U.S. Dep't of State, 2024 Trafficking in Persons Report: Egypt

EGYPT (Tier 2) The Government of Egypt does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so. The government demonstrated overall increasing efforts compared with the previous reporting period; therefore Egypt was upgraded to Tier 2. These efforts included more than doubling prosecutions of alleged sex and labor traffickers, increasing investigations, and investigating and prosecuting allegedly complicit officials. The government also refurbished a new specialized trafficking shelter and expunged “prostitution-related” charges from the records of 51 sex trafficking victims.

In addition, the government established a pre-departure guidance unit to educate Egyptian workers traveling abroad about international labor standards and agreements, aiming at raising awareness about their rights and basic duties. However, the government did not meet the minimum standards in several key areas. Authorities continued to inappropriately penalize unidentified victims for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked, which contributed to ongoing distrust of authorities and reluctance to report trafficking cases. Despite high trafficking risks for foreign nationals in Egypt, including Sudanese refugees fleeing conflict, authorities rarely proactively identified or provided services to non-Egyptian trafficking victims.

Government-provided victim services and shelter remained insufficient, as officials relied on international organizations and NGOs to provide some services, especially for men and foreign victims, without financial or in-kind support. PRIORITIZED RECOMMENDATIONS: Significantly improve efforts to proactively identify trafficking victims, especially among vulnerable populations such as migrants, refugees, and domestic workers. * Continue to consistently refer identified victims to adequately resourced protection services and shelters and ensure services are available to victims of all forms of trafficking – including male and foreign victims. * Continue to disseminate, implement, and utilize countrywide procedures and guidelines, such as the NRM, for law enforcement, judicial, and other relevant officials to proactively identify and refer trafficking victims to appropriate care. * Increase efforts to ensure authorities do not inappropriately penalize trafficking victims solely for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked, such as immigration violations or “prostitution” offenses. * Amend the labor law to include labor protections for Egyptian and foreign domestic workers and increase overall efforts to improve protections for domestic workers. * Continue to increase efforts to investigate and prosecute sex and labor trafficking crimes and seek adequate penalties for convicted traffickers – including complicit officials – which should involve significant prison terms. * Expand coordination with and support to NGOs providing services to trafficking victims and populations vulnerable to human trafficking. * Consistently enforce regulations and conduct oversight of labor recruitment companies, including by eliminating recruitment fees charged to migrant workers and holding fraudulent labor recruiters criminally accountable. * Increase efforts to address and reduce the demand for “temporary marriages” and commercial sex acts.

PROSECUTION

The government increased law enforcement efforts. The 2010 anti-trafficking law criminalized sex trafficking and labor trafficking and prescribed penalties from three to 15 years’ imprisonment and a fine between 50,000 and 200,000 Egyptian pounds ($1,620 and $6,470) for offenses involving an adult victim, and up to life imprisonment and a fine between 100,000 to 500,000 pounds ($3,240 and $16,180) for those involving a child victim. These penalties were sufficiently stringent and, with regard to sex trafficking, commensurate with those prescribed for other grave crimes, such as rape. In 2023, the government initiated 89 new investigations of alleged sex and labor trafficking crimes involving 229 suspects, an increase compared with 76 cases involving 182 suspects for investigations initiated in 2022.

The government reported the 89 new investigations included 24 sex trafficking cases, 41 labor trafficking cases, and 24 cases involving an unspecified form of trafficking. The government also continued 22 investigations begun in previous years, including five sex trafficking cases, seven labor trafficking cases, and 10 cases involving an unspecified form of trafficking. The government initiated prosecutions of 194 alleged perpetrators (56 for sex trafficking, 77 for labor trafficking, and 61 for an unspecified form of trafficking) in 2023, a significant increase compared with 96 prosecutions in 2022. The government also continued prosecuting 35 alleged traffickers (three for sex trafficking and 32 for unspecified forms of trafficking) from cases initiated in previous reporting periods.

Courts convicted 82 traffickers (14 for sex trafficking, 35 for labor trafficking, and 33 for unspecified forms of trafficking in addition to other offenses) in 28 cases in 2023, compared with 95 traffickers convicted in 28 cases in 2022 and 22 traffickers convicted in 11 cases in 2021. Sentences ranged from three years’ imprisonment and a fine to life imprisonment and a fine; all sentenced traffickers received prison sentences greater than one year. The government reported investigating two and prosecuting six allegedly complicit officials for trafficking crimes. The government coordinated with foreign governments to investigate and prosecute traffickers in at least four cases.

