Report: 85,000 Trapped in Modern Slavery in Morocco, ILO Finds

In the report "The Global Slavery Index" cited by the site Hespress, the ILO estimates the number of people affected by modern slavery at just over 40 million worldwide, of which 71% are women. This slavery is very closely linked to two factors, namely "highly repressive regimes, in which people are put to work to support the government, and the resulting conflict situations leading to a collapse of the rule of law, social structures and justice and protection systems".

However, some countries, including Morocco, have adapted their legislation to better combat human trafficking and the figures are telling since in 2016 the number of reported cases was estimated at 219,700 victims and "only" 85,000 in 2018. Despite these notable advances, corruption continues to prevent any effective action against modern slavery, the authors warn.

At the African level, the ILO estimates the number of people affected by modern slavery at some 9.2 million, one of the highest rates in the world, with 4.8 victims per 1,000 people. These figures also include the 400,000 victims of forced sexual exploitation, including children.