Speaking at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, UN chief António Guterres pointed out that, while technological progress and globalisation have led to “fantastic improvements” in many areas, they have also increased inequality and marginalised millions.
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development: the UN’s blueprint for a better and more sustainable future for all, calls for a reduction in inequality between and within countries.
And, in her annual letter, Lise Kingo, CEO of the UN Global Compact, which supports private sector efforts to do business responsibly, noted that, in 2018, we saw “a small group of individuals are getting exponentially richer as billions are left behind in poverty.”
Inequality is not only rising, it is also an “entrenched imbalance,” according to Richard Kozul-Wright, a globalisation expert and Director with the Trade and Development agency UNCTAD.
In an interview with UN News, Mr Kozul-Wright said that notionally high employment rates in many economies mask the fact that wages and working conditions are not improving, and that whilst wages have been stagnant for a decade, dividends on shareholdings have been recovering, benefiting financial asset holders. His remarks came in the wake of the January launch of the 2019 World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP) report which showed uneven growth both between and within countries that is often failing to reach where it is most needed.(UNI)
Inequality barriers: UN fights for fairer world
