Child trafficking & migration
Around the world, traffickers win over the trust of children and their families with sweet talk. They promise a better life elsewhere. Meanwhile, the children become exploited. Traffickers also threaten families with violence. As a result, many children seek work far from home and take up jobs under poor conditions. This is unsafe migration. It is exploitation. We protect these children. We provide a safe place and the chance to go to school. We help families earn better incomes so their children can continue living at home. We also help police and government officials track down and punish traffickers. Join our fight. Stop unsafe migration. Stop child trafficking.
Children who are sold and exploited need a safe place. We provide that. Join our fight.
One in four victims of modern slavery is a child. These children are trafficked and sold like goods. Child trafficking is a major problem that traumatises many of its victims.
As the UN defines it, human trafficking refers to the ‘recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons’ by threat, force or abuse of power. As for children, they often leave home because traffickers lure them with prospects of a better life.
Things usually turn out otherwise. The children are forced to work in the drug trade or are sexually exploited. We provide these children a safe place, letting them go to school and feel a sense of ease again.
We track down perpetrators and have them punished. We help parents earn better incomes so their children can continue living at home. Join our fight. Stop child trafficking.
How does child trafficking arise?
Every year, 1.2 million children worldwide are sold. Two out of three are girls. Often these children come from poor, war-torn areas. Forced to flee, they become vulnerable to exploitation. They are sexually abused or forced to do dangerous work. We take a stand against child trafficking. Join our fight.
Child trafficking is a major problem. Children are exploited, often far from home because their families lack means to provide for them. They seek better lives elsewhere. Sweet-talking traffickers seize on this pattern. But poverty is not the only push. In much of the world, religion, race, gender and origin determine how marketable children are.
In places with war or few resources to live off, many children are left to wander on their own. They no longer have a family or their family is unable to care for them. Their unsafe migration makes them very vulnerable. These children often disappear. They are forced to work in mines or as house slaves.
Some are rescued, but many children remain practically invisible. Trapped and exploited, they have no path to a better future. We track them. We provide a safe place and medical help. If possible, we find out where their parents are. We help as many children as possible return home, to their families, schools and environments that protect them.
We help families take better care of their children. For example, we do awareness-raising on ways to increase incomes so their children can continue living at home. We help police recognise exploited children and track down and punish traffickers. Join our fight. Stop the child trafficking.
Within these programs we fight against child trafficking and unsafe migration
What does Terre des Hommes do?
We fight child trafficking by helping families earn better incomes. We also provide children an education so they can work towards a better future. We do awareness-raising with communities to help them better care for children, for example, by setting up parent committees. We provide victims a safe place and medical care. We help police track down and punish traffickers. Join our fight. Stop child trafficking.
Much more
But we do much more. We fight against child labour, sexual exploitation and abuse. We also offer emergency aid. Read more about what we do.