The movement of women and children across boundaries has always been a component of global migration. Toward the end of the 20th Century, however, particularly with the end of the Cold War, new issues in the international migration of women and children began to emerge. Among them has been the particular issue of the trafficking of women and children across international borders by organized criminal groups intent on profiting from the abuse and exploitation of those they traffic.

This late 20th Century and, now, 21st Century phenomenon, characterized in particular by the trafficking of women to work as sex slaves, reaches every corner of the globe – from Asia and Africa to Europe and the Americas. In response, an international movement to confront the trafficking of women and children and to abolish, in particular, sex slavery, is growing, enlisting governments, intra-governmental agencies, and non-governmental organizations worldwide. To lead and fuel this movement, informed and trained individuals are in great and growing demand.