Points of inflection: Analysis of the impact of Covid-19 on the vulnerabilities Eritrean refugees face to human trafficking in Sudan

Abstract
Evidence is emerging that the recent in coup in Sudan, the conflict in the Tigray region of Ethiopia, and the COVID-19 pandemic are driving a human trafficking crisis for Eritrean forced migrants. Focusing on Eritrean refugees in Sudan, this project uses mixed methods combining an evidence review, stakeholder and migrant interviews in camps and the diaspora, and data from surveys (1) to to evaluate and analyse how the pandemic combined with concurrent conflicts have influenced migratory ambition, route, and demographics; and (2) to identify how explanatory factors and intersecting vulnerabilities (based on the IOM vulnerabilities framework) contribute to the likelihood of experiencing human trafficking at the individual level. This serves as the basis for a set of policy recommendations and actionable items.

Key factors
legal frameworks, institutional framework and governance, crises, ethnicity, migration, access to basic services, law enforcement and monitoring

Key outcomes
legal frameworks, access to protective measures, trafficking for forced labour/sexual exploitation, migration status