Understanding Human Trafficking Through Public Administration in Central Asia: Insights from Kazakhstan

Dilzhan Yergaliyev; Özer Köseoğlu

doi:10.52613/ujhc.1925475

EN

Understanding Human Trafficking Through Public Administration in Central Asia: Insights from Kazakhstan

Abstract

This research synthesizes qualitative and quantitative studies of human trafficking dynamics in Central Asia, with a focus on Kazakhstan, by analysing various open sources, such as legal acts, international institutions’ reports, and academic literature, with the core aim of testing the knowledge and degree of trust towards public administration involvement in fighting against human trafficking. The capstone of the research is employing a quantitative analysis method, namely a methodologically justifiable survey with 100 respondents, which underpins the critical influence and importance of a robust public administration system, active engagement of the international sector, and innovative methodology in countering human trafficking. The findings showed that participants view the public administration system as a core element in fighting human trafficking in the region, pledging trust and skepticism towards international support and innovations. The authors represent these findings as a single factor of ‘positive institutional and technological capacity to combat trafficking in persons.’ This paper advocates drawing the attention of all interested parties, including academia, youth, and professional experts, to this issue from a public administration perspective, which would ultimately lead to a more efficient combat against human trafficking.

Keywords

Human rights, Human trafficking, International law, Migration, Public policy, Public administration

Ethical Statement

Participation in the survey was anonymous and voluntary, with no collection of sensitive data or interventions. Nevertheless, prior to the data collection process, ethical approval for this study was obtained on March 14, 2024, with decision #52 of the Ethics Committee of Social Sciences and Humanities, Sakarya University. The paper presents and derives initial findings (Central Asia section) from the first author’s PhD thesis titled An Investigation into Human Trafficking in Central Asia and Türkiye: Public Administration and Policy Challenges. Ethical approval was obtained accordingly and applied to the findings of the current research.

References

24.kg News Agency. (2024, April 18). Organ trafficking: SCNS suppresses activities of transnational group. https://24.kg/english/291970/
Abdi, H., & Williams, L. J. (2010). Principal component analysis. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Computational Statistics, 2(4), 433–459. https://doi.org/10.1002/wics.101
Adeniran, A. O. (2019). Application of Likert scale type and Cronbach’s alpha analysis in an airport perception study. Scholar Journal of Applied Sciences and Research, 2(4), 1–5.
Aguinis, H. (2013). Performance management (3rd ed.). Pearson Education.
Aitieva, M., & Murzalimova, L. (2015). Gender and human trafficking in Central Asia. Journal of Central Asian Studies, 24(2), 45–60.
Amplitude. (2025). What is a t-test? How to use and interpret t-test results. https://amplitude.com/explore/experiment/t-test.
Anti-Slavery International. (2006, November). Trafficking for forced labour in Europe: Report on a study in the UK, Ireland, the Czech Republic and Portugal. https://www.antislavery.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/trafficking_for_fl_in_europe_4_country_report.pdf
Aronowitz, A. (2009). Human trafficking, human misery: The global trade in human beings. Praeger.
Asian Development Bank. (2024). Kazakhstan’s path to law enforcement integrity. Development Asia. https://development.asia/insight/kazakhstans-path-law-enforcement-integrity
Baker, T. L. (1994). Doing social research (2nd ed.). McGraw-Hill.

