The Global Slavery Index 2023

Executive Summary (Part 3)

Government action is critical but current efforts fall short of the challenge 
The strongest government responses to modern slavery were found in the United Kingdom, Australia, Netherlands, Portugal, the US, Ireland, Norway, Spain, and Sweden. Among these countries, the most notable improvement in the last five years is the passing of Australia’s Modern Slavery Act, which requires certain companies to report on modern slavery risks in their supply chain and actions they are taking to respond. However, while we commend all efforts to address modern slavery, the improvements since our 2018 assessments were far fewer and weaker than the situation requires. 
 
During the same period in which millions more people were forced to work or marry, efforts by the wealthiest nations stagnated and, in some cases, hard-won progress has reversed. Many wealthy countries are failing in their duties to protect the most vulnerable. For example, while the UK currently has the strongest response, significant gaps in protections expose survivors to risks of re- trafficking. Some countries with strong responses, such as Brazil and the US, undermine their own efforts by forcing their citizens to work beyond the specific circumstances that international conventions deem acceptable. In the Gulf States, where eight in every ten workers is a migrant and working under the kafala (sponsorship) system, many of the reforms intended to provide much needed protection have not been fully implemented or fall far short of providing real protection for a highly vulnerable group. Migrants working in high-income countries across Asia and Europe are also subject to tied visa systems which offer them limited protection from unscrupulous employers. Most G20 governments are still not doing enough to ensure that modern slavery is not involved in the production of goods imported into their countries and within the supply chains of companies they do business with. 
 
There has been some notable progress since 2018. Another 15 countries have criminalised human trafficking in line with the UN Trafficking Protocol, bringing the total to 137. Some countries, such as Republic of the Congo and Brunei Darussalam, have improved their response to modern slavery, while Albania, Georgia, and the Philippines have relatively stronger responses despite having fewer resources at their disposal. More countries are beginning to engage with survivors in the development of policies and programs, although this remains woefully low at only 16 governments. The high proportion of modern slavery connected to global supply chains, while dismaying, also presents new opportunities to drive change through businesses and investors whose actions could quickly and directly improve the working conditions and livelihoods of workers across at-risk sectors — and perhaps succeed where governments have failed. 
 
Stagnating action on modern slavery appears to be connected more to compounding crises than to changes in attitudes or a diminishment of the will to eradicate this crime. There is no doubt that governments have faced many challenges since 2018, including those that have significantly impacted funding and delivery of modern slavery programming as national resources are diverted to tackling more immediate harms. However, the obligation of governments to protect people from modern slavery cannot be set aside when crises occur. In fact, addressing modern slavery needs to be embedded into crisis responses if we are to get progress towards ending it back on track. 
 
Walk Free 2023. Global Slavery Index 2023. Minderoo Foundation Ltd. Australia.