Since 1991, more than 160,000 men, women, and children have been forced into labor, begging, and illegal organ trafficking, according to a report by the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
The Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine is currently finalizing an update to the five-year action plan regarding the fight against human trafficking.
Meanwhile, the ongoing aggression of the Russian Federation in eastern Ukraine and one and a half million internally displaced refugees have diverted government attention and funding from this issue.
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'All the funds went to benefits, military, and refugees' - said Olga Streltsova, advisor to the IOM at the Ministry of Social Policy.
The planned budget for implementing the human trafficking strategy has been cut by a third compared to the predecessor plan, which covered 2013-2015. External assistance, such as from human rights organizations and foreign governments, will still account for the vast majority of funding for the program.
These donors will provide an equivalent of $1.47 million by 2020, or more than 92% of all the allocated funds. Another 8 percent will be equally divided between local governments and central authorities.
'The issue of funding has become a major difficulty for the government, - reported Tatiana Taturevich, social programs manager for refugees. - When mentioning human trafficking, they start to think: 'This is not the biggest problem for our society. We have no money, there is a war''.
At the same time, the authorities of Ukraine have repeatedly announced reforms aimed at fulfilling international obligations regarding the prevention of child and women's trafficking.
According to government data, over the past four years, the number of victims of human trafficking mentioned by the IOM has decreased by approximately half each year.
In 2012-2015 there were 232, 105, 52, and 27 victims, respectively. These figures significantly diverge from those recorded by the IOM - the average number of identified victims annually is close to one thousand.
International institutions, such as the U.S. State Department and the Council of Europe’s Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA), have criticized Ukrainian authorities for insufficient attention to this problem.
The State Department cautiously notes a decline in the number of prosecutions of traffickers and a lackluster cooperation at the state level between the 15 ministries responsible for anti-trafficking activities.
Putting aside the shortcomings of the authorities, a few positive measures have been taken. In recent years, the Ministry of Social Policy has implemented campaigns to raise awareness about human trafficking through television, media, and broadcasting.
However, much still lies ahead, especially after the conflict in Donbas has created a large group of individuals at risk of exploitation.