UNODC Global Study on Smuggling of Migrants (2018)

The first UNODC Global Study on Smuggling of Migrants shows that migrant smuggling routes affect every part of the world. The study is based on an extensive review of existing data and literature. It presents detailed information about key smuggling routes, the profiles of smugglers and smuggled migrants, the modus operandi of smugglers and the risks that smuggled migrants face. It shows that smuggling is a business largely based on supply, such as smuggling services, and the demand for facilitated irregular migration. Smugglers and the experience of being smuggled also expose migrants to a range of risks: violence; robbery; exploitation; sexual violence; kidnapping and even death.