Human trafficking, also known as modern-day slavery, occurs when people illegally trade human beings through recruitment or abduction. It’s the practice of exploiting adults and children for use as objects in conditions of sexual and labor servitude.
It’s a horrible criminal enterprise where people profit off of the free will of others. Traffickers impose misery and forced servitude on their victims.
To make matters worse, human trafficking is extremely profitable. Traffickers will target anyone and use them in any manner necessary to make a buck. Men, women, and children of any race, any age, and in any condition can become victims.
The question now becomes, where does human trafficking occur the most?
If you clicked on this blog post, then you likely want to know the answer to this question. Human trafficking occurs everywhere. No continent, country, or state is an exception.
The problem is that there are many ways to answer the question of where human trafficking happens.
“Where” could refer to the different countries around the world. We could answer the question by talking about different regions or continents. But it could also refer to where inside the United States, like which states and cities, have high human trafficking rates. Not to mention, some industries are prone to human trafficking.
To best answer the question of where human trafficking happens, it is best to answer all of these sub-categories.
Table of Contents
Human Trafficking in Regions Around the World
Where does human trafficking occur the most? The easy answer is that it happens everywhere.
That said, human trafficking is more common in some areas than others.
According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), Asia and the Pacific region has the highest number of forced labor and marriage. These regions account for more than half the global total: 29.6 million.
In fact, when looking at the regions of the world, this is how they compare…
29.3 million in Asia and the Pacific
7 million in Africa
6.4 million in Europe and Central Asia
5.1 million in the Americas
1.7 million in the Arab States
All that said, we also need to take into account the prevalence of human traffickers per thousand people. If we look at human trafficking per capita, the Arab States have the highest rate of exploitation. There are roughly 102 victims per 1000 people within that area.
When looking at human trafficking per capita internationally, these are how the same regions rank:
10.1% in the Arab States
6.9% in Europe and Central Asia
6.8% in Asia and the Pacific
5.2% in Africa
5% in the Americas
Human Trafficking by Continent
First, let's talk about Africa and the Middle East. In recent years, trafficking has been prevalent in countries like Equatorial Guinea, Mauritania, Eritrea, and the Central African Republics.
Speaking of the Central African Republic, young women find themselves coerced into marriages that force them into domestic servitude and sexual slavery.
In countries like Eritrea, citizens are familiar with violence and upheaval. International trafficking groups in countries with political unrest kidnap vulnerable refugee populations and often detain them for ransom. Many African countries have a history of exploiting children for use as soldiers.
Within the confines of the Asian continent, China experiences a great deal of labor trafficking. Specifically, China harbors lots of sweatshops that force victims to provide labor.
The one-child policy in China created a struggle for Chinese men who want to get married. They find a shortage of women in their own country, which creates a market for trafficking. Traffickers trick women from neighboring countries with the promise of good jobs only to force the women into a slavery situation. These women are often forced to bear children.
Elsewhere in Asia, millions of people are in labor trafficking situations within various industries. Slavery conditions exist in garment factories, public transportation, construction, and agriculture.
In South America, sex trafficking is the most common form of human trafficking. There is a significant presence of traffickers that prey on young women in brothels, bars, and cantinas. Traffickers target women with a history of physical or sexual abuse. They also target potential victims who don't have work opportunities by falsely offering these women work or support.
Let’s not forget about Australia! According to the Australian government, a significant portion of traffickers are women who used to be trafficking victims themselves. Traffickers target women in Australia to exploit them in Asian countries such as Thailand, Korea, the Philippines, and Malaysia.
Trafficking happens in North America despite countries passing significant legislation and encouraging action against trafficking.
In the United States, human trafficking happens all over. However, it seems concentrated around international travel hubs. It affects both immigrant populations as well as native-born citizens.
What Countries Rank The Worst for Human Trafficking?
The Global Organized Crime Index assesses the criminality level of 193 countries around the world. It also looks at the resilience of these countries to organized crime.