The Prosecutor General’s Office maintained eight specialized offices, one in each appellate court district, which oversaw the prosecution of or directly prosecuted trafficking cases depending on the severity or complexity of each case, alongside their oversight of irregular migration cases. The Ministry of Justice maintained eight specialized judicial circuits in the courts of appeal with 30 judges assigned to prosecute trafficking cases. In September 2023, the Court of Cassation issued implementation guidelines to guide officials investigating and prosecuting trafficking crimes. The National Coordinating Committee for Combating and Preventing Illegal Migration and Trafficking in Persons (NCCPIM & TIP), at times in partnership with international organizations, organized more than 54 anti-trafficking training sessions, capacity-building workshops, and international exchanges on victim identification, referral procedures, and protection resources officials, including prosecutors, judges, labor inspectors, law enforcement, diplomats, and social workers, as well as local NGO partners engaged in preventing trafficking and service provision.

PROTECTION

The government maintained uneven victim protection efforts. The government reported identifying 217 trafficking victims (51 sex trafficking victims, 107 labor trafficking victims, and 59 victims of unspecified forms of trafficking), compared with 212 trafficking victims identified in 2022. Of the 217 identified victims, 53 were adults (27 women and 26 men) and 164 were children. Nearly all identified victims were Egyptians, while five were foreign victims (four labor trafficking and one unspecified forms of trafficking); in 2022, the government only identified one foreign victim.

The government reported referring 151 identified trafficking victims to services but did not specify the type of assistance provided to adult victims among these. The government referred 70 boys and 76 girls (29 child sex trafficking victims, 92 child labor trafficking victims, and 25 child victims of unspecified forms of trafficking) to government shelters for children and provided psychological assistance. The government continued refining and socializing the NRM approved in 2022 to clarify processes and stakeholders’ responsibilities; various government ministries, at times in coordination with international organizations, issued reference documents, guides, handbooks, and amended labor inspection reference lists to support efforts to train stakeholders on use of the NRM. NCCPIM & TIP cooperated with the Ministry of Social Solidarity (MoSS), National Council for Childhood and Motherhood (NCCM), and an NGO to operate the government’s only specialized trafficking shelter.

The shelter assisted at least 27 victims; an improvement compared to 2022 when the shelter was closed for several months and assisted an unknown number of victims. The shelter could accommodate 30 women, their children ages 12 and younger, and girls, and the staff included female psychologists, social workers, and medical staff. Although officials reported there were no prohibitions restricting foreign victims from accessing the shelter, the government has not reported using it to house a foreign victim, despite non-Egyptian victims being vulnerable to trafficking and the government identifying 10 foreign victims since 2020. In 2022, the president issued a directive for relevant agencies to establish a total of seven specialized trafficking shelters.

NCCPIM & TIP completed refurbishing an existing shelter for trafficking victims and began training staff in cooperation with an international organization and a foreign donor, but the shelter was not yet operational. The government also partnered with an NGO to operate a shelter for child victims of abuse, including trafficking. Ten shelters (in nine governorates) for violence against women, run by the MoSS, could receive female and child trafficking victims, including foreign victims; the MoSS operated an additional 78 shelters (18 for girls, 28 for boys, 19 for men, and 13 for women) throughout the country. Some NGOs stated MoSS shelters did not meet the specific needs of some trafficking victims because of concerns about security, privacy, and a lack of adequately trained staff.

The MoSS bylaws stated victims were able to access the shelters without identification documents for up to three days. The government’s ability to provide specialized services to trafficking victims, especially foreign and male victims, remained limited according to some NGOs. The government relied on international organizations and NGOs to provide some victim services, including repatriation. NGOs and international organizations reported non-Egyptian victims, LGBTQI+ victims, and persons with disabilities sought services from NGOs and international organizations because of distrust of authorities and preference for NGO and international organization services.

The government continued to mainly rely on international and civil society organizations to provide and fund victim assistance, but it did not provide financial assistance to these organizations, which affected their ability to offer protective services to victims. Article 27 of the 2010 anti-trafficking law provided for a victim compensation fund; the government reported the drafted decree to establish the fund was pending with the Prime Minister’s Office at the end of the reporting period. The government provided training to some partner NGOs with roles in victim identification and the NRM. The government supported victim assistance in investigations and prosecutions by offering legal assistance to victims, protecting victims’ identities, and providing physical protection when necessary; the government did not report how many victims received this support.

The government did not require victims’ participation in criminal justice proceedings to receive services; however, an international organization reported victims who chose not to participate often had a more difficult time receiving services, including accessing the government’s specialized shelter, in part because of the desire to avoid contact with authorities. To prevent re-traumatization, the government reported prosecutors and law enforcement interviewed victims in the presence of social workers and psychologists, and prosecutors could request to hear victims’ testimony in closed court sessions. Female victims of domestic servitude or sex trafficking reported a reluctance to participate in criminal justice proceedings because of the fear of social stigma and retaliation. The government did not report if prosecutors could pursue restitution in trafficking cases, but victims could file civil suits against traffickers; the government did not report whether any victims received compensation from civil suits.

