One percent of the world's population will soon own more than the rest combined

If the current trend of widening gaps is not broken, the richest one per cent of the world's population will own more than the remaining 99 per cent combined by next year.

Later this week, the World Economic Forum begins in Davos. Oxfam International CEO Winnie Byanyima, who is chairing the meeting, describes development as an obstacle in the fight against global poverty. This is in a world where 1 in 9 people don't have enough to eat and over a billion people still live on less than $1.25 a day.

The Oxfam report Wealth: Having it all and wanting more published today shows that the richest one percent of the world's population has seen their assets grow from 44% of the total pie in 2009, to 48% in 2014. At the current rate of growth, their combined assets will exceed 50% by next year. Of the remaining 52% of global assets, 46% are owned by the richest fifth, meaning that the remaining 80% share the remaining 5.5% of the world's assets.

"Do we really want to live in a world where one percent of the world's population owns more than the rest combined? Despite extreme inequality being staggering, the gap between the very richest and the rest continues to grow."

Winnie Byanyima, CEO Oxfam International

"Over the past 12 months, several world leaders, including President Obama and Christine Lagarde, have addressed the issue, but the results are not coming. It is now time for our leaders to challenge the powerful vested interests that stand in the way of a fairer and more prosperous world. Failure to address extreme inequality also risks setting back the fight against poverty by decades. The poor are doubly disadvantaged by widening gaps, both by reducing their share of the economic pie and by reducing the overall pie as extreme inequality hampers economic growth."

Winnie Byanyima, CEO Oxfam International

Time to act
In light of this, Oxfam calls on governments to:
- Crack down on tax evasion
- Invest in basic social services, such as education and healthcare, available to all
- Shift the tax burden from labor and consumption to capital and wealth
- Introduce minimum wages
- Promote economic policies that empower women
- Guarantee safety nets for the poorest
- Set global targets to tackle extreme inequality in the world

"Not just a question of morality"
Lady Lynn Fore de Rothschild, CEO of EL Rothschild and Chair of the Inclusive Capitalism Association, today calls on the business leaders gathering in Davos to take responsibility in the fight against extreme inequality.

"Oxfam's report is just the latest evidence that inequality in the world has reached shocking proportions. The global leaders of modern capitalism must do their part to transform the system and make it more inclusive, fair and sustainable. Extreme inequality is not only a moral issue, it also hampers economic growth and thus the private sector. Everyone gathered in Davos, who shares the vision of a stable and prosperous world, must take these issues seriously."

Lady Lynn Fore de Rothschild, CEO EL Rothschild, Chair Inclusive Capitalism

Oxfam made headlines in Davos last year with the revelation that the world's 85 richest individuals own as much as the poorest half of the world's population combined. The figure is now 80 - a dramatic drop from 388 individuals in 2010. The wealth of the 80 richest individuals has also doubled since 2009.