coordination mechanisms and be held to account, to address underlying risk factors, and to clean up government and business supply chains, all in order to eradicate modern slavery. The findings shine a light on those taking strong action, identify those that are lagging, and highlight the activities that should be prioritised.

Although it is increasingly recognized that gender-based violence (GBV) is a major feature of many conflicts, its occurrence during disasters is not as well understood. This study, commissioned by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), is designed to foster that discussion within both the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement and the larger humanitarian community. The research addresses three questions: 1. What characterizes GBV in disasters? 2. In what ways should legal and policy frameworks, including disaster risk management, be adapted to address GBV in disasters? 3. How should National Societies and other local actors address GBV in disasters, and what support do they need to fulfil their roles?