Rising inequalities threaten global economic development

This week, Oxfam is launching a new campaign - Even it Up - to draw attention to the extreme inequality in the world. Seven out of ten people live in countries where economic inequality has increased over the last 30 years. In January, Oxfam revealed that the world's 85 richest individuals own as much as the poorest half of the world's population combined. These 85 individuals have seen their assets grow by $668 million a day over the past year. In the same period, hundreds of thousands of mothers have lost their lives in childbirth due to lack of medical care.

Extreme inequality
The world's richest individuals are getting richer while hundreds of thousands of millions of people live in extreme poverty. Why is this important for an organization like Oxfam? Oxfam works to tackle extreme inequality because growing inequality threatens the economic and social development of the world. Even in countries with growing economies, where the gap between rich and poor is wide, poverty remains a widespread problem. In Zambia, a country with strong GDP growth, the number of people living in extreme poverty has increased by almost 50%.

According to Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of Oxfam International, extreme inequality is a threat to global economic growth.

"Millions of people die every year due to lack of healthcare while a small elite has more money than they can spend in their lifetime. Extreme inequality hinders economic growth, causes corruption and instability, and deepens discrimination against marginalized groups, especially women."

Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director Oxfam International

A small redistribution of the world's wealth would make a big difference in practice. If the world's billionaires gave away 1.5% of their wealth every year, all children could go to school and the world's poorest countries could invest in better healthcare.

"Reacting to inequality is not about jealousy over fast cars and luxury yachts, but about the fact that rich people live longer and healthier lives than poor people. We live in a world where there is enough for everyone to improve their lot. Extreme inequality causes conflicts and problems that ultimately affect us all. It is high time to act before the situation worsens."

Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director Oxfam International

The way forward
The gap between the world's richest individuals and the masses continues to grow. To reverse this trend, we need to take action in a number of areas, such as investing in welfare, social safety nets and tougher rules against tax evasion. Global companies and the world's richest individuals must contribute their fair share to the treasury so that more countries can lift themselves out of poverty. Policies that seriously address these issues and succeed in slowing down the growing gaps will yield results. In India, 90 million people could escape extreme poverty by 2019 if action were taken.