According to their 2021 report, human trafficking is the most pervasive criminal activity in the world.
The five worst countries for human trafficking are…
Libya
Eritrea
Yemen
United Arab Emirates
Turkmenistan
Experts believe Libya ranks as the worst country in the world for human trafficking because of its 2014 civil war. According to the U.S. State Department’s 2022 Trafficking in Persons Report on Libya, large areas of the country are outside government control. The Libyan judicial system is not fully functioning. Reportedly, extra-legal and criminal groups have involvement in sex and labor trafficking. These groups exploit migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers.
Eritrea and Yemen are also marked by civil conflict, a lack of a rule of law, or political instability.
Eritrea supposedly has government-compelled forced labor in military service. Turkmenistan has government-compelled forced labor in the agriculture industry.
The outlier among these five countries is the United Arab Emirates. 90% of their workforce is allegedly recruited globally. Many of these migrant workers are in conditions of forced labor. Examples include passport retention, failure to pay wages, and restriction of movement.
Human Trafficking in The United States
As I mentioned before, it’s a common widespread misconception that human trafficking does not happen in the United States. Human trafficking is not just a problem outside the US. It also happens here, in every state within the United States.
In fact, the United States is one of the worst countries in the world for human trafficking. It had an estimated 199,000 incidents occurring annually. In 2019, there were 11,500 reported cases of human trafficking.
Of these reported cases, sex trafficking was the most common type of human trafficking. In 2019, there were 8,248 reports made.
Top States for Human Trafficking in The US
The top 5 states for human trafficking in the United States according to 2019 data are…
California: 1,507 cases
Texas: 1,080 cases
Florida: 806 cases
New York: 454 cases
Ohio: 450 cases
It's important to note that four of these five states (Florida, California, Texas, and New York) have the highest populations in the country. Ohio makes the list because of the number of highways and interstate routes that allow traffickers to travel through the country.
Common Trafficking Industries in The United States
Sex trafficking is the most common form of human trafficking. In 2021, sex trafficking cases accounted for 92% of new federal human trafficking prosecutions.
These are the 5 most common venues for sex trafficking…
Pornography: 616 cases between 2007-2016
Residence-based commercial sex: 525 cases between 2007-2016
Remote interactive sexual acts: 78 cases between 2007-2016
Street-bases sex trafficking: 178 cases in 2021 alone
Escort/Delivery Service: 4,651 cases between 2007-2016
This venue had 134 cases in 2021 alone
Labor trafficking is also rife in the United States. The Polaris Project identified 10,085 cases of labor trafficking from 2007 to 2016. In 2021 alone, the National Human Trafficking Hotline identified 1,066 cases. This accounts for 10% of all cases that year.
These are the five most common venues for labor trafficking…
Begging rings, peddling rings, and traveling sales crews: 1069 cases between 2007-2016
Agriculture, farming, and animal husbandry: 424 cases between 2007-2016
There were 117 cases in 2021 alone
Retail: 61 cases between 2007-2016
Housekeeping, cleaning, and janitorial services: 344 cases between 2007-2016
There were 16 identified cases in 2021
Healthcare: 46 cases between 2007-2016
Conclusion
Where does human trafficking occur the most? Well, that depends on the scope of the question.
Human trafficking occurs everywhere. It happens on every continent and in every country. It could very well happen in your hometown, potentially in your neighborhood.
The human trafficking situation is grim, to say the least. Millions of people around the world experience all kinds of abuse and horrors.
No matter where you live in the world, you need to keep yourself safe and vigilant.
The best way to protect yourself and your community is through education. With knowledge on your side, you can identify suspicious situations and prevent yourself from falling into a trafficking trap.
On the bright side, the future looks promising. Many countries are passing legislation to help identify, detain, and convict traffickers. There are also laws to help protect and rehabilitate victims of trafficking.
The world as a whole is slowly trying to free victims and prosecute traffickers.
