Victims exploited in Egypt

Between 2004 and 2022, the IOM registered 576 victims of trafficking exploited in Egypt.^[1] 70 per cent of these victims were identified between 2014 and 2016.

Among identified victims of trafficking in Egypt, 68 per cent are female, with the remainder being males.^[2] Also, most victims are adults (88%), compared to 12 per cent who are children. Overall, female victims concentrate in older age groups, while males tend to be slightly younger.

The most common country of citizenship for victims of trafficking identified in Egypt is Eritrea (28%), followed by Ethiopia (19%) and Indonesia (11%). Most of these victims are trafficked interregionally (95%),^[3] as they may originate from other sub-regions of Africa (75%), Asia (19%), and Europe (6%)

45 per cent of victims exploited in Egypt are trafficked for forced labour, and another 23 per cent are trafficked for sexual exploitation. Other types of exploitation, like forced marriage, forced military, organ removal, and slavery and related practices, constitute another 52 per cent.^[4] Victims exploited in Egypt (41%) are most frequently trafficked for one year or less.

The most common sector of forced labour is domestic work (78%), followed by hospitality and agriculture (7% each).

The main means of control are restrictions on finance, movements, medical care and necessities (75%), and psychological, physical and sexual abuse (74%).^[4] These victims are most frequently recruited by ‘others’^[5] (82%) and, in some other cases, by friends (11%) or family (8%).

^[1] This country profile is based on the data collected by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in the process of providing assistance and protection services to victims of trafficking.

^[2] The IOM acknowledge diverse gender identities and expressions among trafficking victims. However, sex assigned at birth is used for this data analysis unless otherwise indicated. This is to ensure consistency with initial data collection forms, which lacked fields for diverse identities. Also, the disclosure of smaller subsets of victims with diverse gender identities increases data protection risks due to the potential identification of individual cases.

^[3] Interregional trafficking involves victims trafficked outside their region of origin, while intraregional trafficking occurs within their region of origin. For the list of regions and subregions, refer to the Global Synthetic Dataset Dictionary.

^[4] It is important to note that trafficked persons can be subjected to multiple types of exploitation and means of control, so percentages may not add up to 100.

^[5] Indicates a notable relationship with the recruiter that does not fit other categories like family or friends. This may include brokers, contractors, employers, or smugglers. See the Global Synthetic Dataset Codebook for a detailed explanation.