50 million people worldwide subjected to modern slavery worldwide, UN says
by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – A new United Nations study shows that fifty million people worldwide, including children, are being subjected to modern forms of slavery, the Associated Press reports. The report said almost every country in the world has modern-day slavery systems, including forced labor, sexual exploitation, and forced marriages.
The study was conducted by UN agencies for labor and migration together with the Walk Free Foundation, AP reports. The study found that by the end of 2021, 28 million people were subjected to forced labor, and 22 million were living in forced marriages.
Highlighting migration crises, the report shows that migrant workers are more than three times more likely to be in forced labor than non-migrant adult workers, AP reports. “This report underscores the urgency of ensuring that all migration is safe, orderly, and regular,” Antonio Vitorino, head of the International Organization for Migration, said in a statement about the study on Monday.
Moreover, the report showed, that 14 percent of people in forced labor are being subjected to it by state authorities. The report raised concerns about abuses of prison labor in numerous countries, including America, AP reports.
The study shows children account for one out of five people in forced labor, including commercial sexual exploitation.
“It is shocking that the situation of modern slavery is not improving,” Guy Ryder, head of the International Labour Organization (ILO), said in a statement to AP. “It would be a mistake to believe that forced labor is solely the problem of poor countries.”