The United Nations has warned that Afghanistan’s worsening humanitarian and economic crises are leaving more people vulnerable to human trafficking, with returnees, women, children and indebted families facing the greatest risks.
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) issued the warning on Thursday to mark the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, calling for stronger efforts to identify victims, prosecute trafficking networks and expand protection for those at risk.
The agencies said Afghanistan’s overlapping crises, including the large-scale forced return of Afghans from neighbouring countries, the decline of the rural opium-based economy, severe cuts to humanitarian assistance, natural disasters and continued restrictions on the rights of women and girls, are increasing people’s vulnerability to trafficking and exploitation.
Polleak Ok Serei, the UNODC country representative for Afghanistan, said the combination of economic and humanitarian pressures was making vulnerable Afghans more susceptible to exploitation.
“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.
This underlines the need to strengthen prevention, carefully identify potential victims and ensure access to appropriate protection and assistance,” Ok Serei said.
According to the agencies, only 11% of surveyed returnees were fully employed or owned a business, while 56% of returnee households said they could not meet their basic expenses. Nearly half relied on loans or donations to survive, increasing the risk of exploitative labour, debt bondage and other forms of abuse.
IOM Afghanistan Chief of Mission Mihyung Park said communities were struggling to absorb the growing number of returnees.
“The scale of returns currently taking place is greater than what Afghan communities can absorb without significant international support. Many returnees arrive with limited resources and face challenges in accessing livelihoods, housing, and basic services.
Without viable opportunities at home, people are more likely to resort to dangerous and irregular journeys, increasing their vulnerability to trafficking, smuggling, exploitation, and abuse.
Supporting returnees and host communities is therefore not only a humanitarian imperative but also an investment in Afghanistan’s stability,” Park said.
The agencies said victims continue to be forced into unsafe work, forced labour, sexual exploitation, slavery-like conditions and, in some cases, organ removal. They also warned that trafficking for forced criminality, including online scam operations, is an emerging global threat.
UNODC and IOM said they are jointly conducting a strategic assessment of trafficking in persons and migrant smuggling in Afghanistan to strengthen victim identification and prevention efforts.
As of publication, there was no public response from Afghanistan’s de facto authorities to the UNODC-IOM joint statement.
Yemen's air force carried out 20 strikes on Houthi targets earlier on Friday, Brigadier General Majid Abdullah Al-Nuzaili, Spokesman for t...
The European Space Agency (ESA), Airbus and European partners have put a six-wheeled Mars rover prototype through its paces in Spain’s Tabern...
Azerbaijan won 22 medals, including seven gold, at the Mingachevir Regatta 2026 as more than 100 young rowers from 12 countries competed in the int...
Yemen's air force carried out 20 strikes on Houthi targets earlier on Friday, Brigadier General Majid Abdullah Al-Nuzaili, Spokesman for the Yemeni Armed Forces, said. Meanwhile, the Iran-backed Houthis denied targeting a power plant supplying energy to a mosque in Medina, Saudi Arabia.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel may participate in the investigation into a serious incident aboard a flydubai flight bound for Tel Aviv, while investigators examine the motive of the co-pilot involved.
Passengers from a flydubai flight that was diverted to Saudi Arabia after an alleged attempt to crash the aircraft have arrived safely in Israel.
Russia has warned NATO that it would be prepared to use nuclear weapons if the Western alliance attempted to isolate Kaliningrad, a Russian exclave on the Baltic Sea, according to a diplomatic document seen by Reuters.
British counter-terrorism police have arrested a 27-year-old dual UK-Iranian national as part of an investigation into a suspected plot involving RAF Fairford, an airbase used by U.S. forces for operations against Iran.
Azerbaijan won 22 medals, including seven gold, at the Mingachevir Regatta 2026 as more than 100 young rowers from 12 countries competed in the international tournament.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan says the TRIPP project will establish a direct railway connection between Azerbaijan and Armenia and strengthen wider regional transport links.
Afghanistan and Tajikistan have discussed boosting electricity supplies to Afghanistan and plans for a high-voltage power line through the country to Iran, as Kabul seeks greater access to imported energy.
Türkiye has rejected a news report alleging that its intelligence service arranged secret talks between Syrian officials and Hezbollah, calling the claim “entirely unfounded.”
The Gulf is facing mounting pressure across aviation, defence and critical infrastructure as conflict, changing security arrangements and threats to water supplies reshape the region’s risk landscape.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment