Trinidad and Tobago remained on Tier 2 in the US trafficking report. Barbados stayed on the watch list.
Trinidad and Tobago remained on Tier 2 in the U.S. State Department’s 2026 Trafficking in Persons Report, published Oct. 8, while Guyana stayed on Tier 1 and Barbados and Saint Lucia each stayed on the Tier 2 Watch List. Jamaica kept its Tier 2 ranking, the Jamaica Gleaner reported, and Haiti remained a Special Case, a category used for countries in crisis. The report assesses government efforts from April 1, 2025, to March 31, 2026. Tier 1 means a government fully meets U.S. minimum standards, Tier 2 means it does not but is making significant efforts, and the Watch List flags countries at risk of falling further.
The department said Trinidad and Tobago showed overall increasing efforts compared with the previous year. It cited more prosecutions and the 16-year, five-month sentence given to a former police officer convicted of human trafficking. Authorities opened 79 investigations, down from 118 in 2024, prosecuted 13 suspects and secured one conviction. They identified 26 sex trafficking victims, 25 of them Venezuelan, down from 45 the year before. The report also noted weak evidence collection, inconsistent screening of vulnerable groups and no meaningful step to strengthen oversight of labor recruiters. It said civil society groups continued to allege police complicity in trafficking, particularly along the southern coast. It also noted the government has never appointed a licensing officer for labor recruiters. Spending on victim services fell to TT$492,662 ($72,792) from TT$791,410.
Guyana remained on Tier 1 after prosecuting alleged traffickers, opening a 30-person transition home for victims and requiring fair labor conditions for Cuban regime-affiliated workers, according to the report. The report said Cuba ended its bilateral health agreement with Guyana in early 2026, and about 110 of the 370 workers stayed under government protection. It also noted fewer investigations, down to 16 from 31, and fewer victims referred to care. It said the government closed some shelters and cut funding for protection and prevention. It noted weak oversight of recruitment agencies and of China-affiliated worksites.
Barbados stayed on the Watch List for a second year, Nation News reported. Barbados opened six investigations, compared with none the previous year, but initiated no prosecutions, has never secured a conviction under its 2016 law and has not identified a victim since 2021. Saint Lucia was also on the Watch List for a second year, the State Department said. The report said the government did not report referring an identified victim to protection services or funding victim services. In Jamaica, the report said children apprehended for gang-related activity are not typically screened for trafficking indicators and could be penalized for crimes they were forced to commit, the Gleaner reported.
The report said Haiti did not report any investigations, prosecutions or convictions for a second consecutive year, as gang violence limited officials’ movement and shut court buildings. It said gangs and foreign terrorist organizations control or occupy most of Port-au-Prince, and that about half of gang members are children, citing an international organization. Haiti published a 10-year national action plan against trafficking in December 2025.
Aurax News compiled this report from information provided by the U.S. State Department, Nation News, the Jamaica Gleaner and the Rio Times.