9 March, 2023
Despite laws, national strategies, and lots of efforts to stop human trafficking, we’re still not getting the job done! Estimates from ILO and IOM indicate that forced labour and trafficking is a growing industry, exploiting 27.6 million children, women and men. In 2014, ILO estimated it to be an annual $150 billion illicit industry and indications are that this figure has probably grown too. The main strategy has been the 3 Ps—prosecution, protection and prevention of victimization. It’s by recognizing that the programs must include the root cause from the perpetrators’ perspective—ie., money, that we believe will be productive in reducing the illicit profiteering and prevalence of victims. And yet, none of the programs throughout the world measure results by considering if both illicit profiteering and prevalence of victims are diminished as a result. The High Level Side Event covered how efforts are expanding to consider programs that bankrupt the business of human trafficking and expand the strategy by the 3 Ds—detection, demand and display. Read the summary below.