Nearly 46 Million People Still Live As Slaves Today, Says Global Slavery Index

Many people assume that slavery happens only in the world's poorest countries - after all, for the most part, it has been dissolved in big economies.

Or so you would think. According to Reuters, almost 46 million people in the world are still living as slaves, with the greatest number in India, but the highest prevalence in North Korea.

This report was launched by the Global Slavery Index, with actor Russell Crowe. The index is made by Australia-based human rights group, Walk Free Foundation, and has recently reported that its estimate of people born into servitude, trafficked for sex work, or even trapped in debt bondage or forced labor has increased from 35.8 million in 2014, to 43.8 million today.

Definition of slavery has changed since before the war. Back then, people were held legally as property - a practice that The New York Times noted has been severely outlawed today. However, modern slavery does exist and is prevalent in India (18.35 million), China (3.39 million), Pakistan (2.13 million), Bangladesh (1.53 million), and Uzbekistan (1.23 million).

However, North Korea has the highest number per capita level of modern slavery, which consists of 4.37 percent of its total population, followed by Uzbekistan with 3.87 percent, Cambodia at 1.65 percent, India with 1.4 percent, and Qatar, at 1.36 percent.

India has been home to more enslaved people compared to any other country, but it had been making "significant progress" to address the problem.

Andrew Forrest, the founder of the Walk Free foundation said that the rise of slavery was due to data collection - and he feared that the situation has been getting worse due to global displacement and migration increasing vulnerability to people.

That being said, he shared that businesses should check their supply chains for worker exploitation, because despite a man's stance against slavery, there are ways to override law, as he witnessed for himself. For instance, the businessman himself found thousands of people trapped in slavery making goods for his own company.