Reducing inequalities within and among countries is the tenth goal of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDG-10).
Inequalities related to income and structural and systemic discrimination are major causes of concern worldwide. They threaten long-term social and economic development, limit poverty reduction and negatively affect opportunities for better livelihoods for all.
Over the course of the past 25 years, the world according to the UN “has seen a dramatic increase in both extreme poverty and extreme wealth surging at an alarming rate between 2019 and 2020, and marking a level of growth not seen since the conclusion of World War II. At present, the top 10% of the world’s population commands over 52% of global income, while the bottom half of the population struggles to earn a mere 8.5%. “As a result, billions of people are grappling with the challenges of high food prices and hunger, while the number of billionaires has doubled over the past decade”. The report highlighted.
The UNSDGs aim to address many of these inequalities by 2030.
According to the latest United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Report (2022), “before the COVID-19 crisis, encouraging signs across many indicators suggested that income inequalities were narrowing. In many countries, for instance, the incomes of the poorest people rose faster than the national average, though inequalities in other areas persisted. Now, the effects of the pandemic appear to be reversing any positive trends.”
Goal 10: Reduced Inequalities have the following targets:
- By 2030, progressively achieve and sustain income growth of the bottom 40 percent of the population at a rate higher than the national average.
- By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion or economic or other status.
- Ensure equal opportunity and reduce outcome inequalities, including eliminating discriminatory laws, policies and practices and promoting appropriate legislation, policies and action in this regard.
- Adopt fiscal, wage and social protection policies and progressively achieve greater equality.
- Improve the regulation and monitoring of global financial markets and institutions and strengthen the implementation of such regulations.
- Ensure enhanced representation and voice for developing countries in decision-making in global international economic and financial institutions to deliver more effective, credible, accountable and legitimate institutions.
- Facilitate orderly, safe, regular and responsible migration and mobility of people, including implementing planned and well-managed migration policies.
- Implement the principle of special and differential treatment for developing countries, particularly least developed countries, per World Trade Organization agreements.
- Encourage official development assistance and financial flows, including foreign direct investment, to states where the need is greatest, in particular, least developed countries, African countries, small island developing States and landlocked developing countries, in accordance with their national plans and programmes.
- By 2030, reduce to less than 3 percent the transaction costs of migrant remittances and eliminate remittance corridors with costs higher than 5 per cent.
According to the Report, three core areas of inequality remain prominent.
- Developing and emerging markets are experiencing slow post-COVID recovery, exacerbating disparities in income between countries.
- COVID-19 has exaggerated structural and systemic discrimination.
- 2021 saw the number of refugees globally reaching the highest absolute number on record, with the war in Ukraine “forcing even more people from their homes and creating one of the largest refugee crises in recent memory.”
Emerging and developing countries are more unequal.
The Report highlights the role the COVID-19 pandemic has played in the first rise in “between-country income inequality” in a generation.
“Projections suggest that between-country inequality rose by 1.2 per cent between 2017 and 2021, the first such increase in a generation. Before the pandemic, inequality was expected to have fallen by 2.6 percent over the same period,” the Report notes.
Further forecasts have suggested that income inequality within emerging markets and developing countries will also have increased. This increase, it suggests, “may become entrenched since pandemic-induced disruptions to education and the disproportionate adverse effects on low-income households may worsen intergenerational mobility” (UN SDG Report, 2022).
Increases in structural and systemic discrimination
Millions of people continue to be harmed by structural and systemic discrimination related to, among other things, gender, ethnicity, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, and disability—even more so following the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the Report, “roughly one in five people have experienced discrimination on at least one of the grounds prohibited under international human rights law.”
It goes on to report that “women are more than twice as likely as men to experience discrimination on the grounds of sex”, and one-third of persons with disabilities have reported experiences of discrimination.
Record number of refugees worldwide
“By mid-2021, the number of people forced to flee their countries due to war, conflict, persecution, human rights violations, and events seriously disturbing public order had grown to 24.5 million, the highest absolute number on record” (UN SDG Report, 2022). This means that “for every 100,000 people worldwide, 311 are refugees outside their country of origin” (UN SDG Report, 2022).
In 2021, 5,895 people died fleeing their countries, surpassing pre-pandemic figures and making 2021 the deadliest year on record for migrants since 2017”. The report disclosed.
According to the report, “countries in Northern Africa and Western Asia were the largest regional source of refugees (8.4 million), followed by countries in sub-Saharan Africa (6.7 million), and Latin America and the Caribbean (4.5 million).”
In March 2023, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees recounted that more than 50,000 people escaped Ukraine in just two days after the invasion. This led to the fastest refugee crisis since World War II.
The ongoing war in Ukraine and Sudan and the Islamic insurgency in the Sahel region have exacerbated these figures, making the current refugee situation the “worst refugee crisis in recent history.” In 2022, more than 6 million people in Ukraine had moved to other countries to escape the conflict, with at least 8 million displaced inside the country.
Ghana’s position
Recognised as the second-largest economy in West Africa, Ghana has fared relatively well in economic growth and poverty reduction. Oxfam reports that Ghana’s poverty levels have more than halved between 1992 and 2013.
However, according to the World Bank and other leading economists and policymakers, poverty reduction in Ghana has slowed, with the international poverty rate estimated at 20.5% in 2022. This, they assert, results from “currency depreciation, increased price of electricity and water, new taxes and an increase in the VAT” ….. that has “driven up the cost of living, particularly for basic necessities and food” (2023).
In addition to income inequality, Oxfam notes that in Ghana, “gender inequality remains a pervasive issue.” They assert that “women are more likely to be poorer and to have fewer assets. For instance, they are half as likely as men to own land. They are also significantly less likely than men to be wealthy–only 6% of the richest people in Ghana are women.”
Overall, inequalities related to income, sex, race, class, ethnicity, disability, age, sexual orientation, and religion continue to exist in Ghana and around the world. Greater efforts are needed to reduce inequality and give everyone a chance for a better, more sustainable life.
To conclude, it is clear from the available evidence that inequality is a major issue that must be addressed globally. This complex problem can take many forms, from income discrepancies to institutional barriers certain groups or individuals face. These challenges can make it difficult to reduce poverty levels and limit people’s ability to improve their living standards. Ensuring equal opportunities for everyone is thus crucial in creating prosperous societies where individuals can actively take part and make meaningful contributions to their communities.
>>>The writer is an international chartered director and Africa’s first-ever appointed Professor Extraordinaire for Industrialisation and Supply Chain Governance. He is the CEO of PanAvest International and the founding non-executive chairman of MY-future YOUR-Future and OUR-Future (“MYO”) and the “thought-provoking” daily NyansaKasa (words of wisdom) series. Professor Boateng is the non-executive chairperson of the Minerals Income and Investment Fund (MIIF). Previously, he was the non-executive chair of the Public Procurement Authority (PPA). For more information on Nyansakasa, visit www.myoglobal.org and www.panavest.com.
