Countries Most Affected by Human Trafficking (2025 Ranked)

Human trafficking — the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring, or receipt of persons by force, fraud, or coercion for exploitation — is the world's third-largest criminal enterprise after drug and weapons trafficking, generating an estimated $150 billion per year in illicit profits. The ILO estimates 50 million people are currently in situations of modern slavery (forced labour plus forced marriage), with approximately 27.6 million in forced labour specifically. These numbers are not confined to the historical past or to failed states: they are embedded in the global supply chains, domestic service industries, and labour systems that underpin the world economy as it operates today.

Methodology: how modern slavery is measured

Human trafficking is among the most difficult phenomena in global statistics to measure. By definition, it is hidden — perpetrators conceal it and victims are often unable to report freely.

The Global Slavery Index (Walk Free Foundation): Walk Free, an Australian human rights organisation, produces the Global Slavery Index — the most comprehensive country-by-country estimate available. The GSI combines national surveys of trafficking victims with national statistics on vulnerability factors (governance quality, social protection, rights protections) to generate prevalence estimates. The 2023 edition covers 160 countries. Walk Free acknowledges that estimates carry wide uncertainty intervals; they are best read as orders of magnitude rather than precise counts.

ILO Global Estimates of Modern Slavery: The International Labour Organization, in partnership with Walk Free and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), produces joint global estimates every five years. The 2022 estimate — 50 million in modern slavery on any given day — is the authoritative international reference figure. The ILO uses nationally representative household surveys and administrative data from countries with strong reporting systems, then models estimates for countries without.

UNODC Global Report on Trafficking in Persons: The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime produces a biennial report tracking detected and reported trafficking victims — a measure of detection and prosecution rather than actual prevalence. Countries with stronger law enforcement and legal frameworks detect more cases. A country appearing to have "more trafficking" in UNODC data may simply prosecute it more actively.

US State Department Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report: Published annually, the TIP Report ranks countries on a tier system (Tier 1, 2, Watch List, 3) based on government efforts to combat trafficking — not on prevalence. Tier 3 countries (those not making significant efforts) face restrictions on certain US aid.

These sources measure different things and should not be conflated. A country with high GSI prevalence (India), high UNODC detections (Belarus), and Tier 2 Watch List TIP status (Indonesia) may be experiencing genuine problems, improving enforcement, or both simultaneously.

Source: Walk Free Foundation, Global Slavery Index 2023; ILO, IOM, Walk Free, Global Estimates of Modern Slavery 2022; UNODC, Global Report on Trafficking in Persons 2022.

Countries with the most people in modern slavery

(Global Slavery Index 2023 estimates, absolute numbers)

Rank	Country	People in modern slavery	Prevalence (per 1,000)	Primary forms
1	India	11.0 million	8.0	Bonded labour, forced marriage
2	China	5.8 million	4.0	Forced labour, detention
3	North Korea	2.7 million	~100	State-imposed forced labour
4	Pakistan	2.1 million	9.2	Bonded labour, forced marriage
5	Russia	1.9 million	13.0	Labour exploitation, trafficking
6	Indonesia	1.8 million	6.8	Forced labour, trafficking
7	Nigeria	1.6 million	7.7	Labour trafficking, forced marriage
8	Ethiopia	1.0 million	9.0	Labour trafficking, forced marriage
9	Bangladesh	1.0 million	5.9	Forced labour
10	Myanmar	0.9 million	16.4	Scam compounds, conflict labour
11	Democratic Republic of Congo	1.0 million	10.8	Armed group forced recruitment
12	Iran	0.7 million	8.2	—
13	Saudi Arabia	0.7 million	20.9	Kafala domestic workers
14	United Arab Emirates	0.4 million	40.0	Kafala system
15	Philippines	0.8 million	7.0	Labour trafficking, sex trafficking

Source: Walk Free Foundation, Global Slavery Index 2023; International Labour Organization, Global Estimates of Modern Slavery 2022 (with IOM and Walk Free).

