Primarily agricultural workers or construction workers
Subjected to backbreaking work
Treated like slaves
Paid less than $1 per day
Abused sexually
Totally illiterate
Under the impression they don’t have rights
People in Modern Slavery by Country
(Global Slavery Index, 2018)
The “Global Slavery Index” report released by the Walk Free Foundation estimated the number of people in the world affected by a range of practices, including forced and bonded labor, human trafficking, forced marriages, child labor, and the use of children in the military. India had the highest number of estimated slaves with 18.3 million followed by China with 3.3 million. Others in South Asia include Afghanistan with 750,000 and Bangladesh with 592,000 people living in modern slavery.
Afghanistan has a Prevalence Index Rank of 5/167 and India 53/167. Forced marriage is common in India, child labor is common in India, Nepal, and other countries.
Literacy courses teach adults not only to read, but also to help stop the practice of forced marriages, and help people avoid the perils of indentured servitude, human trafficking, and bonded labor.
Becoming literate immediately empowers these women, putting them in a position where they know their rights as citizens. These women can be delivered from an abusive work situations and are enabled to secure a decent job paying 3-4 times their current wages.
They develop self-worth, dignity, and confidence. And they discover hope!
Unable to read and left widowed by an alcoholic husband who died of malaria,
At the age of 48, Udaya had never even seen a school. She spent her days walking the forests, gathering fruits to sell in the markets of the surrounding cities in order to make a living.
At 28 years old, Laila was a wife and a mother of two. At 28 years old, Laila was also uneducated, and her family was very poor.
Samaja and her community live in a mountainous region, relying on agriculture and the natural resources of their land for opportunities to work.
When I was a child, I did not get the opportunity to study. When I heard that they were going to start literacy classes in our village, I felt very happy.
Though I hold the highest post in the village, I was unable to read and reply to the goverenment orders and letters. I was afraid that I might have to lose my job.
