World’s 100 richest could end global poverty 4 times over
The world’s 100 richest people earned a stunning total of $240 billion in 2012 – enough money to end extreme poverty worldwide four times over, Oxfam has revealed, adding that the global economic crisis is further enriching the super-rich.
“The richest 1 percent has increased its income by 60 percent in the last 20 years with the financial crisis accelerating rather than slowing the process,” while the income of the top 0.01 percent has seen even greater growth, a new Oxfam report said.
For example, the luxury goods market has seen double-digit growth every year since the crisis hit, the report stated. And while the world’s 100 richest people earned $240 billion last year, people in ”extreme poverty” lived on less than $1.25 a day.
Oxfam is a leading international philanthropy organization. Its new report, ‘The Cost of Inequality: How Wealth and Income Extremes Hurt us All,’ argues that the extreme concentration of wealth actually hinders the world’s ability to reduce poverty.
The report was published before the World Economic Forum in Davos next week, and calls on world leaders to “end extreme wealth by 2025, and reverse the rapid increase in inequality seen in the majority of countries in the last 20 years.”
Oxfam’s report argues that extreme wealth is unethical, economically inefficient, politically corrosive, socially divisive and environmentally destructive.
The report proposes a new global deal to world leaders to curb extreme poverty to 1990s levels by:
- closing tax havens, yielding $189bn in additional tax revenues
- reversing regressive forms of taxation
- introducing a global minimum corporation tax rate
- boosting wages proportional to capital returns
- increasing investment in free public services
The problem is a global one, Oxfam said: ”In the UK inequality is rapidly returning to levels not seen since the time of Charles Dickens. In China the top 10 percent now take home nearly 60 percent of the income. Chinese inequality levels are now similar to those in South Africa, which is now the most unequal country on Earth and significantly more [inequality] than at the end of apartheid.”
In the US, the richest 1 percent’s share of income has doubled since 1980 from 10 to 20 percent, according to the report. For the top 0.01 percent, their share of national income quadrupled, reaching levels never seen before.
“We can no longer pretend that the creation of wealth for a few will inevitably benefit the many – too often the reverse is true,” Executive Director of Oxfam International Jeremy Hobbs said.
Hobbs explained that concentration of wealth in the hands of the top few minimizes economic activity, making it harder for others to participate: “From tax havens to weak employment laws, the richest benefit from a global economic system which is rigged in their favor.”
The report highlights that even politics has become controlled by the super-wealthy, which leads to policies“benefitting the richest few and not the poor majority, even in democracies.”
“It is time our leaders reformed the system so that it works in the interests of the whole of humanity rather than a global elite,” the report said.
The four-day World Economic Forum will be held in Davos starting next Wednesday. World financial leaders will gather for an annual meeting that will focus on reviving the global economy, the eurozone crisis and the conflicts in Syria and Mali.
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122 Responses to World’s 100 richest could end global poverty 4 times over
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“The poor complain, they always do but that’s just idle chatter. This system brings benefits to all, at least to those who matter.”
idle chat-my ass- you, son of a bitch. apparently, you are not much of a student of history. however, when the shit hits the fan (and it will), you will discover that greed was your undoing. karma is very real, my friend. even all of of your riches can not change that.
Hey here is an idea, quit waistibg all your money time and water having grass in your front and back lawn and grow a garden, you spend less money on food less waisted water and omg you might make soon much food you could sell some to a local farmersmarket and make extra money. Then send the seeds you get to places that need food and teach them how to take care of themselves
except that in most cities, there are laws where you can’t grow a garden unless it’s in an inclosed space that cannot be seen from the road.
Let’s say the 100 richest do end poverty in our lifetime. What happens when those people then go on to live their life and have children (whom they cannot support)? Then we need to call on the wealthy again to support their next generation. And then the next generation after that. Eventually, there is nothing left to give and the entire world would be in “poverty”. So if this is something you wish to act on, be prepared to give up even the smallest niceties of your own lives. It’s easier to say yes to that when you don’t think about it. I believe overpopulation is still the main cause of sustained poverty.
You have such a dim view of humanity, Mary. Are you absolutely sure that fed people won’t take up the plow? That they won’t care for their own children if given half a chance? That they won’t educate themselves? Some won’t, it is true, but I am sure you will find that this is the minority.
(I apologize in advance for my english – it isn’t my first language.)
What you’re saying is what is wrong with people nowadays. You think they are poor because they pretty much decided to be poor and uneducated etc. But that’s not how it works. Anyone from the 49 poorest country in the world would make 10 times the effort given the same chances as us in Europe, North America (etc.).
And eventho I agree with you on the danger of overpopulation, our planet can still produce enough food and energy for everyone at the moment. In Europe and America we waste tons of food everyday while in other countries people starve to death.
Because the problem isn’t only the richest 1% of the world taking too much to the 99 others, it’s also those view countries (In north america, australia, europe etc.) taking so much away from the majority of the planet.
Sometimes but I can’t help but think, if only the USSR won and the world became communist. Maybe I wouldn’t have all the things I have today, but maybe everyone would be able to eat.
Thank you Kumar for your sensible comments. I am trying my best to practice what you preach and am reaping the benefits for others AND myself. Let us all stop judging and blaming others and BE THE CHANGE we would like to see. LIVE MORE SIMPLY SO THAT OTHERS, LESS FORTUNATE, MAY SIMPLY LIVE.
d sorry but you have a very narrow view of the world’s events and you suffer from a lack of writing manners. I quote “It’s such a stupid argument. You seriously believe someone being richer makes you poorer?” Please explain how else could that be possible? And of course don’t label everyone unnecessary as commie every time you fail to explain your narrow point of view.
