KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) have warned that overlapping crises in Afghanistan are increasing vulnerabilities to human trafficking, exploitation, and forced labour, calling for stronger coordinated efforts to prevent trafficking and protect victims and survivors.
In a joint statement marking the World Day against Trafficking in Persons, the two UN agencies said that Afghanistan’s ongoing challenges, including the large-scale forced return of Afghans from neighbouring countries, the decline of the rural opium-based economy, severe reductions in humanitarian assistance, natural disasters, and continued restrictions on the rights of women and girls, have created conditions where more people are at risk of trafficking.
The agencies said that economic hardship has placed additional pressure on Afghan families, particularly returnees and vulnerable households. Findings from the Returnee Resilience Overview show that only 11 percent of surveyed returnees were fully employed or owned a business, while 56 percent of returnee households reported being unable to meet their basic needs.
According to UNODC and IOM, nearly half of returnee households rely on loans or donations to survive, increasing the likelihood of negative coping strategies and exposing people to exploitative labour arrangements, debt bondage, and other forms of abuse.
The agencies warned that victims of trafficking in Afghanistan continue to face various forms of exploitation, including forced labour, unsafe employment, sexual exploitation, slavery-like conditions, and forced removal of organs. Women, children, returnees, and households affected by debt remain among the groups facing the highest risks.
UNODC and IOM said vulnerable Afghans are often exploited in sectors such as domestic work, brickmaking, agriculture, mining, and carpet weaving.
Others may become victims of forced begging, forced marriage, child recruitment, sexual exploitation, or involvement in illegal activities. The agencies also highlighted the growing global threat of trafficking for forced criminality, including the recruitment of victims into online scams and fraud operations through deception and coercion.
“Current pressures on the Afghan population such as mass returns, opium eradication without alternative livelihoods, aid cuts, natural disasters and restrictions on women make men, women and children more vulnerable to human trafficking and exploitation,” said Polleak Ok Serei, UNODC Country Representative for Afghanistan.
He stressed the need to strengthen prevention measures, identify potential victims, and ensure access to protection and assistance.
Mihyung Park, IOM Afghanistan Chief of Mission, said the scale of current returns is beyond what Afghan communities can absorb without significant international support. She warned that many returnees arrive with limited resources and face difficulties accessing livelihoods, housing, and basic services, increasing their vulnerability to trafficking, smuggling, exploitation, and abuse.
UNODC and IOM called for expanded efforts to improve victim identification and protection, increase access to essential services and civil documentation, create sustainable livelihood opportunities, promote safe and regular migration pathways, and strengthen regional cooperation against trafficking networks.
To support these efforts, UNODC and IOM are conducting a joint strategic assessment of trafficking in persons and migrant smuggling in Afghanistan. The assessment aims to provide updated evidence on emerging risks and identify practical measures to improve prevention, victim protection, and responses against trafficking networks.
