Global income from illegal forced labor has increased to $236 billion annually.
Experts estimate the number of people engaged in forced labor in 2021 at 27.6 million people. The International Labor Organization published a report on Tuesday with the latest data. writes Euronews, which convincingly testifies that every year criminals and traffickers earn more and more in this field. Since 2014, illicit profits derived from forced labor in the private sector have increased by 37% globally. European Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis says:
“Global estimates published in 2022 were dismal: 28 million people were subject to forced labor, 12 million of them women and girls, more than 3 million children. Today we learned that it is still a lucrative business.”
Manuela Tomei, Director of the ILO’s Working Conditions and Equality Department, explains:
“This is the equivalent of the GDP of countries such as Latvia or Croatia. It even exceeds the income of giant technology companies such as Microsoft or Samsung. But behind these staggering figures lies human suffering. There are people who are caught in a vicious cycle of violence, subjected to various forms of coercion, making it impossible for them to free themselves from the work they do against their will.”
The highest annual illegal profits from forced labor are generated in Europe and Central Asia, the report notes, with 73% of total illegal profits coming from forced sexual exploitation. The industry generates $35 billion in profits from forced labor. It is followed by services (20.8 billion) and agriculture (5 billion).
According to experts, in 2021, 27.6 million people were engaged in forced labor every day. Over 5 years, their number increased by 10%.
More Stories
BRICS: Trump says US sanctions are undermining the dollar
Erdogan Calls for Global Muslim Alliance Against Israel
Lithuania Installs 'Dragon's Teeth' on Border with Russia (Video)