Top 10 African Countries with the worst human trafficking scores: Latest rankings

• Eritrea recorded Africa’s highest human trafficking score of 9.00.

• Five African countries followed with scores of 8.50.

• The rankings highlight ongoing trafficking concerns across Africa.

Poverty, unemployment, conflict, political instability and weak governance can create conditions that traffickers exploit to recruit and control victims. However, the problem is not static, as organised criminal networks continually adapt to changing economic, political and technological conditions.

The 2025 Organised Crime Index by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC) highlights how criminal activities are evolving worldwide, with implications for efforts to combat human trafficking.

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The report describes a global criminal landscape undergoing significant changes as existing illicit markets intersect with geopolitical tensions, technological developments, economic pressures and conflict.

These shifts can create new vulnerabilities, alter trafficking routes and make criminal networks more difficult to detect and disrupt.

According to the Index's human trafficking rankings, Eritrea recorded a score of 9.00, tying for the highest score globally. Afghanistan, North Korea, Myanmar and Yemen also recorded 9.00, placing them alongside Eritrea at the top of the global assessment.

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The scores reflect the Index's assessment of human trafficking, rather than the actual number of victims or reported cases in each country.

Across Africa, the figures show that the challenge extends beyond one country or region. Burundi, Libya, Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan each recorded a human trafficking score of 8.50, while the Central African Republic, Ethiopia, Kenya and Niger scored 8.00.

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The results highlight the need to examine trafficking alongside the broader conditions that allow organised criminal activity to persist.

The wider findings of the 2025 Index suggest that organised crime is becoming more interconnected and adaptable. The report identifies rising scores for financial and cyber-dependent crimes, driven partly by digital transformation and the growing adoption of artificial intelligence.

It also points to the increasing influence of foreign and private-sector actors, alongside changes in illicit markets and growing pressure on international cooperation and justice systems.

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Although these developments do not directly measure human trafficking, they provide important context for understanding the changing environment in which organised crime operates.

Technological change, economic disruption and shifting criminal networks can affect how illicit activities are organised and how authorities respond. The Index therefore emphasises the importance of examining not only criminality levels but also changes in criminal markets, the actors involved and the resilience of countries.

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The resilience scores in the African ranking offer another perspective on the challenge. They indicate differences in countries' assessed capacity to withstand and respond to organised crime.

Stronger institutions, effective law enforcement, international cooperation and victim protection remain important elements of a comprehensive response to trafficking.

The table below presents the 10 African countries featured in the supplied 2025 ranking with the highest human trafficking scores, alongside their criminality, criminal markets, criminal actors and resilience scores.

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