According to the Global Slavery Index, the annual report from the Walk Free Foundation, there are as many as 1,500 people living in what is described as "modern slavery" in Belgium today. Globally, 35.8 million people are still considered to be slaves. Victims of human trafficking, people forced into arranged marriages, or victims of sexual exploitation all fall in this category of "modern-day slaves", numbering some 30 million last year. This year's report, thanks to better methods, has been able to compile more accurate data.
According to the report, modern-day slavery still exists in 167 countries worldwide, the countries the most affected being Mauritania (4% of the population), Uzbekistan (3.97%), Haiti (2.3%), Qatar (1.36%) and India (1.14%). In Europe, the highest rate is found in Bulgaria (0.38%) whereas Belgium boasts a rate as low as 0.013%.
(Source: Belga)
