This booklet was prepared with a mission to inform the public at large about human trafficking consisting in the exploitation of persons and prevent the rates and consequences of this crime which is today at the center of growing public attention worldwide.This booklet was published in the framework of the “School education on trafficking issues in Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan” regional project implemented by International Organization for Migration (IOM). The booklet is written in the form of questions and answers and focuses on theoretical framework of main trafficking issues.

This brochure presents an overview and introduction to human trafficking and the role that business can play in addressing it. It explains in practical terms what human trafficking is, why it is an issue for business and what companies large and small can do to take action against it. Divided into two parts, this brochure presents a section that gives an overview of the key issues linking human trafficking and business; and a series of case studies that highlight the practical actions companies are taking to fight this abuse.

Almost half of the total number of migrant workers in the world today are women. It is important to acknowledge that labour migration may benefit them through economic and socio-cultural empowerment, however, due to their dual vulnerability as migrants and women, they are still disproportionately exposed to a variety of risks arising from their mobility. At every stage of their migratory experience, women migrant workers may be more exposed to human rights violations such as discrimination, exploitation and abuse compared to their male counterparts. This publication presents the approach IOM takes toward the protection and empowerment of women migrant workers. By displaying key IOM activities in that area, the report seeks to better inform policy makers, practitioners and the public of the vulnerability of these women and of good practices for the protection of their human rights throughout the labour migration cycle.

In September 2018, the Department of Operations and Emergencies (DOE) of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) launched its first Institutional Framework for Addressing GBV in Crises (GBViC Framework). The GBViC Framework builds on lessons learned and emerging good practices in addressing gender-based violence (GBV) in IOM’s crisis operations worldwide documented over the past four years.The key objective of the GBViC Framework is to ensure that the safety, dignity, well-being and equitable access to services for all crisis-affected persons, especially women and girls, is prioritized, integrated and coordinated across all IOM crisis operations. It articulates why and how IOM tackles GBV in crises and defines IOM’s vision and scope through three institutional approaches: 1. Mitigating risks: by mitigating the risk of GBV in all crisis operations and doing no harm; 2. Supporting survivors: by facilitating access to survivor-centred, multisectoral services; and 3. Addressing the root causes: by contributing towards progressively transforming the conditions that perpetuate GBV.

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.

Young migrants and refugees set out to escape harm or secure better futures – and face staggering risks in the process. For children and youth on the move via the Mediterranean Sea routes to Europe, the journey is marked by high levels of abuse, trafficking and exploitation. Some are more vulnerable than others: those travelling alone, those with low levels of education and those undertaking longer journeys. Most vulnerable of all are those who come from sub-Saharan Africa. These findings come from a new UNICEF and International Organization for Migration (IOM) analysis of the journeys of some 22,000 migrants and refugees, including some 11,000 children and youth, interviewed by IOM. The report calls on all concerned parties − countries of origin, transit and destination, the African Union, the European Union, international and national organizations with support from the donor community – to prioritize a series of actions. These include establishing safe and regular pathways for children on the move; strengthening services to protect migrant and refugee children whether in countries of origin, transit or destination; finding alternatives to the detention of children on the move; working across borders to combat trafficking and exploitation; and combatting xenophobia, racism and discrimination against all migrants and refugees.

Trafficking in human beings (THB) and smuggling of migrants (SoM), two distinct but often interrelated phenomena, occur on a global scale. Searching for a way out of economic inequalities, environmental crises, armed conflict, political instability and persecution, and in view of tightening border controls and restricted options for legal migration, migrants are driven to seek the services of smugglers. At the same time, a globalized economy fosters demand for diverse types of exploitation, which also makes migrants vulnerable to traffickers. Both THB and SoM are billion-dollar businesses that exact high human costs. This is illustrated by the many migrants dying while being smuggled along increasingly dangerous migration routes, and by the millions of trafficking victims trapped in exploitative situations worldwide. The African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States are increasingly stepping up to address THB and SoM. However, they face challenges in developing the necessary holistic, long-term interventions that combine law enforcement with a rights-based, victim-centred approach and with prevention efforts that are linked to development and offer realistic, practical alternatives to irregular migration. This ACP-EU Migration Action publication analyses these challenges and provides recommendations to tackle the difficulties that ACP countries face in relation to THB and SoM

International migration is at the core of the international debate. However, while a major part of the discussions focus on migration policies in receiving countries, it is important to recall that most people are not willing to migrate permanently to another country. It is thus crucial that policymakers also support those who prefer to remain in their communities of origin to resist the migration pressure they may be facing. Consequently, this analysis aims first to identify what drives this migration pressure, and second to formulate a set of recommendations to support those communities. With regard to the drivers, evidence suggests that, contrary to a common belief, poverty reduction will not necessarily alleviate migration pressure. Reducing poverty is an aim, per se, no matter its effect on migration. However, it is not a panacea, and other factors explaining the migration pressure should be considered. The urge to move can be due to the fact that potential migrants, in particular those willing to migrate illegally, tend to formulate biased expectations about their earnings and living conditions abroad. For people who have not moved yet, expectations from the migration experience are often based upon perceptions of the living conditions of their families and relatives who migrated. Those relatives – through their remittances and the status their families that are left behind acquire within the communities – can lead some to think that success is guaranteed with migration. This in turn can spark the desire to move at any cost, raising the issue of relative concerns about what matters in the decision to leave. Another possible driver of migration pressure is negative shocks, such as adverse climatic conditions. Climatic factors and natural disasters can lead to more migration if other survival strategies have failed, when the severity of the shocks does not leave any other option than moving, and when people can afford migration costs.

The manual was prepared with the aim to inform the secondary school teachers and students about human trafficking and exploitation. This third edition was updated by IOM taking into account the changes in the legal and institutional frameworks to combat human trafficking in the Republic of Armenia. The manual incorporates three parts: theory studies that will enable an effective use of teaching materials on trafficking; eight lessons of the basic course on human trafficking and exploitation; modern strategies and techniques used in education to initiate a constructive and interactive teaching, discussion and assessment of human trafficking issues.

Over the past years, public attention has gradually turned to the experiences of migrants along the precarious Mediterranean routes to Europe. A large number of migrants continue to risk their lives crossing the Mediterranean Sea on the way to Europe, often enduring long and perilous journeys. A growing body of evidence is beginning to highlight the scale and scope of exploitation experienced by migrants along these routes, including human trafficking. This report examines migrants’ vulnerability to human trafficking and exploitation by exploring risk and protective factors associated with unsafe migration, through the systematic evidence collected by IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) operations in 2016. It presents the results from the largest existing set of survey data on the vulnerability of migrants to abuse, exploitation and human trafficking on the Mediterranean routes to Europe.