It takes approximately $1200 U.S. dollars (or more depending on circumstances) to free whole families from slavery. Women and children are abused in all forms. They are mistreated and made to “work off their debt” in these Kilns where they make bricks. It’s not only the freedom, but the assistance given to maintain themselves out of the slavery lifestyle as some are born into it. There are associate pastors/churches or “Abundant Life Pakistan” who can assist these families. They are sometimes set up in homes or given rickshaw’s to have a business so that they are able to support themselves.
An estimated 2.3 million to 4.5 million people in Pakistan are living in modern slavery as of 2025. The most prevalent form is bonded labor (debt bondage), where impoverished workers take small loans from employers and become trapped in a cycle of debt due to low wages and high interest.
Key Sectors and Forms of Exploitation
Modern slavery is concentrated in the informal economy, where labor laws are rarely enforced:
- Brick Kilns: Approximately 20,000 brick kilns operate across the country, employing between 3.5 and 4 million people in slave-like conditions. Entire families, including children, often work together to repay a single family debt.
- Agriculture: In rural areas like Sindh and Punjab, powerful landlords trap sharecroppers in debt cycles that can last for generations. Some landlords even maintain private jails to detain and punish indebted workers.
- Mining: Workers in the coal, gold, and copper mines of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa face dangerous conditions with little safety equipment and high rates of fatal accidents.
- Domestic Service: Many women and children work as domestic helps for wealthy families, often under debt bondage and with limited freedom.
- Forced Marriage: Girls from religious minorities (especially Christians and Hindus) are frequently abducted, forcibly converted, and married off, a practice considered a form of modern slavery.
Vulnerable Groups
- Children: Almost 70% of bonded laborers are estimated to be children. Many are denied education and work 14–18 hours a day in hazardous environments.
- Religious Minorities: Christians and low-caste Hindus (Dalits) are disproportionately represented in bonded labor, often taking the most undesirable and dangerous jobs.
- Women: Female laborers face double exploitation, performing unpaid labor to repay their husbands’ debts while remaining vulnerable to sexual violence and harassment.