Finland is bound by international instruments such as United Nations’ Conventions and European Union Directives and national law to combat trafficking in human beings, including child trafficking, and to protect children’s rights and provide special protection measures for them in the criminal justice process. In recent years, the awareness of and research in trafficking in children in Finland have increased. The number of identified child victims of trafficking in human beings remains low.
The desk research phase was conducted in spring 2025 by going through relevant laws, policy documents, action plans and reports concerning trafficking in human beings and/or children’s rights.
Through three focus group discussions and 16 expert interviews, information on current trends as well as on good practices and challenges was gathered. The participants were chosen based on existing contacts between HEUNI and professionals routinely working in the field of trafficking in human beings, as well as snowballing method where recommendations were asked from interviewees regarding relevant experts.
Three focus groups were organized in total, the first targeted at NGO experts, the second at governmental and municipal authorities and officials, and the third at law enforcement officers and members of the judiciary. 14 persons in total took part (13 women and one man): four NGO representatives, four professionals working in social and victim services, two law enforcement officers, two members of the judiciary, and two governmental representatives. Of the 16 one-on-one expert interviewees, 12 were women and four men. They included five law enforcement officers, five members of the judiciary, four professionals working in social and victim services and two NGO representatives. The gender imbalance among the professionals reflects, in our experience, the situation in Finland, where most experts and professionals working with issues related to trafficking in human beings are women.
Project number: 101188335
Project name: Strengthening Judicial expertise and Frontline support to combat Child Trafficking
Project acronym: SafeBorders
Call: ISF-2023-TF2-AG-OC
Topic: ISF-2023-TF2-AG-OC-Organised-Crime