The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region continues to host groups highly vulnerable to trafficking and exploitation. Migrant workers, particularly domestic workers, are known to be among those who are most at risk. While the region is confronted by many pressing challenges – the rise of Islamic extremism, sectarian conflict and unrelenting hardships – the massive numbers of displaced people and refugees on the move throughout MENA contribute to the extended profile of those vulnerable to trafficking and exploitation. All of these conditions together, coupled with already exceedingly precarious working conditions for millions of migrant workers described in this report, create the conditions that are described as the “perfect storm” for human trafficking. This combination of factors is precisely the reason why it is so necessary to address human trafficking and migrant protection now.

Building on the existing foundation of research, this chapter examines two distinctive case studies, the Nepal earthquake of 25 April 2015 and the mixed migration flows through the Western Balkans between spring 2015 and spring 2016. It assesses whether these extraordinary situations indeed led to an increase in trafficking and exploitation and determines the extent to which counter-trafficking efforts were incorporated into overarching response measures. In both cases, the chapter identifies promising practices and challenges in mainstreaming counter-trafficking measures. The biggest ongoing challenge for protection actors in Nepal is to provide vulnerable populations in the districts with critical protection-related information on human trafficking and exploitation. In some countries along the Western Balkan route, meeting the immediate needs of migrants transiting through their territory proved such a challenge during the peak of the movements that only a partial response to vulnerable groups could be ensured for a number of months.

While some of the forms of exploitation covered by this research are specific to countries directly involved in conflict child soldiering and organ trafficking to treat wounded fighters the remaining types of trafficking in human beings have many points in common in conflict and post conflict periods. Recruitment methods, psychological control techniques and the forms of exploitation do not depend on particular geographic zones.

The conflict and violence in Syria since 2011 have caused massive loss of life and human suffering, as well as a complex displacement crisis. Four of Syria’s neighbouring states are the most important hosting countries worldwide for refugees from the war-torn country. As of the end of September 2015, there are almost four million Syrian refugees in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq alone, whose registration is active with the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR). In addition, over six and a half million Syrians are internally displaced within their own country. Not all Syrians and stateless people who have fled abroad have registered with UNHCR or the national authorities (NRC, April 2015), and not all those internally displaced are recorded as such, therefore the figures are likely to be even higher in all cases. Apart from the violence itself, the conflict and attendant refugee crisis in neighbouring countries have led to increased impoverishment, informal “coping” economies and war profiteering, rendering people displaced by the crisis vulnerable to exploitation and different forms of trafficking in persons. Uncertainty prevails as to when the war in Syria will end and internally displaced people (IDPs) will be able to return to their homes, whether Syrian refugees abroad will be able to return to their country of origin, and for how long the hosting states will be able to meet the refugees’ needs in terms of providing access to basic services – accommodation, healthcare and education – and opportunities for income generation. As of mid-2014, the situation in Syria, as well as in parts of Iraq, has been further exacerbated by the seizure of large swathes of territory by Da’ish (ISIS/ISIL/IS), resulting in violence and further displacement of Syrian and Iraqi people, as well as of other people residing in those areas.

The estimates herein are the result of a collaborative effort between the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Walk Free Foundation, in partnership with the International Organization for Migration (IOM). They benefited from inputs provided by other UN agencies, in particular the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).In the context of this report, modern slavery covers a set of specific legal concepts including forced labour, debt bondage, forced marriage, other slavery and slavery like practices, and human trafficking. Although modern slavery is not defined in law, it is used as an umbrella term that focuses attention on commonalities across these legal concepts. Essentially, it refers to situations of exploitation that a person cannot refuse or leave because of threats, violence, coercion, deception, and/or abuse of power.