Hey Toni,
Thanks for the response. Sorry that I hurt your feelings with my poor writing manners.
I’m pretty sure I explained my point of view better than most of the comments on here. I was very detailed in my explanation.
To answer your question: The problem is that you believe the economy is a pie and when someone is rich, they take a bigger piece of the pie. If you understood the basic fundamentals of the free enterprise system (and the genius that it is), you would know the economy is not a pie. When people have the guts to strike out on their own and build a company that meets a need in the marketplace and is successful (causing them to “get rich”), it’s like they create a bakery and make more pies. That’s why we measure growth in the GDP… which, in case you were wondering, does not stand for Gross Domestic Pie. It stands for Gross Domestic Product. That number, hopefully, grows every year as our economy expands and more people become successful as more money moves around our country because more people are succeeding in business.
The true problem with the free enterprise system is that our schools DO NOT teach people how to take advantage of it and become successful (and most people don’t go learn it on their own either). Our school systems teach people to be robots and just take orders… and hate those “evil capitalist PIGS”! They fail to teach the basic, fundamental building blocks of success in America. That is one of the biggest problems in our country. We are spoiled brats that haven’t a clue what we have available right in front of us.
I’m sure at this point you want to interject some point about evil banks, oil companies getting subsidies from the government, monsanto, blah blah blah. That is corporatism… basically government interference in the free market system. I absolutely do not agree with that. So, we can agree on one point. I’m sure we agree for different reasons, however.
Well, I could go on all day proving my point over and over again, but I have things to do. Please, for your own good, go educate yourself and STUDY successful people instead of just being jealous of them. You could start with reading some of the books they write.
Have a fantastic day Toni!
In reply to “d’s” comment.
You actually got it wrong. Economy is a pie pretty much because of one simple rule. The money of each country is based on their resources(eventho nowadays money became just another product you can speculate on), like gold. The only thing that actually adds money are banks by creating it when they lend it to someone.
I’m gonna take your example;
Someone has a good idea that meets a need on the market place. It’s really succesful and a lot of people buy the product. Do you really think those consummers just suddenly have extra money to buy your product, and it doesn’t affect another company?
Nope, people buy your product and therefore they don’t buy someone else’s product.
Also, when you’re creating your company, nowadays you’re more likely to finance it by the stock market. But if people buy shares of your company, it’s not only your’s anymore, it’s also there’s. A great way for people with money to make sure they still have money even if someone has a great idea that competes with their company.
By the way, I’m not American so I don’t know your school system well. But who benefits that the school system doesn’t teach you to be successful and just be robots?
If I had a big company, I wouldn’t want (more) competition; that’s just common sense.
Btw, you really think people get money only by having great ideas and being successful with it? 2 or 3 years ago, someone(can’t remember the name) who inherited one of the biggest minning / coal industry of the world became the richest woman on earth just because the market price doubled. It didn’t cost her more money to produce it, but she still sold it to the market price because people don’t really have the choice and need it. And you can find those examples everywhere. Like oil in the 70s or the richest man on earth (Well maybe it’s back to Bill Gates, but I’m talking about Carlos Slim) that is able to continuously grow is wealth because he has the monopoly on the telecommunication and therefor fixes what ever price he pleases (And if you think it only happens because the gouvernement there is corrupted, even in France we caught the 3 biggest telecommunication companies deciding of the market price together to make sure they stay high.)
Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not a communist, I really like the idea of free entreprise but not as it is today. I think we deserve an ethical capitalism, and not this trivial fight for survival(well for survival for some people, and for a few others it’s just to get a bigger house). I mean we even created a stock market on the most basic foods(chicago I think), in times where people die of hunger, how crazy can we be?
ps: Sorry, english isn’t my native language.
In reply to the message from ‘d’.
I’m on your side and even I feel like I got schooled when I read that
Many great points!
Seaoharewhy said :” And if your answer is, “I worked hard for it”, then you miss the point of being alive”
True that.
If there way a slightly more equitable distribution of wealth, so many beneficial things could be done for mankind. Not just end poverty, starvation and hunger. Think of the scientific research….Extend life expectancy, cure cancer, Alzheimer’s, and on and on. I’m not saying the wealthy don’t deserve to be wealthy. But how much is enough. Surely, 1 billion dollars is more than any one person could possible need.
There are a lot of very large numbers of wealth in some people’s bank accounts that they will never need or use. I say numbers because it isn’t even real money just numbers of wealth.It equates, in reality to nothing. These numbers will just get bigger and bigger with interest and investment and passed between generations for a few individuals who will live a life with no financial boundaries.
The point being that if a good percentage of this money from the top few were to be distributed to very good causes like charities for ending world hunger, where it could used to buy whatever is actually needed by communities in desperate areas of the world, then it would certainly be a better use for it than just sitting as a large number in someones online bank statement and yes the world would probably be a better place for it.
Also, I have always given a reasonable 1-3 percent of income to such charities, no I’m not religious. Yes I earn moderately well, blah blah blah…
Capitalism works to an extent but personal / family owned wealth should really be curbed at some point. There is not limitless resources in the world these people really have the power to do what the rest cannot.
my 2p.
Chris
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Capitalism is dead…..To Big To Fail…..
We all can sit here and chat about it, or we do something about it. 1 Small step per person is all it takes to help world wide. I am a single mom supporting 2 girls, 1 with special needs on a limited income, but I feel blessed to have been lucky enough to be born where I was and live the life I do, I buy an item for the food bank every time I shop, it’s not a big thing, but I believe if everyone capable did 1 small thing what a difference it could make. What can you do?