Georgia needs to strengthen protections for groups vulnerable to human trafficking, particularly children in street situations, ethnic minorities, and asylum seekers, according to a new report from the Council of Europe (CoE)‘s Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA). The evaluation covers steps taken between 2020 and 2024 to address trafficking risks, detect and support victims, and punish offenders, with particular attention to the increasing use of information and communication technology by traffickers.
GRETA noted positive developments, including the regular adoption of biannual anti-trafficking national action plans and the opening of a new state shelter for trafficking victims in Tbilisi in 2023. In 2021, Georgia amended the Law on Combating Trafficking in Human Beings to ensure that victims can access state compensation without first proving they failed to obtain compensation from perpetrators. Between 2020 and 2024, authorities identified 49 trafficking victims, most of them female and nearly half children, with forced begging as the predominant form of exploitation, followed by labor and sexual exploitation.
The report highlights that children and young people in street situations face particular vulnerability to trafficking, as do members of ethnic minorities. Cases show children dropping out of school due to child labor, with children from Azerbaijani and Roma minorities often detected in street situations and child marriage cases. GRETA called on authorities to increase resources for shelters, day-care centers, and mobile teams working with street children, and to ensure implementation of legal safeguards against child labor through prevention, effective control, and case referrals.
Individuals seeking international protection in Georgia face poverty and unemployment that can make them especially vulnerable to trafficking. GRETA recommended training relevant professionals on detecting trafficking indicators among asylum seekers and refugees, and improving their social and economic integration. While welcoming measures to extend the mandate of the Labour Inspection Office and strengthen migrant worker protections, the report noted that labor inspectors lack sufficient resources to carry out inspections in rural or remote areas.
GRETA expressed concern over recently adopted legislation on civil society organizations working with trafficking victims and vulnerable individuals, whose private data may become publicly accessible if they receive assistance from entities labeled as “foreign agents.” The group called on Georgian authorities to build strategic partnerships with civil society actors and protect the private life and identity of trafficking victims, while improving detection and investigation of technology-facilitated trafficking, including online child trafficking.