Blanton, R. G., Blanton, S. L., & Peksen, D. (2020). Confronting human trafficking: The role of state capacity. Conflict Management and Peace Science, 37(4), 471–489. https://doi.org/10.1177/0738894218789875
Bryman, A. (2004). Social research methods (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press.
Bryman, A. (2016). Social research methods (5th ed.). Oxford University Press.
Bryson, J. M., Crosby, B. C., & Bloomberg, L. (2014). Public value governance: Moving beyond traditional public administration and the New Public Management. Public Administration Review, 74(4), 445–456. https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.12238
Buckley, M. (2018). The politics of unfree labour in Russia: Human trafficking and labour migration. Cambridge University Press.
Bureau of National Statistics of the Agency for Strategic Planning and Reforms of the Republic of Kazakhstan. (2025). Public perception of the level of corruption: 16.5.2.1 [Data set]. https://stat.gov.kz/en/sustainable-development-goals/goal/16/
CABAR.asia. (2022, July 29). 60 per cent of citizens of Central Asia found in slavery are women. Central Asian Bureau for Analytical Reporting. https://cabar.asia/en/60-per-cent-of-citizens-of-central-asia-found-in-slavery-are-women
Chatterjee, D. (2022, August 14). How international conferences fail scholars from the Global South. Medium. https://medium.com/international-affairs-blog/how-international-conferences-fail-scholars-from-the-global-south-fbde14e5d1f1
Counter Human Trafficking Trust-East Africa. (2024, February 21). The influence of technological advancement on human trafficking: Challenges and opportunities. https://chttrust-eastafrica.org/2024/02/21/the-influence-of-technological-advancement-on-human-trafficking-challenges-and-opportunities/
Cohen, J. (1992). A power primer. Psychological Bulletin, 112(1), 155–159. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.112.1.155
Counter Trafficking Data Collaborative. (2025). The Global Victim-Perpetrator Synthetic Dataset [Data set]. Global Data Hub on Human Trafficking. https://www.ctdatacollaborative.org/dataset/global-victim-perpetrator-synthetic-dataset-and-resources/resource/07e89e2d-6e9a-4c88-a29c.
Creswell, J. W. (2014). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Duke, D. O., Allard, D., Dysart, S., Hogan, K. O., Phelan, S., Rawlings, L., & Stoklosa, H. (2023). Automated informatics may increase the detection rate of suspicious cases of human trafficking—A preliminary study. JAMIA Open, 6(4), ooad097. https://doi.org/10.1093/jamiaopen/ooad097
Europol. (2020, October 18). The challenges of countering human trafficking in the digital era. https://www.europol.europa.eu/publications-events/publications/challenges-of-countering-human-trafficking-in-digital-era.
Europol’s European Migrant Smuggling Centre. (2024, July 18). Europol flags rise in human traffickers using cryptocurrencies to launder profits. AML Intelligence. https://www.amlintelligence.com/2024/07/news-europol-flags-rise-in-human-traffickers-using-cryptocurrencies-to-launder-profits/
Farrell, A., & Kane, B. (2020). Criminal justice system responses to human trafficking. In J. Winterdyk & J. Jones (Eds.), The Palgrave international handbook of human trafficking (pp. 641–657). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-63058-8_40
Farrell, A., Dank, M., de Vries, I., Kafafian, M., Hughes, A., & Lockwood, S. (2019). Failing victims? Challenges of the police response to human trafficking. Criminology & Public Policy, 18(3), 649–673. https://doi.org/10.1111/1745-9133.12456
Fernandez, J. (2020). The statistical analysis t-test explained for beginners and experts. Medium. https://medium.com/data-science/the-statistical-analysis-t-test-explained-for-beginners-and-experts-fd0e358bbb62
Field, A. (2013). Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS Statistics (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Field, A. (2018). Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS Statistics (5th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Frankfort-Nachmias, C., & Leon-Guerrero, A. (2018). Social statistics for a diverse society (8th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women. (2021). Rights-based approaches to anti-trafficking.
Gallagher, A. T. (2010). The international law of human trafficking. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511761065
Gauci, J.-P., & Hanley, I. (2022, June). Literature review: Determinants of anti-trafficking efforts [Working paper]. British Institute of International and Comparative Law. https://www.biicl.org/documents/11423_literature_review.pdf
Gliem, J. A., & Gliem, R. R. (2003, October 8–10). Calculating, interpreting, and reporting Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient for Likert-type scales. Midwest Research-to-Practice Conference in Adult, Continuing, and Community Education, Columbus, OH, United States. https://scholarworks.indianapolis.iu.edu/server/api/core/bitstreams/976cec6a-914f-4e49-84b2-f658d5b26ff9/content
Goforth, C. (2015, November 16). Using and interpreting Cronbach’s alpha. University of Virginia Library. https://library.virginia.edu/data/articles/using-and-interpreting-cronbachs-alpha
