Research shows AI technology can analyze complex datasets to improve survivor outcomes
Large volumes of modern slavery data can be rapidly analyzed using AI techniques, a civil society report highlights migrant deaths on the EU-Belarusian border, and barriers to funding force Indian non-profits to curtail their activities.
Ethical AI can be an efficient and effective tool for stakeholders seeking deeper insights into human trafficking, according to the results of a report from the Modern Slavery and Human Rights Policy & Evidence Centre (Modern Slavery PEC) on the use of AI to support survivors and improve policy outcomes in the UK. When studying the use of Natural Language Processing (NLP) – an AI technology – to analyze modern slavery-related data sets, researchers found that, while substantial resources are initially required for training and validating NLP models, data can be analyzed rapidly once these models are established.
By leveraging AI techniques, particularly NLP, the research emphasizes the potential advantages of using technology to handle large volumes of data and bypass manual analysis to inform insights and proposals regarding survivor needs. And, while survivor needs identified using NLP are consistent with the needs identified by conventional methods, NLP enables this identification to be conducted at scale and in real-time.
However, the study also found that, while NLP is an effective tool for uncovering insights from textual data, and can identify the types of support needed, it may be less effective when analyzing culturally specific language. The authors note that human involvement remains crucial for overseeing the insights derived by AI technology, and providing direct support to survivors.
The report is based on Project RESTART (The Reporting Experiences of Survivors to Analyse in Real-Time), a research initiative conducted by Aberystwyth University, FiftyEight, Trilateral Research, and Causeway, which arose from the recognition that the UK still falls short of adequately protecting survivors of modern slavery. The project sought to provide a proof of concept for a more effective method for understanding survivors’ needs, and used NLP to analyze large and complex data sets that would otherwise remain underutilized due to resource constraints.
The project also sought to discover whether technology could serve as a viable platform for survivors to contribute their lived experiences and expertise in shaping modern slavery services authentically, integrating their voices into the research by enabling them to actively document their individual experiences and assess their own needs via a smartphone app. Subsequently, the data generated underwent analysis using NLP techniques, with researchers finding that access to an appropriate app yields benefits to survivors by providing a space in which they can record their recovery journey, and thoughts and feelings throughout it, independently. Moreover, the findings highlight technology as a new avenue for survivors to actively shape support services and policy recommendations.
The authors now recommend that the UK Government incorporates the use of AI technologies such as NLP across UK Home Office and First Responder agencies as a means of identifying fluctuations in modern slavery trends and survivor support needs in real-time, with a view to sustained enhancement of support measures and mechanisms. They also suggest that training should be introduced at the national level to ensure all statutory and state-funded support services collect and record data in line with strict privacy and protection measures and in a standardized manner, to better enable efficient analysis and anonymization by AI technologies. Furthermore, subject-matter experts (including lived experience experts) should be involved in the development and vetting of any use of AI and other technologies to ensure they are customized to respond to the complexities related to modern slavery.
The report also recommends that access to mobile devices and internet data packages should be made available through state-funded survivor support services, and the use of apps to help survivors to manage their needs and goals should be encouraged. Education and upskilling programs should be integrated into survivor support services and should also enhance tech literacy, including support for survivors wishing to participate in consultation activities and mentoring opportunities.
Here’s a round-up of other noteworthy news and initiatives:
A new report by Europol’s European Migrant Smuggling Centre (EMSC) looks into the latest developments and main threats in migrant smuggling and trafficking in human beings, based on recent operations supported by Europol. The report highlights the main challenges presented by the current criminal landscape, including criminals’ exploitation of geopolitical events and abuse of social media platforms, and aims to help law enforcement step up the fight against these networks.
The International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) has successfully appealed against the labour and human rights claims made by the UK Nephrops Fishery Improvement Project (FIP) – a multi-stakeholder initiative designed to help fisheries work towards sustainability – revealing significant failures in the current framework of voluntary measures. ITF’s claims were recognized by industry sustainability reporting platforms FishChoice and FisheryProgress, confirming the presence of forced labour and human trafficking within the UK scampi FIP, it says.
Mexican migrant workers who traveled to pick fruit in North Carolina have been awarded a total of US$150,000 in response to a human trafficking lawsuit. The farms and the contractors who brought the workers to the U.S. withheld thousands of dollars’ worth of wages, threatened them with deportation if they fled, and sexually assaulted one woman, the federal lawsuit alleged. The case is one of several alleging misuse of foreign workers with H-2A visas in North Carolina in recent years, an investigation has found.
A newly published report presents the data on migrant deaths on the EU-Belarusian border since the humanitarian crisis in the area began in the summer of 2021. By the end of March 2024, it says, 116 border deaths had been documented in four countries (Belarus, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland) and at least 26 further cases had been reported by migrants. Produced by civil society organizations, the report calls for action to prevent further tragedy, including compliance with international law and the implementation of search-and-rescue protocols.
Many Indian non-profits have been forced to drastically cut down their activities and lay off staff, due to a lack of foreign funding and increasingly complex procedures for obtaining domestic funding. Recent changes to the country’s Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) which banned sub-granting to smaller entities have effectively cut off funds for grassroots organizations, with Amnesty International having previously criticized the Indian Government for using the act to silence civil society in India.
USAID Asia CTIP, in close collaboration with the University of Nottingham’s Rights Lab and Praxis India, will host a webinar on 31 July, 15:00-17:00 ICT BKK, centering on the effectiveness of current Private Sector Engagement (PSE) strategies in combating trafficking in persons. It aims to examine existing methods, introduce innovative metrics to better assess quality and outcomes, and explore approaches to PSE that emphasize community-based support and collective action among workers.
Join the U.S. Department of Labor on 5 September, 10:00-11.30am ET, in person or online, for the unveiling of its latest Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor report and List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor. Department leaders will share the latest research on the extent and nature of exploitative labour worldwide and discuss effective practices in corporate accountability with experts from the corporate sector, civil society, and the U.S. government.
In recognition of World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, Winrock International is hosting a webinar on 30 July, 9:00-10.30am EST, in line with the UN’s theme for the year, Leave No Child Behind in the Fight Against Trafficking. Discussions will explore policy and community-based approaches to countering child trafficking, and trauma-informed identification and care.
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