UNODC and Migrant Smuggling
Smuggling of Migrants is a crime involving the procurement for financial or other material benefit of illegal entry of a person into a State of which that person is not a national or resident. Migrant smuggling affects almost every country in the world. It undermines the integrity of countries and communities, and costs thousands of people their lives every year. UNODC, as the guardian the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) and the Protocols thereto, assists States in their efforts to implement the Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air (Migrants Protocol).
What is Migrant Smuggling?
The Migrants Protocol supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime defines the smuggling of migrants as the
"procurement, in order to obtain, directly or indirectly, a financial or other material benefit, of the illegal entry of a person into a State Party of which the person is not a national or a permanent resident." (Article 3, Migrants Protocol).
In order to comply with the Migrants Protocol, Article 6 requires states to criminalize both smuggling of migrants and enabling of a person to remain in a country illegally, as well as aggravating circumstances that endanger lives or safety, or entail inhuman or degrading treatment of migrants.
Virtually every country in the world is affected by this crime, whether as an origin, transit or destination country for smuggled migrants by profit-seeking criminals. Smuggled migrants are vulnerable to life-threatening risks and exploitation; thousands of people have suffocated in containers, perished in deserts or dehydrated at sea. Generating huge profits for the criminals involved, migrant smuggling fuels corruption and empowers organized crime. Learn more about the crime of migrant smuggling here.
UNODC's Response to Migrant Smuggling
As the guardian of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and its supplementary protocols, UNODC's primary goal with respect to combating migrant smuggling, is to promote global adherence to the Migrants Protocol and assist States in their efforts to effectively implement it. The Migrants Protocol aims to:
- Prevent and combat the smuggling of migrants
- Protect the rights of smuggled migrants
- Promote cooperation between states
In providing technical assistance towards achieving these goals globally, UNODC's response is focused on two working areas:
- Assisting states in bringing their legislation in line with the Protocol, and
- Assisting states in developing an effective criminal justice response to migrant smuggling
Gaps in knowledge about migrant smuggling highlight the need for research and analysis to be carried out.
In 2006, UNODC released findings of a rapid assessment in a report, titled Organized Crime and Irregular Migration from Africa to Europe. The report explores the extent to which irregular migration from Africa to Europe is mediated by organized crime, and assesses the market for smuggling services, migratory routes, modus operandi of migrant smugglers and the role that organized crime plays in smuggling migrants from Africa to Europe.
In cooperation with partners, UNODC is actively involved in the I-Map . The I-Map is designed to facilitate information exchange and analyse migratory flows and routes, for the purpose of supporting counter-smuggling efforts undertaken at the international, regional and sub-regional level in Africa, the Near East and Europe.
UNODC is also supporting States in West and North Africa in implementing the Migrants Protocol and strengthening their criminal justice systems, through its Impact Programme.
Further information
To learn more about migrant smuggling, click here.
To learn more about UNODC's Impact Programme against Migrant Smuggling in West and North Africa, click here.
For more, visit our News and Events page
For a full listing of latest tools and publications, visit our Publications page
For further information please contact the Anti Trafficking and Migrant Smuggling Unit.