Where this data comes from

Modern slavery prevalence estimates come from three primary sources: the Global Slavery Index (Walk Free Foundation, 2023) which combines victim surveys with vulnerability factor modelling across 160 countries; the ILO Global Estimates (2022) based on household surveys and administrative data from countries with reporting systems, then modelled for others; and UNODC trafficking reports measuring detected cases. These sources measure different aspects: GSI estimates actual prevalence including undetected victims; ILO provides prevalence on any given day; UNODC counts prosecuted cases and detected victims. The critical limitation: these are all estimates with wide uncertainty intervals. North Korea's 100 prevalence-per-1,000 figure is based on structural analysis (total labour assignment system) rather than victim surveying. Gulf kafala figures are modelled estimates; actual prevalence may be higher but is impossible to verify due to worker isolation and lack of legal rights.

Historical context: from legal slavery to modern forms

The contemporary framing of "modern slavery" is a deliberate rhetorical and analytical choice — connecting current exploitation to the historical institution of chattel slavery while recognising that the mechanisms have evolved.

The abolition gap: The Atlantic slave trade was formally abolished by Britain in 1807, and slavery was abolished in the United States in 1865. But abolition of the legal institution did not eliminate forced labour — it drove it underground and transformed its mechanisms. Convict leasing in the post-Civil War American South, indenture systems that replaced formal slavery in British colonies, and forced labour in European colonial Africa all represented the persistence of slave-like conditions under different legal labels.

The ILO's first conventions (1930): The International Labour Organization's Forced Labour Convention (No. 29, 1930) defined forced or compulsory labour as "all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily." This definition remains the international legal standard. North Korea's state labour system, bonded labour in South Asian brick kilns, and kafala-trapped domestic workers in Gulf states all meet it.

The Palermo Protocol (2000): The UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children — commonly called the Palermo Protocol — provided the first internationally agreed definition of trafficking in persons. It established that trafficking includes recruitment, transportation, and harbouring achieved through force, fraud, or coercion for exploitation. Critically, it defined exploitation to include "at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs."

The Walk Free Foundation and the GSI (2013): The Global Slavery Index, launched in 2013 by the Minderoo Foundation's Walk Free initiative, made country-by-country comparison of modern slavery prevalence possible for the first time. Its methodology has been revised across editions; the 2023 edition represents the most sophisticated publicly available country-level estimates.

Source: ILO Forced Labour Convention (No. 29), 1930; UN Palermo Protocol, 2000; Walk Free Foundation, Global Slavery Index 2023 Methodology.

North Korea: state-imposed forced labour as a system of governance

North Korea's situation is categorically different from any other country on this list — the forced labour is not a criminal underground operating against state rules but a fundamental mechanism of state control.

The total labour assignment system: All North Korean citizens are assigned to work units by the state. There is no free labour market; individuals cannot seek or change employment without state approval. Work assignment is compulsory; deviation is treated as a political offence. This nationwide system meets the ILO definition of forced labour for virtually the entire workforce of 13–14 million people.

The gulag system — kwan-li-so: North Korea's political prison camps hold an estimated 80,000–120,000 political prisoners — though estimates vary widely given the impossibility of independent verification. Entire families of accused political criminals can be incarcerated (up to three generations — "guilt by association"). Survivors who have escaped North Korea describe systematic torture, starvation rationing, forced labour on farming and construction, and public executions. The UN Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in North Korea (2014) concluded that these conditions "may constitute crimes against humanity."

Overseas forced labour — the foreign currency scheme: For decades, North Korea exported workers to Russia (particularly construction and logging), China (manufacturing), Gulf states, and other countries. Workers receive approximately 10–30% of their wages; the rest is remitted directly to the North Korean state as "donations" — generating approximately $500 million per year in foreign exchange for Pyongyang. UN Security Council Resolution 2397 (2017) required the repatriation of all overseas North Korean workers within 24 months. Russia and China — the major hosting countries — have largely ignored the requirement. The sanctions regime has reduced but not eliminated the practice.

Forced labour in supply chains: North Korea exports significant quantities of coal, iron, textiles, and seafood — all produced using state-directed forced labour. These goods enter global supply chains through China and other transit points. US Customs and Border Protection has issued Withhold Release Orders (WROs) on North Korean goods and on specific Chinese companies found to use North Korean labour.

Source: UN Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in North Korea, Report of the Detailed Findings (A/HRC/25/CRP.1), 2014; UN Security Council Resolution 2397 (2017); US CBP Withhold Release Orders list.

