According to the 2021 Global Estimates published by the International Labour Organization, there are close to 50 million individuals throughout the world who are subjected to some kind of modern slavery on any given day. This information was presented in the organization’s most recent study.
The report emphasizes that “modern slavery is the very antithesis of social justice and sustainable development,” stating that these individuals have either been forced to work against their will or are surviving a marriage into which they were forced. It also states that “modern slavery is the very antithesis of social justice and sustainable development.”
The numbers that are discussed in the report are mind-boggling. In addition to the 27.6 million people who are forced to work, there are 22 million people who are married against their will. Alternately, 11.8 million women and girls are coerced into working against their will, and 3.3 million of the total 27 million forced laborers are minors.
According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), forced labor can be found in every part of the world. More over half of the total labor force, or 15.1 million people, comes from nations in Asia and the Pacific. After this comes Central Asia and Europe with 4.1 million, then Africa with 3.8 million, then the Americas with 3.6 million, and finally the Arab States with 1.1 million (0.9 million).
According to the survey, however, the rate of infection is highest in the Arab States (5.3 per thousand people), followed by Europe and Central Asia (4.4 per thousand), as the population proportions show. The figure of 3.5 per thousand is the same in both the Americas as well as Asia and the Pacific. This is the same as the global average. In Africa, the rate is estimated to be 2.9 per thousand people.
The fact that 86 percent of these cases are imposed in private enterprises is another factor that gives rise to cause for concern. According to the agency that represents the United Nations, “State-imposed forced labor accounts for the remaining 14% of individuals in forced labor.” When population is taken into consideration, low income countries have the greatest rates of forced labor (6.3 per thousand people), followed by high income countries (4.4 per thousand).
An increase of 2.7 million persons in forced labor has been documented since the global estimates were last taken in 2016, according to the report. This amounts to a rise in the prevalence of forced labor from 3.4 to 3.5 per thousand people in the world.
