Eighteen female victims of human trafficking were identified in Malta between 2004 and 2007, a United Nations report shows.
Eight of the women, who were identified in 2006 and 2007, were trafficked for sexual exploitation, according to the report launched earlier this month.
Based on data from 155 countries, the report says that sexual exploitation is the most common form of human trafficking, amounting to a staggering 79 per cent of victims worldwide, with victims being predominantly women and girls.
Human trafficking is the movement of people by force, fraud or deception with the aim of exploiting them as opposed to the smuggling of immigrants who consent to go to another country.
Police inspector Raymond Aquilina said the problem in Malta was not as alarming as in other countries. In fact, the report itself shows that more than 40,000 victims were identified in 71 countries between 2004 and 2006 - as opposed to 13 in Malta.
"Every year, around the world, hundreds of thousands of people are bought and sold either for slavery or for sex exploitation," he said during a workshop for those working in the field organised by the International Organisation for Migration.
But even though rare, the stories which have emerged are still nightmarish. Just last July, a 21-year-old Swedish woman claimed to have escaped from a local brothel after being forced into prostitution.
According to prosecuting officers, her claims were corroborated by witnesses and the woman had requested to testify through video conferencing because she was terrified of appearing in the presence of the pimps.
Just two years earlier, a former policeman was arraigned and charged with receiving payment to traffic a person for prostitution.
"Women and children are the main victims," said Peter Schatzer, the director of the International Organisation for Migration Mediterranean, adding that Malta has taken "exemplary steps" to avoid this phenomenon from spreading.
He told The Times that often victims are scared to report the traffickers, especially when they feel this would pose a threat to their families back in their homeland.
"Many of these women are too afraid to talk, often because traffickers are powerful and have a lot of money," he said.
Mr Schatzer explained that most victims are promised a better life in another country and although some suspect that they would have to work in the sex industry they do imagine having to forfeit their earnings.
Speaking during the seminar, Mr Schatzer said this phenomenon has become a multi-million dollar industry.
Inspector Aquilina said all cases of human trafficking in Malta were related to sexual exploitation, with the authorities never receiving reports of child trafficking, trafficking for forced labour or removal of organs.
Social Policy Minister John Dalli said human trafficking had reached epidemic proportions over the past decade and has a global market of around $42.5 billion, affecting millions of children, women and men around the world.
"Counter-trafficking professionals are required to actively look out for it and work pro-actively in multi-entity networking to be more successful in identifying it. A collective effort needs to be made to reduce the demand for this crime and in doing so prevent potential victims falling prey to it and protect current victims," he said.
Inspector Aquilina urged people to keep their eyes open. "Many times these crimes take place underground. But anyone coming across a suspicious situation can inform the police," he said, adding that tip-offs can be confidential.