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

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.