This snapshot explores the links between extortion, internal displacement and forced migration in the North of Central America (NCA) and the migration route in Mexico. Although the definition varies across different national legislations, we understand extortion as being the use of intimidation, violence or threats to force someone to do something or to obtain someone’s property.This type of aggression is one of the main drivers of displacement in the region, but it is also one of the main crimes that people are subjected to during displacement, as well as after deportation back to their countries of origin. As such, extortion transcends international borders as one of the main human rights violations committed against displaced people and migrants. In order to outline the issue of extortion and its relationship with internal displacement and forced migration in this region, this snapshot explores the phenomenon of extortion, its protagonists and consequences. The first section compiles an update on the recent data related to the ongoing protection crisis in the region. Secondly the snapshot provides analysis on the regional similarities and trends related to extortion, and then provides a more detailed examination of the situation in Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Mexico, through national chapters. Finally, a brief annex explores the protection risks related to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Trafficking in persons (TIP) is a crime and a grave violation of human rights defined in Article 3(a) of the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons. It takes place in every region of the world, in both ordinary times and in times of crisis. Its root causes can include poverty and economic inequality, homelessness, structural or interpersonal violence, gender inequalities, armed conflict and post-conflict factors. TIP manifests in multiple forms affecting women, girls, boys and men who are exploited for domestic servitude, sex, forced labor, and forced marriage, among others. A growing body of research has shown that humanitarian crises may exacerbate pre-existing trafficking trends and give rise to new ones. While some forms of trafficking are a direct result of crises, such as exploitative sexual services demanded by armed groups or the forced recruitment of child soldiers, others are less evident, with traffickers thriving on the widespread human, material, social and economic losses caused by crises. Moreover, conflict and displacement have a stronger impact on trafficking risks due to the general erosion of the rule of law and the breakdown of social safety nets or the lack of other protection systems. Despite the identification of a link between TIP and emergency contexts, trafficking prevention and response is frequently overlooked or not addressed in a comprehensive manner in humanitarian responses.

Migrant Smuggling Data and Research: A global review of the emerging evidence base presents a unique review of what is being collected and what can be done to further build the evidence base on migrant smuggling globally. The report is the result of a collaboration between the International Organization for Migration and researchers from a range of backgrounds and academic disciplines, and supported by the Government of Turkey. The report shows that important research has been undertaken on the transnational crime aspects of migrant smuggling, including on routes, smuggling organization (such as criminal networking and facilitation), smuggler profiles and fees/payment. Likewise, there is an emerging academic literature on migrant smuggling, particularly the economic and social processes involved in smuggling, which has largely been based on small-scale qualitative research, mostly undertaken by early career researchers. Contributions from private research companies, as well as investigative journalists, have provided useful insights in some regions, helping to shed light on smuggling practices.

Between 2014 and 2018, more than 70,000 unaccompanied and separated children (UASC) arrived in Italy by sea, 90 per cent of whom were between 15 and 17 years old. The significant presence of UASCs in the country, and the growing number of UASCs who have turned 18 (about 60,000 in the last five years), have highlighted the need to understand the factors that affect the transition to adult life of UASCs in Italy, facilitating or hindering it, both individually and structurally. The research – commissioned by UNICEF, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and International Organization for Migration – was carried out by ISMU Foundation in collaboration with Roma Tre University and University of Catania. The research has highlighted, first of all, the artificiality of a distinction between “children” and “adults” (UASCs who turned 18) that does not take due account of the transitional process of becoming adults, the sociocultural and gender differences that affect this process and the vulnerabilities to which this category of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers are exposed to. The analysis also shows a prevalent incidence of contextual, subjective and relational variables relating to the personal resources, agency and resilience of boys and girls, as well as the networks of formal and informal relations activated upon arrival.

This IOM and NEXUS Institute-authored report considers the methodological and ethical challenges of conducting research and collecting human trafficking data. The analysis contained in this study sheds light on the debate about the current quality and integrity of research and data collection in the trafficking field; and offers recommendations to improve future efforts to produce reliable data and derive an empirically-based understanding about the nature of human trafficking. The authors draw, in particular, upon lessons learned from the use of the IOM human trafficking database as the basis of many current reports about the nature of trafficking in countries around the world. In addition to highlighting some of the limitations of collecting data directly from assisted victims, the report calls for more accurate and in-depth research and data collection on a broader range of topics related to trafficking. It also underscores the importance of ensuring that the weaknesses, as well as the strengths, of particular research and data collection efforts are clearly stated so that policymakers and practitioners can make informed decisions about the manner in which research findings and data are employed in the design, implementation, and evaluation of anti-trafficking responses.