About us

ILFAT (Integrated Leaders Forum Against Trafficking) is the first, only, and largest national federation of trafficking survivors in the world. Composed of 2,814 members across 7 states, ILFAT represents the most marginalized people in India, whose socio-economic vulnerability has made them susceptible to trafficking.

Our federation includes individuals who have significantly grown in their leadership journey after having endured intergenerational servitude, bonded labor, child labor, commercial sexual exploitation, sex trafficking, labour trafficking, and coercion into servitude.

Why We Formed ILFAT

For far too long, anti-trafficking interventions have been designed by governments, NGOs, and financiers, with minimal input from those most affected—survivors. In 2018, individual survivors of trafficking had demanded and advocated for the passing of the Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and Rehabilitation) Bill, 2018. The bill was passed in Lok Sabha, but it was never tabled in Rajya Sabha. This was hugely disappointing. However, what was gathered was that a collective voice of survivors would be far more powerful than individual ones. This was the genesis of ILFAT – Indian Leadership Forum Against Trafficking - A platform for the survivors, from the survivors and by the survivors. In Dec 2023, ILFAT was incorporated as a Section 8 Company in the name of Integrated Leaders Forum Against Trafficking.

Prior to ILFAT’s formation, survivors from different forms of exploitation had been working in silos, despite having commonalities between their experiences and needs. ILFAT was developed to collectivize these efforts, recognizing the strength in uniting survivors to address these interconnected challenges together.

ILFAT seeks to empower survivors to rebuild their lives and provide a platform for their voices to shape governance and development, so that policy interventions are more inclusive of their needs, and more recognizing of survivors’ challenges. They believe that this will be instrumental in preventing human exploitation, and reducing vulnerability at all levels across India.

What Makes Us Unique

Over the past five years, ILFAT's journey has revealed the intricate connections between trafficking and a range of broader social challenges such as migration, gender inequality, healthcare, education, and climate change. These issues, deeply intertwined with the vulnerabilities that fuel trafficking, have shaped our approach to focus beyond just anti-trafficking.

Our firsthand experience provides unique insights into the needs of survivors from diverse parts of the country, along with the various challenges they have faced in their post-trafficking journeys. We wish to convey these insights and experiences to relevant stakeholders and policymakers, and work alongside them to address these intersectional areas, enabling policies that are survivor-inclusive in nature and more effective in driving anti-trafficking interventions.