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This article presents some of the findings from our in-depth, multi-country research project “Study on Trafficking Resilience and Vulnerability en route to Europe (STRIVE)”. The analysis of the research findings is still ongoing, however first results are ready to be shared. 

On 29 March 2022, ICMPD, as part of the TRAFIG and SPRING projects, held a webinar focused on the labour market inclusion of people fleeing war in Ukraine. The panel featured a diverse range of experts and practitioners working in the field of the EU and ICMPD Member States.

18 October 2017 is the 11th EU Anti-Trafficking Day. At ICMPD, we take this opportunity to analyse the linkages between migration, asylum and human trafficking, to stress the importance of the distinctions between human trafficking and migrant smuggling, and to address the vulnerabilities of migrants and refugees to trafficking.

In March 2025 at the latest, temporary protection for people fleeing Ukraine comes to an end. Determining what comes next is a complex process in which host countries must navigate multiple policy options, practical considerations, and political and economic interests. There is no time to waste in developing a coordinated approach, particularly due to the large number of people concerned, the range of countries involved, and the prospect of necessary legislative changes.

The United Nations and its Member States have committed to adopting a major agreement on international migration in 2018, the Global Compact for Migration. The worldwide consultation process to determine what this agreement should actually entail continues in Vienna this week with a thematic session on smuggling of migrants, trafficking in persons and contemporary forms of slavery, including appropriate identification, protection and assistance to migrants and trafficking victims. UN Member States, NGOs, the private sector and intergovernmental organisations, including ICMPD, will gather to give their input and recommendations, feeding into the drawing up of the Global Compact itself.

Large-scale displacement from Ukraine has led to growing concerns about individuals who were considered vulnerable prior to the outbreak of war, as well as those deemed newly vulnerable due to their displacement. Despite the quick rollout of temporary protection, providing adequate support in light of the scale and characteristics of displacement from Ukraine remains challenging – including in Poland, the major destination country.

On 24 February 2020, ICMPD’s Director General was a panelist at the High-Level Panel Discussion "A New Balanced Narrative on Migration – Attaining rights-based migration policy through a balanced public debate on migration" in Geneva.

What impact is the Syrian war and refugee crisis having on trafficking in persons in the region? ICMPD is carrying out a research assessment to form the basis for well-informed responses, to reduce the likelihood of trafficking cases in the future.

Addressing the vulnerability of people affected by the Syrian crisis is necessary to prevent their exploitation at the hands of human traffickers. In Syria and the surrounding countries, this means providing access to basic needs and services in the short term. It means providing more resettlement and other safe travel options to safe countries outside the region to address the current reliance on migrant smugglers.

ICMPD and international organisations call on states to harness the opportunities presented by technology to counter trafficking in persons. On the occasion of 30 July, the International Day against Trafficking in Persons, a joint statement was published by the Inter-Agency Coordination Group against Trafficking in Persons (ICAT), that ICMPD is co-chairing this year.

When Nigerian migration is discussed in the European context – for example, at policy forums and research conferences, or in the media - a number of key issues are usually mentioned. These include: the experiences of Nigerian people transiting through Libya in order to reach Europe by sea; sex trafficking of Nigerian women by means of juju oaths; and the assumption of a widespread desire to migrate to Europe among the young and growing populations of the region. 

On 2 June 2022, in Budva, Montenegro, the Network of the Anti-Trafficking Coordinators of South-Eastern Europe met for their annual meeting. The rationale of the meeting was a discussion of the effects of the Ukrainian crisis on the trafficking in human beings in the region based on the network countries’ experience in the past months.

The EU Temporary Protection Directive (TPD) has now been activated for 18 months, providing immediate assistance to millions who fled the war in Ukraine. While it has been praised for its success, uncertainty remains about what will happen once it ends. Discussions have put forth ideas ranging from EU-wide approaches to individual national solutions. The urgency of this matter, however, has yet to fully resonate with policymakers and commentators, even as we reach the halfway point of the directive’s maximum duration. Just 18 months remain to forge a plan for what will come after. 

In the framework of its mandate, the EUROMED Migration IV (EMM4) project held on 4 November 2020 a webinar titled "Migrant Vulnerabilities along the Mediterranean Migration Routes: A Perspective on Structural Challenges and Current Developments", at the request of the EMM4 national focal points.

On 05 April 2022 in Warsaw, Poland, The International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) in collaboration with the Polish Office for Foreigners (UdsC), the Association for Legal Intervention (SIP), and the Polish Migration Forum Foundation (PFM) launched a two-year project titled Comprehensive Support for People in a Vulnerable Situation in the Polish Migration Management System (KOMPLEKS). 

In the past years, the terms migration and crisis have been closely linked to one another in public discourse, especially since the so-called European migration and asylum crisis of 2015/16, when Europe witnessed a significant increase of inflows of people fleeing, inter alia, war and instability in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya. In this situation the EU and its Member States faced a wide range of challenges, including an overburdening of institutional capacities, the unpredictability of the migration routes and scope of inflows, as well as political disagreements on the distribution of applicants for international protection. Such crisis situations can severely impact public perception of migration and policy-making, but also provide an important learning opportunity that allows us to draw lessons on the migration and asylum systems currently in place and what is needed in terms of crisis preparedness and contingency planning.

18 October 2016 is the 10th EU Anti-Trafficking Day. In a three-part-blog series, ICMPD analyses challenges and future priorities for the EU and its Member States in combating trafficking in human beings. In view of the forthcoming EU Anti-Trafficking Strategy, we're looking at current anti-trafficking efforts in the context of global migration trends and policies, asking the question of how current debates might shape anti-trafficking in the coming years.

18 October 2016 is the 10th EU Anti-Trafficking Day. In a three-part blog series, ICMPD analyses challenges and future priorities for the EU and its Member States in combating trafficking in human beings. In view of the forthcoming EU Anti-Trafficking Strategy, we're looking at current anti-trafficking efforts in the context of global migration trends and policies, asking the question of how current debates might shape anti-trafficking in the coming years.

More than 70 representatives of Brazilian local, state and federal governments, civil society and the scientific community participated in the "training on migration, trafficking in human beings and assistance to people vulnerable to exploitation" held at the Federal University of Roraima (UFRR), Boa Vista on 27 and 28 April.

Lack of access to services and information, including changed border processes, repatriations, poor health care, among other factors, place South Asian migrants at risk. The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the vulnerability of Afghan, Pakistani and Bangladeshi migrants, and rendered accurate information even more necessary. ICMPD’s Migrant Resource Centres reach out and provide reliable information to empower migrants in an effort to address this challenge.