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Trafficking in persons
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Trafficking in persons is modern-day slavery, involving victims who are forced, defrauded, or coerced into labor or sexual exploitation. The International Labor Organization (ILO), the UN agency charged with addressing labor standards, employment, and social protection issues, estimated in 2022 that 27.6 million people worldwide were victims of forced labor, bonded labor, forced child labor, sexual servitude, and involuntary servitude. Human trafficking is a multi-dimensional threat, depriving people of their human rights and freedoms, risking global health, promoting social breakdown, inhibiting development by depriving countries of their human capital, and helping fuel the growth of organized crime. In 2000, the US Congress passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA), reauthorized several times (the latest in 2022 became law in January 2023), which provides tools for the US to combat trafficking in persons, both domestically and abroad. One of the law's key components is the creation of the US Department of State's annual Trafficking in Persons Report, which assesses the government response in some 185 countries with a significant number of victims trafficked across their borders who are recruited, harbored, transported, provided, or obtained for forced labor or sexual exploitation. Countries in the annual report are rated in three tiers, based on government efforts to combat trafficking. The countries identified in this entry are those listed in the annual Trafficking in Persons Report as 'Tier 2 Watch List' or 'Tier 3' based on the following tier rating definitions:
Tier 2 Watch List countries do not fully meet the TVPA's minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but are making significant efforts to do so, and for which:
-- the estimated number of victims of severe forms of trafficking is very significant or is significantly increasing and the country is not taking proportional concrete actions; or,
-- there is a failure to provide evidence of increasing efforts to combat severe forms of trafficking in persons from the previous year, including increased investigations, prosecutions, and convictions of trafficking crimes, increased assistance to victims, and decreasing evidence of complicity in severe forms of trafficking by government officials
Tier 3 countries do not fully meet the TVPA's minimum standards and are not making significant efforts to do so.
Afghanistan
tier rating: Tier 3 — Afghanistan does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, Afghanistan remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/afghanistan/Algeria
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch list — Algeria does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so, therefore Algeria was upgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/algeria/Belarus
tier rating: Tier 3 — Belarus does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, Belarus remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/belarus/Benin
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch list — Benin did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period and was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/benin/Brunei
tier rating: Tier 3 — Brunei does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, Brunei was downgraded to Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/brunei/Burkina Faso
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch list — Burkina Faso did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period and was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/burkina-faso/Burma
tier rating: Tier 3 — Burma does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, Burma remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/burma/Cambodia
tier rating: Tier 3 — Cambodia does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, Cambodia remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/cambodia/Central African Republic
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch list — The Central African Republic did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period and was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/central-african-republic/Chad
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — Chad does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so, therefore Chad was upgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/chad/China
tier rating: Tier 3 — China does not fully meet the minimum standards for elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, China remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/china/Congo, Republic of the
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore the Republic of the Congo remained on Tier 2 Watch List for the second consecutive year; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/republic-of-the-congo/Cuba
tier rating: Tier 3 — Cuba does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, Cuba remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/cuba/Curacao
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — Curaçao does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so, therefore Curaçao was upgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/curacao/Djibouti
tier rating: Tier 3 — Djibouti does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so; therefore, Djibouti remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/djibouti/Dominican Republic
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore the Dominican Republic remained on Tier 2 Watch List for the second consecutive year; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/dominican-republic/Equatorial Guinea
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — Equatorial Guinea does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, but it is making significant efforts to do so and was upgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/equatorial-guinea/Eritrea
tier rating: Tier 3 — Eritrea does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore Eritrea remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/eritrea/Fiji
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore Fiji was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/fiji/Gabon
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — Gabon does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, but the government has devoted sufficient resources to a written plan that, if implemented, would constitute significant efforts to meet the minimum standards; therefore, Gabon was granted a waiver per the Trafficking Victims Protection Act from an otherwise required downgrade to Tier 3 and remained on Tier 2 Watch List for the third consecutive year; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/gabon/Guinea-Bissau
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — The Government of Guinea-Bissau does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so, therefore Guinea-Bissau was upgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/guinea-bissau/Haiti
tier rating: Special CategoryHong Kong
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore Hong Kong was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/hong-kong/Iran
