Human trafficking is widespread in South-East Asia and in rural areas of Laos young women and girls are at a high risk of being trapped in the Thai sex trade.

In a country where more than 75 per cent of the workforce is involved in farming, a French NGO has now added agriculture to its vocational training to help survivors re-integrate back into their communities.

Many girls have returned from Thailand where a local middle man has, under false pretences, sold them into forced labour and in many instances prostitution.

Madam Virirth Khattignavong is the country director of Sengsavang, a French NGO that helps victims of human trafficking in Savannakhet in southern Laos.

"Most of the victims in our shelter are victims of human trafficking from Thailand, who come and accept to stay with us and they get vocational training with us," she said.

At Sengsavang, the girls range from 12 to 27 years old and the focus is initially on providing shelter and care for the women, and then later vocational training through sewing, cooking, and growing vegetables.

It's estimated that in the Greater Mekong Subregion which includes Laos, Thailand, China, Vietnam and Cambodia, between 200,000 and 450,000 people are trafficked each year.

A young survivor of human trafficking at Sengsavang in southern Laos learning how to sew. ( Joshua Becker )

Young women in rural areas are particularly vulnerable to trafficking due to the lack of economic opportunities combined with a social pressure to leave school and earn money for the family.

"We provide the knowledge of how to earn the money or how to get a job. She can work in the community with her own land or she can stay in the community and she can help to reduce the poverty on this family." said Madam Virith.

In the majority of cases the victims are lied to about the job opportunity and the conditions.

However, Madam Virith shares a story about one girl who was sold to a sex trafficker in Thailand.

"She was only 14 years old, her family was in Thailand with her and her mother sold her and that led to a lot of trauma" she said.

"[It's] very sad, very sad, because both in the Lao culture and foreign cultures the mother can't sell her daughter — this is a human, and the law in lao we didn't accept on this issue.

"We convinced her to learn the Lao language, like a primary school, and accompany her to visit a psychologist at the hospital and get the medicine.

"Now I think that she will be better with our counselling and our friendly team to work with her."

Madam Virith would like to see stronger legal protections as well as more assistance to help girls re-integrated into their communities.

The team at French NGO Sengsavang who help women and girls victims of human trafficking (left) Souksavay 'Joe' Bounnara, social enterprise co-ordinator, Madam Noum caregiver (centre) and in country director Madam Virirth Khattignavong (R) ( Joshua Becker )

Souksavay Bounnara, who locals call by his nickname 'Joe', is the social enterprise co-ordinator.

Joe said the businesses run on site give women the hands-on experience needed to get another job and most importantly help to overcome the stigma that comes with returning to their community.

"I have been working here for two years and half and I'm responsible for the cooking business, the restaurant, the tailor and beauty salon and the organic farm," he said.

"The challenge and the difficulty is that when they go back to their hometown they cannot run a business because it's in the community.

"That's why some girls stay longer to work here, for both the employment opportunity and to make some income."

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Listen Duration: 4 minutes 52 seconds 4 m 52 s Farming key to trafficking rehabilitation in Laos ( Joshua Becker ) Download 2.2 MB

In Savannakhet in southern Laos, 20-year-old survivor 'Lawan' has been removing weeds and turning the soil in their new organic vegetable garden.

"We really enjoy working here because what we are growing is organic vegetables and not only vegetable but we are also doing oyster mushroom cultivation as well," she said.

Lawan hopes these skills will lead to a very different life.

"I am now taking sewing training and agriculture training," she said.

"In the future I want to have a small shop for sewing and also want to have land near to my house, where I can grow vegetables when I have free time after work or on weekends."

Reporter Josh Becker travelled to Laos with assistance from the Crawford Fund.