Root causes of Human Trafficking

Trafficking is a many sided problem. Here is a round up of the causes


Countries or regions of origin:

* Abject poverty, especially among women
* A lack of political, social and economical stability
* A lack of reasonable and realistic prospects
* Situations of armed conflict and oppression
* Domestic violence and disintegration of the family structure
* Gender discrimination
* Lack of access to education and information
* The HIV-AIDS reality



Countries or regions of destination:

* The expense of social charges that employers need to pay for the social protection of regularly employed workers
* Increasing demand for cheap and exploitable labourers in the construction, agricultural and industrial sectors
* Increasing demand for cheap and exploitable domestic labourers
* A rise in the demand for sex workers in a highly lucrative and globalising sex industry

Universal factors:

* Ever more limits and obstacles to legal migration channels to countries with stronger economies and/or regions with better prospects
* A lack of public awareness of the dangers of trafficking
* The high profit potential for those engaged in the criminal activity
* The sophisticated organisation, resources and networking capacity of criminal networks
* A lack of effective anti-trafficking legislation, and if such legislation exists, a lack of effective enforcement
* Global economic policies that foster exclusion of marginalised people
* Disintegration of social protection networks
* Widespread corruption in countries of origin, of transit and of destination among the persons capable or responsible to combat trafficking