15 Mag 2025
WHO IS MAKING RUSSIA'S DRONES? THE MIGRANT WOMEN EXPLOITED FOR RUSSIA’S WAR ECONOMY
Riepilogo
Date Reported: 15 Mag 2025
Location: Russia
Companies
Alabuga Special Economic Zone - Employer , Sahara Thunder - Supplier , Albatross - Other Value Chain Entity , Generation Trading - Other Value Chain Entity , Geo Ventures Travel and Consultancy Services - Recruiter , Telegram - Other Value Chain Entity , TikTok (part of ByteDance) - Other Value Chain Entity , VK (formerly Mail.ru) - Other Value Chain Entity , X Corp. (formerly Twitter) - Other Value Chain Entity , Meta (formerly Facebook) - Other Value Chain Entity , ByteDance - Parent CompanyAffected
Total individuals affected: 800
Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Etiopia , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Gambia , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Ghana , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Kenya , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Kirghizistan , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Lesotho , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Mali , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Mozambico , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Nigeria , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Ruanda , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Ruanda , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Sierra Leone , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Sudafrica , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Sudan del Sud , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Sri Lanka , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Tagikistan , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Tanzania , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Tunisia , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Uganda , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Uganda , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Uzbekistan , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Zambia , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Zimbabwe , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Algeria , Manufacturing: General , Women , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Azerbaigian , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Colombia , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Bielorussia , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Botswana , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Burkina Faso , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Repubblica Centrafricana , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status ) , Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Kazakistan , Manufacturing: General , Gender not reported , Unknown migration status )Issues
Surveillance , Human Trafficking , Occupational Health & Safety , Access to Information , Reasonable Working Hours & Leisure Time , Racial, ethnicity, caste or origin discrimination , Harassment (other than sexual) , Excessive production targets , Occupational Health & Safety , Injuries , Intimidation , Wage Theft , Contract SubstitutionResponse
Response sought: Yes, by Resource Centre
Action taken: Several governments in Africa have been alerted to the risks of the programme to their citizens and taken steps to either halt the recruitment or to ask questions of the local intermediaries who have engaged with Alabuga. Some of the intermediaries whom Alabuga recruiters approached have also distanced themselves from the programme, seemingly in response to the revelations about working conditions and increased public scrutiny of their role. The Business & Human Rights Resource Centre previously invited Meta, Telegram and TikTok to respond to the use of their platforms for the Alabuga Start programme. Responses from Meta and TikTok can be read on the website. In June, the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre invited Alabuga SEZ, Albatross Geo Ventures Travel and Consultancy Services, X, and VKontakte to respond to the report. The companies did not respond. The Resource Centre was not able to contact Sahara Thunder or Generation Trading to invite a response to the report; if a response is received in future this page will be updated accordingly.
Source type: NGO
…The activities of Alabuga Start therefore warranted further investigation to shed light on the potential exploitation of participants and the risks they face, including whether the reportedly repressive working conditions and fraudulent recruitment constitute human trafficking. This report presents the findings of that investigation. Building on the media reports referred to above, this study looks into the programme’s recruitment strategies in Africa and the working conditions at the site in Russia. It examines the role of local intermediaries involved in recruitment and the extent of their awareness of the risks to participants. Finally, it evaluates the relationship between the Alabuga SEZ and the Russian state, to assess if the Alabuga Start programme is a state-backed, or even state-led, initiative. If that were the case, it would mean the Russian state would be engaged in deception and exploitation.
The research confirmed that the Alabuga SEZ is engaged in the exploitation of its underage students and migrant workers…
Based on the available evidence (explored in more detail below), this study finds that the Alabuga Start programme fulfils several of the conditions for a case of human trafficking. The deceptive nature of the recruitment and repressive working conditions appear to be a form of fraudulent exploitation…