The Gulf kafala system: structural exploitation by design

The Gulf Cooperation Council countries — Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Oman — host approximately 25 million migrant workers, predominantly from South and Southeast Asia. The kafala system that governs their residency creates conditions that the ILO, Human Rights Watch, and Amnesty International have identified as structurally enabling exploitation.

How kafala works: A migrant worker's legal residency status is tied to a specific employer-sponsor (kafeel). The worker cannot change jobs without the sponsor's consent; cannot leave the country without an exit visa that the sponsor controls; and has limited access to labour courts. In practice, this means a worker who flees an abusive employer loses legal status and faces deportation, not protection. Employers who confiscate passports (illegal in most Gulf states but widespread) leave workers with no ability to leave.

Recruitment debt as a lever of control: Workers from Nepal, Bangladesh, India, and the Philippines typically pay recruitment fees of $1,000–$5,000 to brokers in their home countries — often borrowing against family property. On arrival, they may find wages lower than promised or employment different from the contract. But with a debt to repay, deportation is financial catastrophe; enduring exploitative conditions becomes rational even when legally impermissible.

Qatar and the FIFA World Cup reckoning: Qatar's preparation for the 2022 FIFA World Cup brought unprecedented global scrutiny to Gulf labour conditions. The Guardian's investigation, using Nepalese government data, estimated 6,500 migrant workers from five South Asian countries died in Qatar between 2010 and 2021. Causation — specifically how many deaths were directly work-related — has been disputed, but the scale of preventable deaths in extreme heat was not. Qatar subsequently announced kafala reforms allowing workers to change jobs without employer permission; implementation has been incomplete and monitored by the ILO through a technical cooperation agreement.

Domestic workers outside the law: Domestic workers — housemaids, nannies, cooks, and drivers — in Gulf states are typically excluded from labour law entirely. Labour regulations governing working hours, rest days, minimum wages, and severance do not apply to domestic workers in most Gulf countries. Their residence in the employer's home makes inspection by labour authorities functionally impossible. Passport confiscation and restricted movement are common. Women domestic workers from Ethiopia, the Philippines, and Sri Lanka constitute the most vulnerable subset — often unable to contact embassies and unable to leave without employer permission.

Reform progress: The ILO's technical cooperation programme with Qatar (since 2018) has produced some measurable changes — a worker support and insurance fund, strengthened labour courts, a non-discriminatory minimum wage, and partial kafala reforms. Saudi Arabia announced abolition of the exit visa requirement in 2021 — though enforcement monitoring is limited. The UAE introduced a new labour law in 2022 addressing some domestic worker protections. These reforms are genuine but partial; the fundamental power imbalance of the kafala framework remains.

Source: Human Rights Watch, "Building a Better World Cup: Protecting Migrant Workers in Qatar Ahead of FIFA 2022" (2012 and updates); ILO Technical Cooperation Programme with Qatar, annual progress reports; Amnesty International, "The Dark Side of Migration" (2013).

Myanmar's scam compound phenomenon: trafficking by a new mechanism

Myanmar's post-coup chaos (following the February 2021 military coup) has enabled a form of trafficking that became globally visible in 2022–2023 and represents a significant evolution in trafficking methodology. For a related look at displaced populations, see countries hosting the most refugees.

The scam compound model: Criminal organisations — primarily but not exclusively Chinese-run — operating in border regions of Myanmar (particularly Myawaddy and Shwe Kokko), Cambodia (Sihanoukville and Bavet), and Laos have trafficked tens of thousands of young people into compounds under the pretence of legitimate employment. Victims are recruited through social media with offers of office jobs, customer service roles, or sales positions. On arrival, phones and passports are confiscated; victims are informed they must work as cyber fraudsters or pay a ransom (sometimes $10,000–$50,000) to be released.

The fraud operations: Victims inside compounds are forced to conduct cryptocurrency scams, romance fraud (building fake relationships over weeks or months to solicit investments), investment fraud, and customer impersonation fraud. Each worker has daily quotas; failure to meet targets results in physical punishment, sleep deprivation, or sale to another compound operator. Workers are often resold multiple times. The IOM estimated in 2023 that 100,000–300,000 people were trapped in these compounds across Southeast Asia.

