Which countries have the highest prevalence of modern slavery per capita?

1. The question you asked — and how experts measure it

“Highest prevalence per capita” is a metric used by Walk Free to show the number of people in modern slavery per 100,000 or per 1,000 residents; the Index calculates prevalence separate from absolute counts so that small states with acute problems can rank highly even if they have fewer total victims than large countries like India or China ^{[5] [1] [6]}. These prevalence scores are intended to show how likely modern slavery is to take hold in a population, while absolute numbers show scale ^{[5] [6]}.

2. Which countries top prevalence lists (what the reporting says)

Walk Free’s Global Slavery Index materials and related summaries indicate that the countries with the highest prevalence per capita tend to be conflict‑affected, have forms of state‑imposed forced labour, or suffer weak governance; the Index’s 2025 findings explicitly say four of five world regions are represented among the highest‑prevalence countries, though the specific ranked list is published by Walk Free’s country page and map ^{[1] [2] [7]}. World Population Review and other aggregates summarize that smaller countries in Africa and the Middle East often show higher incidence per capita ^[8].

3. Big countries have the biggest raw numbers, different story by metric

Statista and Walk Free‑based compilations report India and China as having the largest absolute numbers of people in modern slavery (India ~11 million, China ~5.8 million in cited charts), but those are totals not per capita rankings — a crucial distinction when comparing prevalence ^[6]. Global estimates from the ILO and partners place about 50 million people in modern slavery in 2021, reinforcing that absolute scale and prevalence paint different policy priorities ^{[3] [4]}.

4. Why prevalence is higher in some smaller states: conflict, coercion, weak institutions

Walk Free’s analysis attributes high per‑capita prevalence to conflict, state‑imposed forced labour, and weak governance, and notes that women, children and migrants are disproportionately affected; that explains why several small or crisis‑affected countries rank highly by prevalence even if totals remain lower than in populous nations ^{[1] [2]}. World Population Review similarly notes that while Asian countries host the highest total numbers, African and Middle Eastern smaller states show higher per‑person incidence ^[8].

5. Data limits, contested totals and methodological caveats

Estimates vary by methodology and definition: Walk Free’s Index, the ILO’s Global Estimates, UN summaries and third‑party compilations (Statista, others) produce different emphases — prevalence, absolute counts, or sectoral risk — and reporting stresses that modern slavery is hard to measure because victims are often hidden and definitions differ ^{[1] [3] [9]}. The ILO and UN partnership reports a rise to about 50 million in 2021, noting an increase compared with 2016; Walk Free’s five‑year Index is complementary but not identical in methods ^{[3] [4]}.

6. What this means for policy and public understanding

Policymakers must use both per‑capita prevalence and absolute numbers: high prevalence signals urgent systemic failure in a population (governance, conflict, state coercion), while large absolute figures — as in India and China — demand broad, resource‑intensive interventions across sectors and supply chains ^{[6] [2]}. Walk Free highlights government response as a separate index element, meaning that strong responses can lower prevalence even where vulnerability is high ^{[5] [2]}.

7. Where to look for the official, country‑by‑country ranking

Walk Free’s Global Slavery Index country map and full report publish the detailed per‑100,000 prevalence rankings and country profiles; the Index and its findings page are the primary source for the prevalence lists referenced in 2025 reporting ^{[7] [2]}. Aggregators such as World Population Review and Statista summarize those outputs but do not replace the Index’s country data ^{[5] [6] [8]}.

Limitations and transparency: available sources describe methods and list high‑prevalence patterns but the exact ranked list of “top per‑capita countries” is given in Walk Free’s country data and map ^{[7] [2]}. For a definitive, up‑to‑date per‑100,000 ranking consult Walk Free’s Global Slavery Index country pages and map ^[7].