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Crime

Modern slavery

Estimated prevalence of modern slavery, meaning forced labour and forced marriage, in 160 countries, from Walk Free's Global Slavery Index, built on global estimates of about 50 million people in modern slavery in 2021.

Bars for people in modern slavery in 2021, with the numbers 27.6, 22.0, 49.6 and the Figure 1 breakdown, and no category names on the image

Forced labour and forced marriage, millions of people

  • Forced labour, 27.6
  • Forced marriage, 22.0

Number of people, millions (left bars, same row numbers)

  • 1 World, 49.6
  • 2 Male, 22.8
  • 3 Female, 26.7
  • 4 Adults, 37.3
  • 5 Children, 12.3
  • 6 Africa, 7.0
  • 7 Americas, 5.1
  • 8 Arab States, 1.7
  • 9 Asia and the Pacific, 29.3
  • 10 Europe and Central Asia, 6.4
  • 11 High income, 7.2
  • 12 Upper-middle income, 12.7
  • 13 Lower-middle income, 23.0
  • 14 Low income, 6.6

Prevalence per 1,000 population (right bars)

  • 1 World, 6.4
  • 2 Male, 5.8
  • 3 Female, 6.9
  • 4 Adults, 6.9
  • 5 Children, 5.2
  • 6 Africa, 5.2
  • 7 Americas, 5.0
  • 8 Arab States, 10.1
  • 9 Asia and the Pacific, 6.8
  • 10 Europe and Central Asia, 6.9
  • 11 High income, 5.9
  • 12 Upper-middle income, 4.4
  • 13 Lower-middle income, 7.8
  • 14 Low income, 9.6

People in modern slavery in 2021, in millions and per 1,000 population, by sex, age, region and income group.

Chart: Figure 1 of Global Estimates of Modern Slavery: Forced Labour and Forced Marriage (2022), © ILO, Walk Free and IOM, CC BY 4.0. This is an adaptation of an original work by the ILO, Walk Free and IOM. Responsibility for the views and opinions expressed in the adaptation rests solely with the author or authors of the adaptation and are not endorsed by the ILO, Walk Free or IOM.

Crime 2021 Walk Free

What it is

Walk Free, an international human rights group, publishes the Global Slavery Index. Its 2023 edition estimates how many people live in modern slavery in 160 countries, using nationally representative household surveys and a statistical model of each country’s vulnerability. It builds on the Global Estimates of Modern Slavery by the International Labour Organization (ILO), Walk Free and the International Organization for Migration (IOM): about 50 million people (49.6 million) were in modern slavery on any given day in 2021, about 28 million in forced labour and 22 million in forced marriage, about 10 million more than in the 2016 estimates.

Why it matters

The estimates include people who never appear in police or court records. The Index finds the highest prevalence in North Korea (104.6 per 1,000 people), Eritrea (90.3) and Mauritania (32.0), and the strongest government responses in the United Kingdom, Australia and the Netherlands. By region, the global estimates show the highest prevalence in the Arab States (10.1 per 1,000 people) and the largest number of people in Asia and the Pacific (29.3 million).

How to read it

Country figures are estimated prevalence per 1,000 people, based on surveys and modelling, so each figure carries a margin of uncertainty. Walk Free's interactive map shows each country's estimated prevalence, vulnerability and government response. The preview chart shows the global estimates by sex, age, region and income group, in millions of people and per 1,000 population.

Limits

The global estimates leave out some forms of exploitation, such as organ trafficking and the recruitment of children by armed forces, and surveys are difficult and dangerous in countries in deep, ongoing conflict. Walk Free describes its estimate as conservative.

Sources

License

Chart: Figure 1 of Global Estimates of Modern Slavery: Forced Labour and Forced Marriage (2022), © ILO, Walk Free and IOM, CC BY 4.0. This is an adaptation of an original work by the ILO, Walk Free and IOM. Responsibility for the views and opinions expressed in the adaptation rests solely with the author or authors of the adaptation and are not endorsed by the ILO, Walk Free or IOM.

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