A recent study revealed that, over 45 million men, women and children globally are trapped in the modern slavery in which two-thirds are in the Asia-Pacific region.

The Walk Free Foundation published a research report named 'The 2016 Global Slavery Index' that included information from 167 countries with 42,000 interviews in 53 languages to determine the prevalence of the issue and government responses.

The Walk Free Foundation is an initiative established in 2012  by Australian billionaire mining magnate and philanthropist Andrew Forrest to draw attention to the issue.

According to the report, India had the highest number of people trapped in slavery at 18.35 million, while North Korea had the highest incidence (4.37 per cent of the population) and the weakest government response as well.

Forrest said that, "We call on governments of the top 10 economies of the world to enact laws, at least as strong as the UK Modern Slavery Act 2015, with a budget and capability to ensure organizations are held to account for modern slavery in their supply chains, and to empower independent oversight."

"I believe in the critical role of leaders in government, business and civil society. Through our responsible use of power, strength of conviction, determination and collective will, we all can lead the world to end slavery," he said.

Asian countries occupy the top five for people trapped in slavery in terms of absolute numbers. Behind India were China (3.39 million), Pakistan (2.13 million), Bangladesh (1.53 million) and Uzbekistan (1.23 million). While, on a percentage of the population, Uzbekistan (3.97 per cent) and Cambodia (1.65 per cent) trailed North Korea.

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Nandini