Africa
Africa has the second highest rates of forced labour among all of the world’s continents. Most victims of forced labour are exploited for work in the primary industry, including garment marking, the cocoa industry and agriculture/mining sectors.
The International Labour Organisation (ILO) estimates that there are approximately 3.7 million people enslaved in Africa, and this number is steadily growing. Forced labour in Africa is inevitably a result of weak legislation, poverty and exploitation by economically powerful countries.
The International Labour Organisation (ILO) estimates that there are approximately 3.7 million people enslaved in Africa, and this number is steadily growing. Forced labour in Africa is inevitably a result of weak legislation, poverty and exploitation by economically powerful countries.
Weak Legislation
The ILO estimates that the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) alone has more than 1 million people enslaved. Rich in geographical resources, the DRC is famous for its natural minerals, such as cobalt, copper and gold and thus has a large focus on mining as a means of facilitating economic growth. Additionally, the DRC is the largest supplier of cobalt globally, producing around 55% of all cobalt traded transnationally.
Constitutionally, there are large gaps in the framework of anti-forced labour laws. For one, the compulsory completion of education age is 12, and after that education becomes a choice. As a result of this, the US Bureau of International Labour Affairs estimates that 35.8% of DRC’s population aged between 5-14 are victims of forced labour in mines. To combat this, regulations were introduced to lower the number of children enslaved, such as free primary education. However, the failure of the government to carry out the promised actions of completely subsidising primary education and enforcing anti-child labour laws on a national basis has resulted in a lack of reduction in victims of child labour. The DRC’s government did not allocate funds towards enforcement agencies such as the ILO, to conduct inspections and identify forced labourers and thus, the legislation is unable to serve it’s true purpose. The failure of the legislation combined with poor government leadership, is one of the biggest factors contributing to the overwhelming amounts of forced labour in Africa, as shown in the DRC.
Poverty
Moreover, cycles of generational poverty is another large factor contributing to the shockingly high rates of forced labour victims in Africa. Recruiters often lure victims into thinking that working for them will liberate their financial hardships, and promise unrealistically large amounts of money. However, once employed in forced labour schemes it becomes clear that work and living conditions promised by recruiters is not legitimate, but rather a false pretense. For the majority of these workers, they become trapped by debt bondage, as outlined by previous United Nations Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, Ms. Urmila Bhoola. Debt bondage refers to the practice of forcing workers to pay off the expense of recruiting them into the job they are currently employed in, even though the value of their work is far higher than this cost. In other words, it causes further financial strain on forced labour workers, thus fueling generational poverty.
Generational poverty is an issue of large concern in most African countries, and combined with the lack of access to legal help and resources, it is a contributing factor to the majority of victims enslaved in forced labour across Africa.
Developed countries often exploit developing countries for both labour and resources, as it is cheaper and more economically viable to produce goods and services in countries with weaker regulations. This exploitation usually takes the form of sourcing primary industry jobs overseas, and thus promoting the growth of the tertiary industry in each developed country. This type of exploitation leads to an increase in demand for labourers, and thus results in a large increase of the number of people enslaved to meet the supply needs of developed economies, contributing to high rates of forced labour.
High rates of forced labour in Africa are ultimately a result of weak legislation and political uncertainty, generational poverty and exploitation of vulnerable economies by developed economies.
The ILO estimates that the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) alone has more than 1 million people enslaved. Rich in geographical resources, the DRC is famous for its natural minerals, such as cobalt, copper and gold and thus has a large focus on mining as a means of facilitating economic growth. Additionally, the DRC is the largest supplier of cobalt globally, producing around 55% of all cobalt traded transnationally.
Constitutionally, there are large gaps in the framework of anti-forced labour laws. For one, the compulsory completion of education age is 12, and after that education becomes a choice. As a result of this, the US Bureau of International Labour Affairs estimates that 35.8% of DRC’s population aged between 5-14 are victims of forced labour in mines. To combat this, regulations were introduced to lower the number of children enslaved, such as free primary education. However, the failure of the government to carry out the promised actions of completely subsidising primary education and enforcing anti-child labour laws on a national basis has resulted in a lack of reduction in victims of child labour. The DRC’s government did not allocate funds towards enforcement agencies such as the ILO, to conduct inspections and identify forced labourers and thus, the legislation is unable to serve it’s true purpose. The failure of the legislation combined with poor government leadership, is one of the biggest factors contributing to the overwhelming amounts of forced labour in Africa, as shown in the DRC.
Poverty
Moreover, cycles of generational poverty is another large factor contributing to the shockingly high rates of forced labour victims in Africa. Recruiters often lure victims into thinking that working for them will liberate their financial hardships, and promise unrealistically large amounts of money. However, once employed in forced labour schemes it becomes clear that work and living conditions promised by recruiters is not legitimate, but rather a false pretense. For the majority of these workers, they become trapped by debt bondage, as outlined by previous United Nations Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, Ms. Urmila Bhoola. Debt bondage refers to the practice of forcing workers to pay off the expense of recruiting them into the job they are currently employed in, even though the value of their work is far higher than this cost. In other words, it causes further financial strain on forced labour workers, thus fueling generational poverty.
Generational poverty is an issue of large concern in most African countries, and combined with the lack of access to legal help and resources, it is a contributing factor to the majority of victims enslaved in forced labour across Africa.
Developed countries often exploit developing countries for both labour and resources, as it is cheaper and more economically viable to produce goods and services in countries with weaker regulations. This exploitation usually takes the form of sourcing primary industry jobs overseas, and thus promoting the growth of the tertiary industry in each developed country. This type of exploitation leads to an increase in demand for labourers, and thus results in a large increase of the number of people enslaved to meet the supply needs of developed economies, contributing to high rates of forced labour.
High rates of forced labour in Africa are ultimately a result of weak legislation and political uncertainty, generational poverty and exploitation of vulnerable economies by developed economies.