Authorities frequently relied on NGO referrals or self-reporting by victims to facilitate identification of foreign national victims; however, NGOs reported non-Egyptian victims were resistant to report trafficking crimes to authorities because of fear of being detained, deported, or facing other penalization. Due to inconsistent victim identification, authorities likely detained and arrested trafficking victims for “prostitution” offenses and may have detained and deported some unidentified trafficking victims for immigration violations, according to some NGO and international organization observers. NGOs reported police initially arrested and detained female sex trafficking victims on wrongful charges of “prostitution” or “debauchery.” After NGOs intervened, prosecutors declined to prosecute these victims; however, some victims continued to face challenges because of their arrest records until they are expunged. The government expunged “prostitution-related” charges from the records of 51 sex trafficking victims.

An international organization reported authorities frequently detained and held unaccompanied migrant children with adult detainees without screening for trafficking, despite likely experiencing trafficking during their journey to Egypt.

PREVENTION

The government maintained efforts to prevent human trafficking. The government continued to implement the 2022-2026 National Strategy on Combating and Preventing Trafficking in Persons; NCCPIM & TIP and its 29 member agencies used their budget allocations to implement the strategy. NCCPIM & TIP continued to coordinate inter-ministerial anti-trafficking efforts, including by convening multiple specialized working groups on victim protection issues. NCCPIM & TIP and other governmental entities continued to conduct multiple awareness-raising activities using social media, print media, television, and radio, sometimes in partnership with international organizations.

The National Council for Human Rights, the National Council for Women, and NCCM continued operating hotlines to which the public could report trafficking cases. The government continued a follow-up study to a 2010 report on contractual marriages such as “temporary marriages” and trafficking in Egypt. The government also conducted a survey on the vulnerability of persons experiencing homelessness to identify policies to reduce their vulnerability to exploitation, including trafficking. Labor Law 12 of 2003 authorized the Ministry of Manpower to regulate labor recruitment and stipulated regulations that governed wages, working hours, and right to terminate the relationship, and penalties for non-compliance with work contracts.

The law prohibited companies from taking wages from workers for recruitment fees, not to exceed 2 percent, after the first year of employment but did not prohibit all worker-paid recruitment fees. The law also allowed for the cancellation of the recruitment agency licenses for violations; the government did not report the number of licenses canceled or suspended. Egyptian labor law did not include specific protections for domestic workers, which continued to create greater vulnerabilities to trafficking among this population. The legislature continued reviewing labor legislation drafted during the previous reporting period to improve protections for Egyptian and foreign domestic workers; the legislation remained pending at the end of the reporting period.

In the absence of labor law protections for domestic workers, the NCCPIM & TIP continued to promote a voluntary labor contract employers of domestic workers could use, which offered limited protections for domestic workers. The government, in partnership with an international organization, established a pre-departure guidance unit in July 2023 to educate Egyptian workers traveling abroad about international labor standards and agreements, aiming at raising awareness about their rights and basic duties. The government reported that Egyptian labor attaches abroad assessed the level of wages and living standards to determine fair wages and conditions when reviewing work contracts of Egyptians working abroad. Bilateral agreements concluded by the Ministry of Manpower include model work contracts as part of the agreement, which includes terms and conditions for appropriate agreements.

In an effort to reduce fraud and exploitation of Sudanese refugees fleeing to Egypt, in June 2023, the government introduced more restrictive regulatory procedures and visa requirements for Sudanese nationals to enter Egypt, according to official statements. These included requiring every person to have their own valid passport and not allowing children to be added to parents’ travel documents, as was past practice. NGOs and international organizations warned that these policies, combined with lengthy visa wait times and the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Sudan, would increase refugees’ vulnerability to trafficking as migrant smugglers and human traffickers. The government did not report efforts to reduce the demand for commercial sex acts or extraterritorial commercial child sexual exploitation and abuse.

The government reported providing anti-trafficking training to its troops prior to their deployment as peacekeepers. Although not explicitly reported as human trafficking, the government continued investigating two allegations, one each from 2020 and 2021, of Egyptian peacekeepers serving in the UN peacekeeping operation in the Central African Republic for alleged sexual exploitation involving transactional sex; the investigations remained ongoing. TRAFFICKING PROFILE: As reported over the past five years, human traffickers exploit domestic and foreign victims in Egypt, and traffickers exploit victims from Egypt abroad. Traffickers subject Egyptian children to sex trafficking and forced labor in domestic servitude, street begging, drug trafficking, quarrying, and agricultural work in Egypt.