Grimmelikhuijsen, S. G., & Meijer, A. J. (2014). Effects of transparency on the perceived trustworthiness of a government organization: Evidence from an online experiment. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 24(1), 137–157. https://doi.org/10.1093/jopart/mus048
Hair, J. F., Black, W. C., Babin, B. J., & Anderson, R. E. (2019). Multivariate data analysis (8th ed.). Cengage Learning.
Handrahan, L. (2004). Hunting for women: Bride-kidnapping in Kyrgyzstan. International Feminist Journal of Politics, 6(2), 207–233.
Healy, C., & Rogoz, M. (2012). Report on the human trafficking situation in Central Asia. International Centre for Migration Policy Development.https://image.mfa.go.th/mfa/0/x/%E0%B8%AB%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%B7%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%B4%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%A5%E0%B9%87%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%97%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%AA%E0%B9%8C/Human_Trafficking_in_Central_Asia.pdf
Human Rights First. (2017, January 7). Human trafficking by the numbers. https://humanrightsfirst.org/library/human-trafficking-by-the-numbers/
Inter-Agency Coordination Group against Trafficking in Persons. (2019, July 31). Human trafficking and technology: Trends, challenges and opportunities. United Nations. https://icat.un.org/sites/g/files/tmzbdl461/files/human_trafficking_and_technology_trends_challenges_and_opportunities_web.pdf
International Labour Organization. (1975, June 24). Convention (No. 143) concerning migrations in abusive conditions and the promotion of equality of opportunity and treatment of migrant workers. https://normlex.ilo.org/dyn/nrmlx_en/f?p=NORMLEXPUB:12100:0::NO::P12100_ILO_CODE:C143
International Labour Organization. (2017, September 19). Global estimates of modern slavery: Forced labour and forced marriage. https://www.ilo.org/publications/global-estimates-modern-slavery-forced-labour-and-forced-marriage
International Organization for Migration. (2013a). IOM’s reintegration framework of former combatants. https://www.iom.int/sites/g/files/tmzbdl486/files/jahia/webdav/shared/shared/mainsite/activities/mepmm/op_support/epc_ddr_070912.pdf
International Organization for Migration (2013b). Publications. IOM in Kazakhstan. International Organization for Migration. https://kazakhstan.iom.int/iom-kazakhstan
International Organization for Migration. (2019a). Counter-trafficking and assistance to vulnerable migrants: Annual report.
International Organization for Migration. (2019b). World migration report 2020. https://publications.iom.int/books/world-migration-report-2020
International Organization for Migration. (2021). Counter-Trafficking Data Collaborative: Central Asia regional overview. International Organization for Migration. https://www.ctdatacollaborative.org/dashboard/iom-data-overview#no-back
Jung, Y., Park, K., & Ahn, J. (2019). Sustainability in higher education: Perceptions of social responsibility among university students. Social Sciences, 8(3), Article 90. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8030090
Kaminski, B., & Mitra, S. (2012). Borderless bazaars and regional integration in Central Asia: Emerging patterns of trade and cross-border cooperation. World Bank. https://doi.org/10.1596/978-0-8213-9471-7
Kumenov, A. (2012, May 28). Curbing human trafficking in Kazakstan: Government needs to do more to combat sexual exploitation and forced labour. Institute for War & Peace Reporting. https://iwpr.net/global-voices/curbing-human-trafficking-kazakstan
Laczko, F., & Gramegna, M. A. (2003). Developing better ındicators of human trafficking. The Brown Journal of World Affairs, 10 (1), 179-194.
Latonero, M. (2011, September). Human trafficking online: The role of social networking sites and online classifieds. Center on Communication Leadership & Policy, University of Southern California. https://technologyandtrafficking.usc.edu/files/2011/09/HumanTrafficking_FINAL.pdf
Latonero, M., Musto, J., Boyd, Z., Boyle, E., Bissell, A., Gibson, K., & Kim, J. (2012, November). The rise of mobile and the diffusion of technology-facilitated trafficking. Center on Communication Leadership & Policy, University of Southern California. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2177556
Manoharan, A. P., Viswanath, S., & Sabharwal, M. (2020). Public administration pedagogy in India. Journal of Public Affairs Education, 26(3), 291-312.
March, J., & Olsen, J. P. (1984). The new institutionalism: Organizational factors in political life. American Political Science Review, 78(3), 738–749.
Melles, G. (2019). Survey study on attitudes to multi-dimensional sustainable development with U.K. MSc students. Social Sciences, 8(3), Article 75. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8030075
Meynhardt, T. (2009). Public value inside: What is public value creation? International Journal of Public Administration, 32(3–4), 192–219. https://doi.org/10.1080/01900690902732632
Moore, M. H. (1995). Creating public value: Strategic management in government. Harvard University Press.
Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan. (2024, July 5). Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On combating human trafficking”. https://www.gov.kz/memleket/entities/qriim/press/news/details/841061?lang=ru