The victim profile: Unlike many trafficking scenarios, scam compound victims are disproportionately educated young men from China, Taiwan, India, Thailand, Vietnam, and Sub-Saharan Africa — people with enough education and language skills to make plausible fraud callers. Chinese nationals constitute the largest national group, many recruited through WeChat groups; Taiwanese, Malaysian, and Indian nationals are significant minorities. African victims — particularly from Uganda, Kenya, and Nigeria — have been documented since 2022.

The Myanmar governance failure: The post-coup military junta has neither the capacity nor the incentive to address scam compounds comprehensively — some border region commanders reportedly maintain financial relationships with compound operators. Chinese law enforcement cooperation has been sporadic; operations in Myanmar's Karen Border Guard Force territory operate with near-impunity. China's domestic crackdown on cyber fraud (Operation Fox Hunt) has extradited some perpetrators from Myanmar, but the scale of the crackdown has not matched the scale of the problem.

Source: United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), "Situation Report: Trafficking and Cyber Scam Operations in Myanmar" (2023); IOM, "Trafficking in Persons in the Context of Cyber Scams in Southeast Asia" (2023); US State Department TIP Report 2023.

India's 11 million: bonded labour and forced marriage at scale

India's 11 million — the world's largest absolute number — reflects both India's population size and the persistence of specific structural conditions that enable exploitation.

Bonded labour (debt bondage): Bonded labour is the dominant form of modern slavery in India — a person works to repay a debt whose terms ensure the debt can never actually be retired. A landlord advances a family money for a wedding, medical emergency, or land purchase; the family member works on the landlord's farm or in his business indefinitely at wages below subsistence, while interest accumulates faster than the debt reduces. The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act was passed in India in 1976; enforcement is weak and varies dramatically by state.

Brick kilns, agriculture, and carpet weaving: Three sectors account for the largest concentrations of bonded labour in India. Brick kilns employ an estimated 10 million workers nationally, with bonded labour documented in kilns across Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, and Tamil Nadu. Agricultural bonded labour is concentrated in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Punjab. Carpet weaving in Uttar Pradesh — a significant export industry — has documented child labour and bonded labour conditions.

Caste as an enabler: Caste hierarchy structures who is vulnerable to bonded labour. Dalits ("untouchables") and tribal communities are disproportionately represented among bonded labour victims — partly because caste discrimination limits their economic alternatives, partly because social norms make exploitation by higher-caste employers harder to challenge legally, and partly because police and local officials are often from higher-caste communities unlikely to prioritise enforcement for Dalit complainants.

Forced marriage: The Global Slavery Index estimates approximately 6.6 million people in India are in forced marriages — primarily girls married before 18, often without genuine consent, to families in different states or social positions. India has the world's highest absolute number of child brides despite legal reforms (Child Marriage Restraint Amendment Act, 2006).

Source: International Justice Mission, India country operations; Walk Free Foundation, Global Slavery Index 2023 India profile; UNICEF, Child Marriage data portal.

Frequently asked questions

Q: What is bonded labour and how does it work?
A: Bonded labour (debt bondage) occurs when a person is forced to work to repay a debt — real or fabricated — that is structured so it cannot realistically be extinguished. The employer advances payment for travel, housing, or emergencies creating initial obligation, then adds interest and inflated charges ensuring debt grows faster than wages. Workers attempting to leave face violence threats, arrest on fraudulent charges, or harm to family members. Bonded labour is illegal everywhere that ratified ILO conventions but persists due to weak enforcement, geographic isolation, caste-based vulnerability, and poverty.

Q: What is the difference between human trafficking and people smuggling?
A: Trafficking involves exploitation — the person is controlled, deceived, or coerced for labour or sexual exploitation after movement. Consent is irrelevant: even those who consented to travel are trafficked if subsequently exploited. Smuggling involves facilitated illegal border movement of consenting persons who pay a smuggler; the relationship typically ends at destination. A smuggled person becomes a trafficking victim if the smuggler subsequently exploits them. The distinction is exploitation after movement, not movement itself.

Q: What proportion of trafficking is sexual versus labour exploitation?
A: Labour trafficking (agriculture, construction, manufacturing, domestic work, fishing) accounts for approximately 63% of forced labour globally; sex trafficking approximately 19%; state-imposed forced labour (North Korea, prisons, military conscription) approximately 18%. Media disproportionately covers sex trafficking relative to its share, reflecting both salience and the historical focus of anti-trafficking advocacy on sexual exploitation.

