Will the rich be able to solve the world's famine?
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London (CNN) --
Nearly 250 million more people could live on less than $1.9 a day by the end of 2022 due to COVID-19, rising global inequality and rising food prices, fueled by for the war in Ukraine, according to a new Oxfam report.
The report projects that rising global food prices alone will push an additional 65 million people into extreme poverty by 2022. This is on top of the 198 million people in extreme poverty the World Bank earlier predicted. this year, raising the total expectation to 263 million.
The number at risk of falling into those poverty levels is equivalent to the combined populations of the UK, Germany, France and Spain.
The pandemic pushed nearly 100 million people into extreme poverty.
Now they're fighting to get out
"If immediate radical action is not taken, we could be witnessing the deepest collapse of humanity into extreme poverty and suffering in our memories," said Gabriela Bucher, Executive Director of Oxfam International.
"This terrifying prospect is made more sickening by the fact that trillions of dollars are in the hands of a small group of powerful people who have no interest in disrupting this trajectory," he added.
The report also claims that “whole countries are being forced into deeper poverty”, as covid-19 has depleted their financial reserves and they are pushed into adopting austerity measures.
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From Pakistan to Peru, skyrocketing food and fuel prices are pushing countries to the brink
If enough governments were willing to raise taxes on the wealthiest, starting with a 2% annual wealth tax on millionaires and 5% on billionaires, it would be enough to "lift 2.3 billion people out of poverty, manufacture enough vaccines for the world and offer universal health care and social protection to everyone living in low- and middle-income countries," the report said.
"We reject any notion that governments don't have the money or the means to lift all people out of poverty and hunger and ensure their health and well-being. All we see is a lack of economic creativity and political will to do so," Bucher said.
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