This study was conducted in three provinces on Cambodia – Koh Kong, Kampong Som, and Siem Reap. The research aim for the project was to map the process and mechanisms of trafficking within Cambodia for two target groups, Commercially Sexually Exploited Women and Girls (CSEWGs) and child domestic workers (CDWs). The research objectives sought to understand how the ‘pull’ factors in different provinces lead to migration and trafficking. It also sought to understand how process of migration could constitute trafficking.

Trafficking was defined using the UN’s Palermo Protocol. The research looked at specific indicators of trafficking, including; recruitment, levels of deception involved in recruitment, the use of recruiters and paths of migration, levels of payment and debt, freedom of movement, age of entry into domestic work, work hours and patterns of abuse in the work location. Household owners who employed domestic workers were also interviewed on their methods of recruitment, but the research also sought to assess levels of demand for underage workers, as well as attitudes that could support trafficking related practices, including those towards punishment and forced labour.