According to the Global Slavery Index 2023, about 49.6 million people are living in modern slavery, out of which, India is home to 11 million.
Key points
- This is the fifth edition of the GSI and it is based on the 2022 estimates. The previous four editions were published in 2013, 2014, 2016, and 2018.
- An estimated 50 million people were living in modern slavery on any given day in 2021, an increase of 10 million people since 2016.
- Among these 50 million (of which 12 million are children), 28 million suffer from forced labour and 22 million from forced marriages.
- Countries that top in terms of the prevalence of modern slavery (incidence of modern slavery per 1,000 population): North Korea, Eritrea, Mauritania, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Tajikistan, the UAE, Russia, Afghanistan, and Kuwait.
- Countries with the lowest prevalence of modern slavery : Switzerland, Norway, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, Ireland, Japan, and Finland.
- Countries hosting the maximum number of people living in modern slavery: India, China, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Indonesia, Nigeria, Turkey, Bangladesh, and the US.
About Global Slavery Index (GSI)
- The Global Slavery Index (GSI) provides national estimates of modern slavery for 160 countries.
- It is presented by Walk Free, a human rights organisation.
- The modern slavery refers to situations of exploitation that a person cannot refuse because of threats, violence, coercion, deception, or abuses of power.
- Modern slavery includes abuses such as forced labour, forced marriage, debt bondage, sexual exploitation, human trafficking, slavery-like practices, forced or servile marriage, and the sale and exploitation of children.
