How is ICMPD supporting Cabo Verde’s efforts to curb human trafficking?

As part of a migratory route, criminal syndicates have used migration into, through, and from the region to exploit people. Citizens of Cabo Verde, as well as migrants from West African countries and recently from Asia and Latin-America, can be exploited.

According to the Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report of the US Department of State in 2023, like in many countries, human trafficking into and from Cabo Verde takes (into) different forms of exploitation. Women from neighbouring Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Mali, Guinea-Bissau are trafficked into Cabo Verde and sexually exploited. Men from Guinea-Bissau, China, Cuba are also exploited, mainly in the construction industry, tourism, and commerce. The report also says Cuban overseas workers, including medical professionals working in Cabo Verde, may have been forced to work by the Cuban government.

The same report mentions that children are exploited for labour in various sectors like agricultural work and fishing, incl. highly hazardous environments, such as construction sites and picking garbage, street begging, domestic work, sexual exploitation and other illicit activities. 

Contextual factors such as poverty in communities, single-parent households, prevalence of child sexual abuse, and the culture of silence are among key drivers that can render people vulnerable to trafficking and exploitation. The country’s remote and archipelagic geography can also pose hindrance for the authorities to effectively coordinate actions and counteract criminal networks. Likewise, the extent and geographic distribution of islands, and their unique local contexts, compound the data scarcity and fragmentation of populations. These would thus require deeper analysis of each island’s circumstances and people’s challenges that potentially render them vulnerable to trafficking.

Multi-faceted support in addressing the complexities

Based on data from the ECOWAS Annual Synthesis Report 2023, between 2022 and 2023, Cabo Verde reported 10 investigations relating to human trafficking – seven are ongoing and three were completed. Some of the challenges in these investigations included official identification and reporting of potential victims¹. Insufficient awareness of the public about human trafficking and the existing challenges to prosecute perpetrators for child trafficking, exploitation and abuse, additionally fuel this crime. On the other hand, the resolved cases show Cabo Verde’s success and enduring commitment to prosecute the perpetrators².

With the increased need to coordinate the anti-trafficking response at a national level, and as part of the 2018-2021 National Action Plan against TIP, Cabo Verde launched in 2018 the Observatory for Monitoring and Rapid Identification of Trafficking in Persons; which was renamed in 2024 as the National Observatory on Trafficking in Persons. In 2024, Cabo Verde adopted its National Strategy Against Trafficking in Persons, and its Second National Action Plan [against human trafficking]. 

In support of the Cabo Verde’s relentless efforts to combat trafficking, ICMPD has worked with national authorities to define the roles and functions of the Observatory; facilitated meetings of its members and built their capacity to better understand human trafficking; and to implement their coordination role in leading the country’s response to trafficking. Furthermore, ICMPD supports the capacity of their law enforcement agencies and key stakeholders on identification, referral, protection, investigation, and information sharing on TIP cases. These were done through developing advanced teaching methodologies and curriculum to train trainers (ToT) in 2024.

Recognising Cabo Verde’s strategic position as a route into Europe, ICMPD has also facilitated bilateral anti-trafficking cooperations of the country with Portugal, which has been a traditional destination country for migrants from the region. Already, the country has well-established domestic anti-trafficking legislations, with specific additional statutes, capturing all of its dimensions; including specific articles on consent in relation to cases of children.

Cabo Verde has also introduced a number of provisions to safeguard the rights of the victims, including the non-punishment principle³ , and temporary residence permits for foreign victims. Such legal texts ensure the progressive character of the Cabo Verdean anti-trafficking normative framework. Another milestone was the first research on the existing vulnerabilities to human trafficking, also conducted in 2022-2023. With ICMPD’s support, this is instrumental for the government in understanding the scope and size of trafficking, and in crafting relevant anti-trafficking policies as well as community outreach activities.

Cabo Verde also developed and adopted the Flowchart on Operational Procedures for Responding to Trafficking in Persons, which lays the foundation of referring cases of trafficking by putting the rights and needs of victims at the centre of the process. The Flowchart is part of the Manual of Operational Procedures against Trafficking in Persons in Cabo Verde, co-developed in 2021 with the International Organization for Migration (IOM). In 2024, ICMPD contributed to this process, developing a country-specific list of indicators to identify trafficking victims, taking into account the unique circumstances in each of the country’s islands.

To sustain Cabo Verde’s achievements in boosting its anti-trafficking capacities, ICMPD works closely with the government and other partners with an emphasis for better investment and long-term response. Supporting both at legal and programmatic levels, ICMPD is leveraging its extensive experience, expertise, and unique perspective in both research and project implementation. In close collaboration with the Cabo Verde government, ICMPD aims to contribute data-driven insights and strategic solutions in order to:

• Effectively reflect the country’s trafficking prevalence in their national legislation;
• Develop data collection and data management systems;
• Implement targeted prevention strategies and reducing vulnerability;
• Bridge the child protection and the criminal justice systems to effectively address cases of child trafficking and exploitation; and
• Fight impunity through enhanced prosecution.

The footprint of ICMPD’s work with and in Cabo Verde extends beyond the country’s borders (and oceans around it). The country’s strategic location in the region, coupled with their active work to address trafficking, places it as a good example for multi-level collaboration at the convergence of all legal and programmatic complexities of [trafficking]. Boosting their capacities, as well as those of stakeholders advancing their anti-trafficking initiatives, not only builds ownership and tangible results; it also allows for long-term, effective solutions that partners can achieve together.

About the author

Ivanka Hainzl is an Anti-Trafficking Specialist at the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD). Based at the ICMPD Headquarters in Vienna, Ivanka brings over 15 years of focused experience in advancing national and regional efforts to combat human trafficking. Ivanka’s current projects focus on regional cooperation between anti-trafficking authorities across West Africa, Central Asia, and South-Eastern Europe.

_{¹ ECOWAS (2025), ECOWAS Plan of Action Against Trafficking in Persons (TIP), Especially Women and Children, 2018-2022 (extended until 2027); Annual Synthesis Report, 2023.}

_{² Ibid, ECOWAS (2025).}

_{³ The non-punishment principle in anti-trafficking efforts ensures that victims of trafficking are not prosecuted or punished for crimes they were compelled to commit as a result of being trafficked. This principle recognises that victims are often coerced by traffickers to engage in unlawful activities, and punishment would further victimise them.}