Ireland still does “not fully meet minimum standards” on combating human trafficking, a report by the US State Department has concluded. 

Launching the report, US secretary of State Anthony Blinken said the aim was to “showcase successful efforts to prevent trafficking” and “identify areas where countries are falling short”. 

In 2022, Ireland was moved from Tier 2 Watchlist to Tier 2 - but there is no movement this year. 

To reach Tier 1, a country must be judged to “fully comply with the minimum standards” to combat human trafficking.

'Seriously undetected'

Last year, Dublin-based NGO Ruhuma helped 147 victims of human trafficking - of whom 45 were new referrals. 

CEO Barbara Condon said there were still problems with Ireland’s identification procedures and more needs to be done to protect victims. 

“Despite commitment from the Government, ongoing delays in reforming the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) further impeded Ireland’s progress in tackling Human Trafficking for sexual exploitation,” she said. 

“Improvements are to be more inclusive and extend the formal identification of trafficking victims to civil society and additional statutory organisations. 

“Victims will no longer be required to cooperate with law enforcement to access the NRM. 

“This is internationally recognised best practice and protects victims from retraumatisation and can help more victims to come forward for identification and access appropriate supports. 

“We are very concerned that the true extent and real number of trafficked victims is seriously undetected, which can restrict their access to vital support services.”

The Human Trafficking Institute estimates there are 24.9 million victims of human trafficking across the world. 

It also notes that “studies show that the majority of victims are concentrated in places where Government policies and systems are less effective at enforcing trafficking law”. 

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