A new study highlights a $36 billion annual investment gap and calls for sustainable finance approaches that address growing financial, regulatory and supply chain risks.

Modern slavery and human trafficking generate an estimated US$236 billion in illegal profits every year, yet global investment in prevention and response remains critically inadequate. A new report launched today by the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Finance Against Slavery and Trafficking (FAST) Initiative argues that this imbalance represents not only a human rights failure, but also a growing financial and systemic risk.

The business case for action, Mobilizing Finance Against Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking: The UNDP–FAST Initiative Investment Study, examines how governments, investors and businesses can better align capital with prevention, resilience and sustainable development outcomes. It identifies an estimated recurring annual investment gap of approximately $36 billion through 2030 and outlines practical pathways to mobilize sustainable finance at greater scale. 

Approximately 50 million people worldwide are currently living in conditions of forced labour or forced marriage, including 28 million people embedded within global supply chains and labour markets. Despite the scale of the challenge, the report finds that annual global spending to address modern slavery and human trafficking remains below $1 billion, far below the level required to strengthen prevention systems, enforcement mechanisms and survivor-centred responses.

The study comes at a time of growing regulatory scrutiny and rising investor awareness around forced labour, supply chain resilience and human rights due diligence. It documents the chronic underinvestment in modern slavery and human trafficking prevention, enforcement and remediation—as well as reframes this investment shortfall as a structural market and development failure that transfers risk to companies, investors and financial institutions. Through examples and case studies, the report shows how modern slavery and human trafficking can pose material risks for investors and companies via legal liability, operational disruption, reputational damage and restricted market access.

As noted in the foreword by Thomas Beloe, Director of UNDP’s Sustainable Finance Hub, “modern slavery and human trafficking are increasingly linked to market-access constraints, legal liability, operational disruption, and valuation loss.” He adds that “the report also demonstrates that action is not only necessary, but investable.”

One of the report’s central contributions is the development of an Integrated Impact Business Case framework designed to help investors, companies and financial institutions better account for the long-term financial and operational risks associated with modern slavery and human trafficking.

The framework expands traditional financial appraisal approaches by incorporating both the avoidable costs of inaction, such as supply chain disruptions, regulatory penalties and reputational damage, and the strategic business gains associated with responsible business practices, including operational resilience, investor confidence and market access. The report argues that this approach can help translate modern slavery risks into financially material considerations for investment and business decision-making.

Building on the Integrated Impact Business Case framework, the report also outlines a sustainable finance roadmap to help translate analysis into implementation. It explores how sustainable finance instruments, including blended finance, sustainable debt structures and performance-based financing mechanisms, could help channel greater investment toward prevention and resilience. The study also highlights opportunities for future investor engagement, policy integration and practical application across financing and regulatory frameworks.

The launch forms part of UNDP’s broader efforts to help countries align public and private finance with sustainable development priorities and strengthen financial systems that deliver long-term resilience and inclusion. Across its sustainable finance portfolio, UNDP supports governments, investors and businesses to mobilize and align capital for the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), while advancing financing approaches that strengthen resilience, inclusion and sustainability.

The report was developed through the UNDP Finance Against Slavery and Trafficking Initiative in collaboration with financial experts, researchers and partners working across sustainable finance, responsible investment and anti-trafficking efforts.

Download the report.