Negative economic shocks are associated with more human trafficking cases

Economic shocks and human trafficking risks - evidence from IOM’s victims of human trafficking database.

Negative economic shocks correlate with a rise in detected human trafficking cases from and within countries of origin, according to a new study by the World Bank and IOM. Negative economic shocks are defined as a large drop in a country's productivity as measured by the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and a significant decline in the prices of export commodities.

The report focuses on risk factors that are expected to increase the vulnerability to human trafficking from and within origin countries such as economic shocks, measured by large, discrete changes to export commodity prices and to GDP. It also explores the role that institutions play through enforcing the rule of law, providing access to justice, and implementing anti-trafficking policies, as protective factors that could weaken the link between economic shocks and an increase in human trafficking. The analysis verifies that economic shocks are significant risk factors that increase vulnerability to human trafficking. In origin countries, economic vulnerabilities, especially those caused by global commodity price shocks, are strongly positively correlated with observed cases of trafficking. For instance, the economic shock produced by a typical decrease in export commodity prices is associated with an increase in the number of detected victims of trafficking of around 12 percent. The analysis suggests that good governance institutions and particularly a commitment to the rule of law and access to justice as well as stricter anti-trafficking policies and social assistance can have a limiting effect on the number of observed cases of trafficking following economic shocks.

The study also showed that good governance institutions, stricter anti-trafficking policies and social assistance to victims of human trafficking are factors that can slow the rise in the number of detected human trafficking cases following economic shocks.

SOURCE: Migration Data Portal

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