As reported over the past five years, human traffickers exploit domestic and foreign victims in Albania, and traffickers exploit victims from Albania abroad. Albanian women and children are subject to sex trafficking and forced labor within the country, especially during tourist season. Traffickers use false promises such as marriage or employment offers to force victims into sex trafficking.
Children are commonly forced to beg or perform other types of compelled labor such as selling small items. Albanian children, mainly from the Romani and BalkanEgyptian communities, are exploited regionally for seasonal work and forced begging. There are also instances of forced child labor in cannabis fields in Albania and some traffickers are likely involved in drug trafficking. Albanian victims are subject to sex trafficking in countries across Europe, particularly Kosovo, Greece, Italy, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, North Macedonia, Norway, the Netherlands, and the UK. NGOs report an increase in the number of Albanian children subjected to forced labor in Kosovo and the UK.
Albanian migrants who seek employment in Western Europe face forced labor and forced criminality. Foreign victims from European countries and the Philippines were subjected to sex trafficking and forced labor in Albania. Irregular migrants from Asia are employed as domestic workers by wealthy families and vulnerable to domestic servitude. Middle Eastern, Central Asian, and African migrants transit Albania to reach Western Europe and are vulnerable to trafficking.
Adapted from TIP 2019 by the U.S. Department of State
