Countering Trafficking and Exploitation in Bangladesh

Global Fund for Children supports a growing network of organizations in Bangladesh that are dedicated to addressing the trafficking and exploitation of children and youth in their communities.

This initiative is a two-year partnership with WE Trust, which builds on a previous three-year initiative with WE Trust to combat child exploitation and hazardous labor in the slum regions of Dhaka.

Bangladesh has a population of 165 million – 4 million of whom reside in urban slums in Dhaka – and a growing number of rural migrants who seek livelihoods in cities nearer to their villages. In addition to pre-existing factors such as generational poverty and gender inequity, the pandemic and subsequent loss of employment for many, as well as the disruption in education and loss of safe spaces for young people, have placed children and youth at high risk of early marriage, exploitation, and trafficking.

GFC recognizes the far-reaching impacts of the pandemic and has renewed its commitment to supporting community-based organizations in Bangladesh that are working to prevent the trafficking and exploitation of children and youth with a focus on the Dhaka, Jessore, Jamalpur, Gazipur, and Satkhira districts. The seven partner organizations in this cohort are ensuring access to free, quality education for children and youth vulnerable to trafficking and exploitation; empowering youth to lead peer-to-peer learning; creating income-generating opportunities; and ensuring access to legal aid programs for survivors of trafficking.

GFC provides its partners with flexible funding and capacity development services, helping them to strengthen their internal systems and processes, deepen their networks, and become stronger agents for change while empowering the next generation of leaders in their communities.

Header photo: Children learning in a classroom at APON Foundation in Dhaka, Bangladesh. © Global Fund for Children