Ngumbi, E., & Lovett, B. (2020, January 3). Science conferences are stuck in the dark ages. WIRED. https://www.wired.com/story/opinion-science-conferences-are-stuck-in-the-dark-ages/
Nordquist, S. (2023). How does public policy impact trafficking victimization?: An exact matching study in the EU. European Journal of Law and Economics, 56(1), 23–68. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10657-023-09768-7
North, D. C. (1990). Institutions, institutional change, and economic performance. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511808678
Nunnally, J. C. (1978). Psychometric theory (2nd ed.). McGraw-Hill.
Pallant, J. (2020). SPSS survival manual: A step by step guide to data analysis using IBM SPSS (7th ed.). Routledge.
Patton, M. Q. (2015). Qualitative research and evaluation methods (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Plummer, J. D., & Tanis Ozcelik, A. (2015). Preservice teachers developing coherent inquiry investigations in elementary astronomy. Science Education, 99(5), 932–957. https://doi.org/10.1002/sce.21180
Quek, K. (2018). Marriage trafficking: Women in forced wedlock. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781315620138
Rogers, E. M. (1983). Diffusion of innovations (3rd ed.). Free Press.
Rogers, E. M. (2003). Diffusion of innovations (5th ed.). Free Press.
Ryf, K. C. (2002). The first modern anti-slavery law: The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000. Case Western Reserve Journal of International Law, 34(1), 45–71. https://scholarlycommons.law.case.edu/jil/vol34/iss1/2/
Scott, W. R. (2014). Institutions and organizations: Ideas, interests, and identities (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Sears, D. O. (1986). College sophomores in the laboratory: Influences of a narrow data base on social psychology’s view of human nature. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51(3), 515–530. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.51.3.515
Shelley, L. (2010). Human trafficking: A global perspective. Cambridge University Press.
Slaughter, R. A. (1999). Futures for the third millennium: Enabling the forward view. Prospect Media.
Solmaz. (2024). Likert scale: Definition and how to use it. Mentimeter. https://www.mentimeter.com/blog/meetings/likert-scale-definition-and-how-to-use-it
Statistics How To. (2025). One sample t test: SPSS, by hand, step by step. https://www.statisticshowto.com/probability-and-statistics/hypothesis-testing/one-sample-t-test/
Stoker, G. (2006). Public value management: A new narrative for networked governance? American Review of Public Administration, 36(1), 41–57. https://doi.org/10.1177/0275074005282583
Strategic Foresight White Paper. (2013, July). Strategic foresight: From theory to practice – Methods, tools and culture. Agentielle – Strategic Foresight Consultancy.
Surtees, R. (2008). Trafficking of men: A trend less considered: The case of Belarus and Ukraine. International Organization for Migration. https://publications.iom.int/system/files/pdf/mrs_36_3.pdf
Tiurukanova, E. V. (2010). Trafficking in women in Russia: Situational analysis. International Labour Organization.
University of California, Los Angeles Statistical Consulting Group. (2025). Principal components (PCA) and exploratory factor analysis (EFA) with SPSS. https://stats.oarc.ucla.edu/spss/seminars/efa-spss/
United Nations General Assembly. (1990, December 18). International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (A/RES/45/158). https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/105636
United Nations Development Programme. (2009). Capacity development: A UNDP primer. https://www.adaptation-undp.org/sites/default/files/resources/cdg_capacity_development_primer.pdf
United Nations. (2000, November 15). Protocol to prevent, suppress and punish trafficking in persons, especially women and children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime. https://www.ohchr.org/en/instruments-m
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. (2004). United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and the protocols thereto. https://www.unodc.org/documents/treaties/UNTOC/Publications/TOC%20Convention/TOCebook-e.pdf
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. (2018). Global report on trafficking in persons 2018. https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/4048056
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. (2020). Global report on trafficking in persons 2020. https://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/tip/2021/GLOTiP_2020_15jan_web.pdf
Ursachi, G., Horodnic, I. A., & Zait, A. (2015). How reliable are measurement scales? External factors with indirect influence on reliability estimators. Procedia Economics and Finance, 20, 679–686. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2212-5671(15)00123-9
Van Dooren, W., Bouckaert, G., & Halligan, J. (2015). Performance management in the public sector (2nd ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315817590
Winterdyk, J., Perrin, B., & Reichel, P. (Eds.). (2012). Human trafficking: Exploring the international nature, concerns, and complexities. CRC Press. https://doi.org/10.1201/b11555