Q: What role do supply chains play in enabling trafficking?
A: Major consumer product supply chains carry trafficking risk at multiple points. Fishing industries in Thailand and Southeast Asia have documented forced labour on boats affecting Burmese and Cambodian workers. Palm oil production in Indonesia and Malaysia involves migrant worker trafficking. Electronic manufacturing sources components from regions with documented forced labour. The US Tariff Act Section 307 prohibits goods made with forced labour; CBP targets companies including Xinjiang-origin goods covered by the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.

Q: What has been the impact of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act?
A: The UFLPA (December 2021, implemented June 2022) creates a rebuttable presumption that Xinjiang goods are forced-labour-made — importers must prove otherwise, not the reverse. Xinjiang produces 85% of China's cotton and significant polysilicon and tomato shares. The law has resulted in hundreds of detentions and significant supply chain restructuring as manufacturers document origins.

Q: What can individuals do to avoid contributing to trafficking?
A: Supply chain transparency is the most direct lever. Clothing, electronics, fish, chocolate, and agricultural products all carry forced labour risk. Consumers should seek transparency certifications (Fairtrade, Rainforest Alliance, Know The Chain benchmark). Report suspected trafficking to national hotlines. Avoid sex tourism. Employers hiring foreign domestic workers should use ethical recruitment channels that do not charge workers recruitment fees.

Source: US CBP Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act enforcement statistics, cbp.gov; Know The Chain, 2022 Benchmark Reports; National Human Trafficking Hotline, polarisproject.org.

Trends: what is changing in modern slavery

The COVID-19 acceleration: The pandemic significantly worsened trafficking conditions in 2020–2021. Economic desperation increased vulnerability; border closures trapped trafficking victims; closure of shelters and support services reduced pathways out. The pandemic also accelerated online recruitment — traffickers moved to social media platforms to recruit victims who could no longer be reached through traditional in-person methods.

The Ukraine crisis and trafficking risk: The displacement of approximately 8 million Ukrainians following Russia's February 2022 invasion created acute trafficking risk. Women and children crossing into Poland, Romania, and Moldova without male family members were targeted by traffickers at border crossings under the pretence of offering accommodation, transport, or employment. UNODC, IOM, and national governments implemented rapid response measures; trafficking incidents were documented but the scale is not yet fully assessed.

Xinjiang and state-sponsored industrial forced labour: The Chinese government's programme of mass detention and "vocational training" for Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslim minorities in Xinjiang represents a state-directed forced labour system at industrial scale. An estimated 1–1.8 million people were detained at the programme's peak. Australian Strategic Policy Institute research documented over 380 detention facilities; former detainees described forced political indoctrination, arbitrary detention, and forced factory labour. China disputes the characterisation as forced labour.

Corporate liability and supply chain due diligence laws: A wave of legislation requiring corporations to audit and report on forced labour in supply chains is creating new accountability mechanisms. Germany's Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (LkSG, effective 2023) requires large German companies to conduct human rights due diligence across supply chains. The EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (adopted 2024) extends similar requirements across the EU. The UK Modern Slavery Act (2015) requires large companies to publish annual slavery and human trafficking statements. These laws are imperfect but represent a structural shift in corporate accountability.

Source: UNODC, Ukraine trafficking rapid assessment reports (2022–2023); Australian Strategic Policy Institute, Xinjiang Data Project; German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (LkSG), BMAS.de; EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD).

The takeaway

Modern slavery's 50 million victims are not a relic of historical barbarism — they are embedded in the supply chains that deliver the world's goods, the domestic labour markets of its wealthiest cities, and the state systems of its most repressive governments. India's 11 million reflects the persistence of bonded labour despite its illegality, entrenched by caste hierarchy and weak enforcement. North Korea's 2.7 million reflects a state that has weaponised forced labour as a governing tool. The Gulf's kafala system represents an internationally visible structural exploitation that labour-sending countries and international organisations have pressured for reform for decades with incomplete results. Myanmar's scam compound phenomenon shows how state collapse enables criminal entrepreneurship to victimise the educated and ambitious, not just the desperate and poor. The tools to reduce modern slavery are known — legal reform, enforcement, supply chain accountability, migrant worker protections, and poverty reduction. The constraint is not information; it is the political and economic interests that benefit from the current arrangement.

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