Global forced labour generates $236 bn in illegal profits: ILO report

The industry sector accounts for the second-highest annual illegal profits from forced labour, amounting to $35 billion. These profits represent wages that should have been paid to workers but instead line the pockets of exploiters through coercive practices.

Traffickers and criminals are now making close to $10,000 per victim, a notable rise from $8,269 (adjusted for inflation) a decade ago. The report sheds light on the geographical distribution of these illegal earnings, with Europe and Central Asia topping the list at $84 billion, followed by Asia and the Pacific ($62 billion), the Americas ($52 billion), Africa ($20 billion), and the Arab states ($18 billion), as per the report.

The analysis further breaks down the illegal profits per victim, showing that Europe and Central Asia, followed by the Arab States and the Americas, lead in this grim statistic. A significant portion of these profits, more than two-thirds (73 per cent), comes from forced commercial sexual exploitation, which constitutes only 27 per cent of the total number of victims in privately imposed labour.

The disparity in profits between forced commercial sexual exploitation and other forms of non-state forced labour exploitation is stark, with the former generating $27,252 per victim compared to $3,687 for the latter.

“Forced labour perpetuates cycles of poverty and exploitation and strikes at the heart of human dignity. We now know that the situation has only got worse. The international community must urgently come together to take action to end this injustice," said Gilbert F. Houngbo, ILO director-general.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP)