A Step Towards the Light: Ending Human Trafficking

Children from rural areas and disempowered homes are ideal targets for trafficking in India and elsewhere. Credit: Neeta Lal / IPSBy Tharanga YakupitiyageUNITED NATIONS, Feb 21 2018 (IPS)A new initiative aims to use data to shed light on a pervasive multi-billion dollar criminal industry: human trafficking.Created by the International Organization for Migration and Polaris, the Counter-Trafficking Data Collaborative (CTDC) is the world’s first human trafficking data portal. It collects data from various counter-trafficking organizations around the world in order to help stakeholders identify and respond to trends.“We are really just starting to see the beginning of what could be done with this type of information in the future,” Data Management and Research Specialist Harry Cook told IPS.“Data can be really useful to build the evidence base for policy making and programming to counter-trafficking,” he added.With approximately over 20 million victims of human trafficking, the portal captures 80,000 cases from women being coerced to perform sexual acts to teens forced to work long hours with little to no pay.“It is a significant amount of data. We are really hoping it will shine the spotlight,” Cook said.“If you imagine all around the world, there are lots of actors providing direct assistance to victims…so if we can all get together and actually harness the data that we have and put it there for those who are also working to combat the crime, then I think in ...
Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Authors: Tags: Aid Crime & Justice Education Featured Gender Violence Global Headlines Health Human Rights Migration & Refugees TerraViva United Nations Source Type: news