BANGKOK/WASHINGTON - The United States has removed Thailand from its human trafficking blacklist, though forced labour is still widespread in the nation's lucrative seafood industry.
The State Department made the assessment in its annual Trafficking in Persons Report, which examines the efforts of 188 governments in fighting modern-day slavery.
Thailand was "upgraded" to Tier 2 Watch List from Tier 3 in the four-tier grading system, it said in a statement released on Thursday night.
Despite praising Thailand for efforts to combat human trafficking over the period, the US said more had to be done.
The new ranking "underscores that the problem of human trafficking in Thailand remains large and requires additional, substantial, and effective government leadership," it said.
"We encourage Thailand to make further, sustained progress in fighting trafficking and enforcing Thai anti-trafficking laws," it added.
The report assessed Thailand's anti-trafficking efforts from April last year through March this year.
It pointed to forced labour in the seafood sector and labour trafficking including debt bondage among the problems needed to be addressed by Thailand.
The government and the business sector have already welcomed the upgrade and Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon said on Wednesday that the country will not let up in its crackdown on human trafficking.
Key US trading partner Malaysia was taken off the blacklist controversially in 2015, soon after the discovery of mass graves of suspected trafficking victims. Malaysia retains its ranking, though it has initiated fewer trafficking investigations and prosecutions in the period covered by this year's report.
The report was released by Secretary of State John Kerry, who calls it an attempt to bring public attention to the full nature and scope of the $150 billion human trafficking industry.