A lack of proper systems to identify trafficking victims is leaving vulnerable migrants along the Southern Migration Corridor at risk of detention, prosecution, deportation and further exploitation, four African human rights institutions have warned.
The institutions said migrants travelling the corridor face growing threats including human trafficking, forced labour, sexual exploitation, debt bondage, violence and arbitrary detention, with some cases resulting in death.
The warning is contained in an Advisory Note on strengthening a human rights-based response to human trafficking along the Southern Migration Corridor. It followed discussions by the National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) during a Regional Meeting of the NHRI Technical Working Group on Migration and Human Rights held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from July 8 to 10, 2026.
The advisory was issued by the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR), Mozambique’s National Human Rights Commission (CNDH), the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) and Zambia’s Human Rights Commission through its Building Sustainable Cultures of Human Rights Together initiative.
The Southern Migration Corridor connects countries of origin, transit and destination and is used by people seeking employment, economic opportunities, safety and better living conditions. However, the movement of people across several borders has also created opportunities for organised criminal networks to exploit migrants, especially those using informal or unsafe routes.
“Human trafficking remains one of the most pressing human rights and protection challenges affecting the Southern Migration Corridor,” the institutions said.
Although countries along the corridor have introduced laws and policies to fight human trafficking and migrant smuggling, the NHRIs said implementation remains uneven.
They identified weak systems for identifying trafficking victims, inadequate protection and assistance services, limited cooperation across borders, poor migration data and low public awareness among the main challenges.
Of particular concern is the misidentification of trafficking victims as irregular migrants. The institutions warned that people who have been trafficked can end up being detained, prosecuted or deported under immigration laws instead of being recognised as victims who are entitled to protection and assistance.
The NHRIs also raised concern over the risk of victims being subjected to further harm during investigations and prosecutions. In some cases, victims may be required to assist authorities or give evidence before receiving continued protection, leaving them exposed to retaliation, stigma and discrimination.
Such experiences, they said, can create fear and mistrust of authorities, discouraging victims from reporting trafficking cases or cooperating with investigations.
Language barriers, limited access to legal representation and inadequate social services were also cited as factors that can make it harder for victims to seek justice.
The institutions further warned that the shortage of safe houses, shelters, psychosocial support, legal aid and long-term reintegration programmes leaves survivors vulnerable to further exploitation and makes it harder for them to rebuild their lives.
Another major concern is the lack of coordination among institutions responsible for responding to trafficking and migration.
The NHRIs pointed to gaps between police, immigration authorities, labour inspectors, prosecutors, social services, diplomatic missions and human rights institutions.
“Cross-border cooperation remains limited, resulting in fragmented investigations, inconsistent victim referrals and inadequate information sharing among States along the corridor,” they said.
The institutions also identified poorly coordinated migration data as a major challenge. They said unreliable information makes it difficult for governments to understand trafficking patterns, identify emerging risks and develop policies based on evidence.
According to the advisory, human trafficking has wider effects on people's rights, including their liberty, security, dignity and freedom from exploitation. Women, children and other vulnerable groups were identified as being particularly exposed to these risks.
The NHRIs said poverty, unemployment, limited awareness and unsafe migration routes can increase people's vulnerability to trafficking, while criminal networks continue to take advantage of weaknesses along cross-border routes.
The advisory also drew attention to the risk of statelessness among migrants who do not have civil documentation. Children born during migration may also face difficulties in obtaining legal nationality.
To address the challenges, the four institutions want governments to put in place stronger systems for identifying and referring trafficking victims, with survivors treated as people in need of protection rather than immigration offenders.
They called for survivors to have greater access to shelters, legal aid, psychosocial support and long-term reintegration programmes. They also want police officers, prosecutors, judges, immigration officials, labour inspectors and other frontline workers to receive specialised training on trafficking and victim protection.
The NHRIs further called for stronger measures to deal with corruption within border management and law enforcement institutions.
At the regional level, they want human rights institutions to establish formal cooperation agreements, conduct joint cross-border monitoring missions and strengthen information-sharing systems and regional early-warning mechanisms.
Regional Economic Communities and the African Union have also been urged to improve harmonised anti-trafficking frameworks, coordinated investigations, information sharing and regional accountability mechanisms.
The institutions stressed that individual countries cannot tackle trafficking effectively on their own because the networks involved operate across national borders.
“Human trafficking remains a complex transnational human rights challenge that cannot be effectively addressed through isolated national interventions,” they said.
They called for sustained political commitment, effective enforcement of existing laws, stronger regional cooperation and better evidence gathering to make migration routes safer and ensure migrants and trafficking survivors are treated with dignity and their rights protected.