WHERE DOES HUMAN TRAFFICKING OCCUR?

Where does human trafficking occur? The short answer is that it happens everywhere. But it’s more common in some places than others. Learn the regions where human trafficking is the most prevalent.

BY SARA MCGEOUGH WITH AMBER VAN SCHOONEVELD

HUMAN TRAFFICKING OCCURS EVERYWHERE.

No continent, no country, no state is an exception. Human trafficking, or modern-day slavery, happens on both a domestic and global front. While the immediate impact is local, the long-term consequences are widespread and far-reaching.

Human trafficking victims are bought, sold, and abused within their own countries and across borders. According to the International Labour Organization’s Global Estimates of Modern Slavery released in September 2022, an estimated 49.6 million people were the victims of forced labor and forced marriage at any given time in 2021. 6.3 million of these were victims of forced commercial sexual exploitation.