This thesis is examining human trafficking in women and children from Nepal. Each year thousands of women and children are trafficked into forced labour and sexual exploitation in the Indian sex industry and circuses. The first objectives of thesis is to examine how the supply and demand led factors impact on the trafficking in women and children from Nepal to India. The second objective is to examine which anti trafficking initiatives that has been made in Nepal. The thesis shows that human trafficking in women and children in Nepal is deeply rooted in structural factors of the society. These economic, social, cultural and political factors all impact on a high rate of labour migration from Nepal to foreign countries, such as India and the Gulf states. This is also a result of Nepal's governments failed implementation of a coherent development strategy in mobilising its resources, which has resulted in ineffective agriculture, education and human resource development. This inefficiency has led to low rates of growth and high rates of unemployment and underemployment in an economy mainly based on small scale subsistence agriculture, handicraft, and services. These structural factors and declining natural resources, limited land, a rapid population growth, and a decade with political instability, are the main push factors of a high labour migration rate. The socio-cultural factors in Nepal's society with patriarchal culture, results in gender discrimination and low status of women. This has further resulted in a feminisation of poverty as males are migrating in increasingly numbers, leaving their families behind. As most women are occupied in agriculture and domestic duties, it leaves them in vulnerable situation in times with unexpected situation. The poverty and lack of livelihood opportunities also push and pull females out in the streams of migration in the search of employment, which makes them depended on social network to facilitate the transportation and/or employment. In the case of Nepal it is evident that family members, relatives and community members are complicit in the trafficking of women and children for the sex industry and Indian circuses in India. In most cases these groups are females, often very young, who is either trafficked by parents, relatives, community members or agents from outside. This process can either be directly from rural communities, work place or indirectly stretching over time. In the case of the youngest children, these are often trafficked with their parents consent to Indian circuses. The majority of these trafficked persons are females that are in great demand in Indian brothels and circuses. These Nepalese women and children are living as slaves forced into labour and debt bondage, where the "owners" makes Hugh profits of exploiting of women and children. There is range of different actors involved a large trafficking networks, involving recruiters, corrupt state officials, policemen on both the supply and demand side. These women and children are living in confinement and abused every day from 2-10 years. The anti trafficking initiatives has mainly been made by NGOs in Nepal. The government of Nepal has made stringent laws, but they are weakly enforced, which results in a culture of impunity. NGO's such as Maiti Nepal is strongly committed to combat these human rights violation, by prevention programs. Maiti Nepal and other NGO also runs rehabilitation centers, and tries to reintegrate former trafficked persons (post trafficked). This is a very difficult tasks as stigma is prevalent in many communities in Nepal, hindering the reintegration.

Key Words: Poverty, Migration, Human Trafficking, Gender, Development, Stigma