UAE Struggles to Combat Human Trafficking: Trafficking in Persons 2024 Report. The 2024 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report highlights the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as a significant hub for human trafficking. While the UAE has made some strides in addressing human trafficking, the report underscores that the government has not met the minimum standards in several critical areas. This has lead to persistent vulnerabilities for many individuals.

Recruitment and Exploitation

The UAE’s role as a trafficking hub is particularly concerning, with recruiters selling migrants to families who then transport them illegally to other Gulf countries. Workers are often lured with false promises of high salaries, medical benefits, and good accommodations. Upon arrival, these workers frequently discover that the companies they were supposed to work for are fraudulent, leaving them undocumented and highly susceptible to trafficking.

Employer-based Visa System

The UAE’s employer-based visa system significantly restricts the mobility of foreign workers, binding them to their employers. Although there are legal provisions allowing workers to change sponsors or terminate employment under certain conditions, many employers retain unilateral power over their workers.

UAE Struggles to Combat Human Trafficking: Predominance of Sex Trafficking

Women from Central Asia, South and Southeast Asia, East Africa, Eastern Europe, Iraq, Iran, and Morocco are predominantly subjected to sex trafficking in the UAE. Despite the significant concerns regarding labor trafficking, most trafficking cases are classified under sexual exploitation. Reports have indicated that traffickers increasingly use social media to recruit young women from Laos for commercial sex in Dubai.

Labor Trafficking Concerns

Reports have highlighted that Mongolian nationals have been exploited in the UAE for labor trafficking, including herding, domestic servitude, and circus performances. Additionally, foreign nationals are forced into labor within online scam operations based in the UAE.
Child Trafficking Issues
Child trafficking remains a serious issue, with traffickers forging ages on passports to facilitate the entry of minors for sex trafficking.
Government Shortcomings
However, the UAE government did not meet the minimum standards in several key areas:

• The government failed to report investigating any labor trafficking cases, and overall efforts to identify labor trafficking victims were inadequate.
• There were no government-wide Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for victim identification. Officials did not consistently screen vulnerable populations for trafficking indicators.
• The lack of victim identification SOPs likely led to some unidentified trafficking victims being inappropriately penalized for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked or being returned to trafficking situations.
• The majority of domestic workers remained excluded from the Wage Protection System (WPS). This made them vulnerable to wage theft—a key indicator of trafficking—without adequate oversight.

The TIP report’s findings underscore the urgent need for the UAE to enhance its legal and regulatory frameworks, improve victim identification processes, and ensure that enforcement mechanisms are robust and effective. Addressing these deficiencies is crucial for protecting vulnerable individuals and effectively combating human trafficking in the region.