Traffickers, including some parents, force children to beg in the streets or exploit girls in sex trafficking. An NGO reports visible increases in child forced begging incidents in part because of increasing economic challenges. NGOs report the lack of economic and educational opportunities causes family members, including parents, husbands, and siblings, to subject women and girls to sex trafficking or forced labor in domestic servitude to supplement family incomes. Extraterritorial commercial child sexual exploitation and abuse occurs primarily in Giza and Cairo, according to some reports.

Individuals from the Arabian Gulf, including Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates, purchase Egyptian women and girls for “temporary marriages,” also known as “transactional marriages,” for the purpose of commercial sex, including cases of sex trafficking, as well as forced labor; the victims’ parents and marriage brokers, who profit from the transaction, often facilitate these arrangements. Although an NGO and the government report “temporary marriages” have decreased since 2022, the practice continues. An NGO reported some parents facing socio-economic challenges force girls into permanent marriages where they are subsequently coerced into domestic servitude or commercial sex. An international organization reports some husbands coerce their adult wives into sex trafficking or domestic servitude.

There was no evidence the militia in the Sinai Peninsula that previously recruited or used children did so nor that the government provided support to or coordinated with the militia. In 2022, an NGO reported the government coordinated and conducted joint operations with a militia in the Sinai Peninsula that allegedly recruited and used children, including some in direct hostilities. Traffickers reportedly subject men and women from South and Southeast Asia and East Africa to forced labor in domestic servitude, construction, cleaning, and begging, as well as sex trafficking. Male refugees and migrants are vulnerable to exploitative labor practices, including forced labor.

Foreign domestic workers – who are not protected under Egyptian labor laws – primarily from Syria, Yemen, Bangladesh, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Nigeria, Sudan, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, and parts of West Africa are highly vulnerable to forced labor; employers at times require them to work excessive hours, confiscate their passports, withhold their wages, deny them food and medical care, refuse to provide them with work visas, and subject them to physical, sexual, and psychological abuse. Some employers file false claims of theft to further exploit domestic workers. Traffickers subject women and girls, including refugees and migrants from Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Middle East to sex trafficking in Egypt. An NGO reports migrant smugglers recruit economically marginalized migrants from the Horn of Africa to travel to Egypt in exchange for work or minimal fees; however, the smugglers then exploit the migrants, in particular unaccompanied children, at various locations along the migration route and in Egypt in sex trafficking, domestic servitude, and forced labor on construction sites in hazardous and exploitative working conditions.

Once the migrants arrive in Egypt, the smugglers/traffickers subject them to debt bondage, holding them in captivity until their “debts” are paid. An international organization reported traffickers fraudulently recruit persons from Bolivia, Argentina, Haiti, and Sub-Saharan African countries to play or coach sports in Egyptian sports clubs, in particular soccer clubs, before confiscating their passports, and forcing them to do domestic work such as cleaning for club management and owners. Refugees and migrants from Syria, Sudan, South Sudan, and Yemen who live in Egypt are at risk of trafficking. After the onset of the Sudan conflict in April 2023 and due to restrictive visa policies affecting Sudanese refugees attempting to enter Egypt, international organizations report an increase in migrant smuggling and anticipate an increased vulnerability to trafficking.

An NGO reported unknown perpetrators coerce some women and girls fleeing conflict to perform sex acts in exchange for visas to enter Egypt. NGOs and international organizations report unaccompanied children among the African migrant population are at risk of trafficking in Egypt; Sudanese gangs reportedly target unaccompanied and separated children and force or coerce the children to sell drugs or commit other petty crimes. Undocumented migrants and asylum-seekers from the Horn of Africa, who seek to transit Egypt en route to Europe, are at risk of trafficking along this migration route. In 2022, international organizations and NGOs reported an increase in Egyptians irregularly migrating through Libya in an attempt to reach Europe, in part because of the closure of Egypt’s sea routes; once in Libya, some of these migrants were subject to sex trafficking and forced labor.

Traffickers reportedly exploit Egyptian children in sex trafficking and forced begging in Europe. Traffickers subject Egyptian adults to forced labor in construction, agriculture, domestic work, and low-paying service jobs in the region. An international organization reported an increase in the use of online methods to recruit trafficking victims; in 2021, media reported a Saudi recruitment agency coordinated with an Egyptian marketing company to use a social media website to fraudulently recruit women into domestic servitude in other parts of the Middle East. On This Page search > < EGYPT (Tier 2) PRIORITIZED RECOMMENDATIONS: PROSECUTION PROTECTION PREVENTION TRAFFICKING PROFILE: Tags Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs Egypt Human Trafficking Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons Reports