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Sociology (Other)

Journal Section

Research Article

Authors

Dilzhan Yergaliyev ^*
0000-0002-1873-5369
Türkiye

Özer Köseoğlu
0000-0003-1277-8410
Türkiye

Early Pub Date

May 29, 2026

Publication Date

May 29, 2026

Submission Date

April 8, 2026

Acceptance Date

May 25, 2026

Published in Issue

Year 2026 Volume: 8 Number: 1

DOI

https://doi.org/10.52613/ujhc.1925475

IZ

https://izlik.org/JA86SX82GW

APA

Yergaliyev, D., & Köseoğlu, Ö. (2026). Understanding Human Trafficking Through Public Administration in Central Asia: Insights from Kazakhstan. Universal Journal of History and Culture, 8(1), 80-101. https://doi.org/10.52613/ujhc.1925475

AMA

1.Yergaliyev D, Köseoğlu Ö. Understanding Human Trafficking Through Public Administration in Central Asia: Insights from Kazakhstan. Universal Journal of History and Culture. 2026;8(1):80-101. doi:10.52613/ujhc.1925475

Chicago

Yergaliyev, Dilzhan, and Özer Köseoğlu. 2026. “Understanding Human Trafficking Through Public Administration in Central Asia: Insights from Kazakhstan”. Universal Journal of History and Culture 8 (1): 80-101. https://doi.org/10.52613/ujhc.1925475.

EndNote

Yergaliyev D, Köseoğlu Ö (May 1, 2026) Understanding Human Trafficking Through Public Administration in Central Asia: Insights from Kazakhstan. Universal Journal of History and Culture 8 1 80–101.

IEEE

[1]D. Yergaliyev and Ö. Köseoğlu, “Understanding Human Trafficking Through Public Administration in Central Asia: Insights from Kazakhstan”, Universal Journal of History and Culture, vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 80–101, May 2026, doi: 10.52613/ujhc.1925475.

ISNAD

Yergaliyev, Dilzhan - Köseoğlu, Özer. “Understanding Human Trafficking Through Public Administration in Central Asia: Insights from Kazakhstan”. Universal Journal of History and Culture 8/1 (May 1, 2026): 80-101. https://doi.org/10.52613/ujhc.1925475.

JAMA

1.Yergaliyev D, Köseoğlu Ö. Understanding Human Trafficking Through Public Administration in Central Asia: Insights from Kazakhstan. Universal Journal of History and Culture. 2026;8:80–101.

MLA

Yergaliyev, Dilzhan, and Özer Köseoğlu. “Understanding Human Trafficking Through Public Administration in Central Asia: Insights from Kazakhstan”. Universal Journal of History and Culture, vol. 8, no. 1, May 2026, pp. 80-101, doi:10.52613/ujhc.1925475.

Vancouver

1.Dilzhan Yergaliyev, Özer Köseoğlu. Understanding Human Trafficking Through Public Administration in Central Asia: Insights from Kazakhstan. Universal Journal of History and Culture. 2026 May 1;8(1):80-101. doi:10.52613/ujhc.1925475

29162

The published articles in UJHC are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Abstract

Understanding Human Trafficking Through Public Administration in Central Asia: Insights from Kazakhstan

Abstract

Keywords

Ethical Statement

References

Details

Primary Language

Subjects

Journal Section

Authors

Early Pub Date

Publication Date

Submission Date

Acceptance Date

Published in Issue

DOI

IZ

Cite