tier rating: Tier 3 — Iran does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, Iran remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/iran/Korea, North
tier rating: Tier 3 — the government of North Korea does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, North Korea remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/north-korea/Kuwait
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — Kuwait does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, but the government has devoted sufficient resources to a written plan that, if implemented, would constitute significant efforts to meet the minimum standards; therefore, Kuwait was granted a waiver per the Trafficking Victims Protection Act from an otherwise required downgrade to Tier 3 and remained on Tier 2 Watch List for the third consecutive year; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/kuwait/Kyrgyzstan
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore Kyrgyzstan was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/kyrgyzstan/Laos
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore Laos was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/laos/Lebanon
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared to the previous reporting period, therefore Lebanon remained on Tier 2 Watch List for a second consecutive year; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/lebanon/Liberia
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore Liberia was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/liberia/Macau
tier rating: Tier 3 — Macau does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, Macau remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/macau/Madagascar
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government has devoted sufficient resources to a written plan that, if implemented, would constitute significant efforts to meet the minimum standards; therefore, Madagascar was granted a waiver per the Trafficking Victims Protection Act from an otherwise required downgrade to Tier 3 and remained on Tier 2 Watch List for the third consecutive year; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/madagascar/Maldives
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the Maldives did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period and was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/maldives/Mali
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch list — Mali did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period and was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/mali/Malta
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch list — Malta did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period and was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/malta/Marshall Islands
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore Marshall Islands remained on Tier 2 Watch List for the second consecutive year; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/marshall-islands/Nepal
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore Nepal was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/nepal/Nicaragua
tier rating: Tier 3 — Nicaragua does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, Nicaragua remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/nicaragua/Niger
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore Niger was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/niger/Papua New Guinea
tier rating: Tier 3 — Papua New Guinea does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so; therefore, Papua New Guinea remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/papua-new-guinea/Russia
tier rating: Tier 3 — Russia does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, Russia remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/russia/Rwanda
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore Rwanda was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/rwanda/Serbia
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government has devoted sufficient resources to a written plan that, if implemented, would constitute significant efforts to meet the minimum standards; therefore, Serbia was granted a waiver per the Trafficking Victims Protection Act from an otherwise required downgrade to Tier 3 and remained on Tier 2 Watch List for the third consecutive year; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/serbia/Sint Maarten
tier rating: Tier 3 — Sint Maarten does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, Sint Maarten remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/sint-maarten/Solomon Islands
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore Solomon Islands remained on Tier 2 Watch List for the second consecutive year; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/solomon-islands/South Sudan
tier rating: Tier 3 — South Sudan does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, South Sudan remains on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/south-sudan/Sudan
tier rating: Tier 3 — Sudan does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so; therefore, Sudan was downgraded to Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/sudan/Syria
tier rating: Tier 3 — Syria does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, Syria remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/syria/Tajikistan
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore Tajikistan was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/tajikistan/Turkmenistan
tier rating: Tier 3 — Turkmenistan does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, Turkmenistan remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/turkmenistan/Uruguay
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore Uruguay was downgraded to Tier 2 Watch List; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/uruguay/Vanuatu
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List — the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore Vanuatu remained on Tier 2 Watch List for the second consecutive year; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/vanuatu/Venezuela
tier rating: Tier 3 — Venezuela does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making any efforts to do so, therefore, Venezuela remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/venezuela/World
tier rating:Tier 2 Watch List: (32 countries) Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of Congo, Curaçao, Dominican Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Fiji, Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Hong Kong, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Madagascar, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Marshall Islands, Nepal, Niger, Rwanda, Serbia, Solomon Islands, Tajikistan, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Zimbabwe (2024)
Tier 3: (21 countries) Afghanistan, Belarus, Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, People's Republic of China, Cuba, Djibouti, Eritrea, Iran, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Macau, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, Russia, Sint Maarten, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Turkmenistan, Venezuela (2024)