Oxfam report shows world's 26 richest billionaires have as much as 3.8 billion people

Oxfam report shows world's 26 richest billionaires have as much as 3.8 billion people

According to a recent global report that YEN.com.gh sighted, the 26 richest billionaires own as many assets as the 3.8 billion people who make up the poorest half of the planet’s population.

According to the global anti-poverty campaign group Oxfam in the annual wealth check released to mark the start of the World Economic Forum in Davos, 2018 was the most remarkable year in which the rich had grown richer and the poor, poorer.

The Guardian which carried Oxfam's report noted that, the widening gap was hindering the fight against poverty, adding that a wealth tax on the 1% would help in the fight against poverty.

The taxation policy is expected to raise an estimated $418 billion (GHC 2 trillion) a year, enough to educate every child not in school and provide healthcare that would prevent 3 million deaths.

READ ALSO: Maame Serwaa makes appearance in new BBC documentary

Oxfam said the wealth of more than 2,200 billionaires across the globe had increased by $900bn in 2018 or $2.5bn a day. The 12% increase in the wealth of the very rich contrasted with a fall of 11% in the wealth of the poorest half of the world’s population.

As a result, the report concluded, the number of billionaires owning as much wealth as half the world’s population fell from 43 in 2017 to 26 last year. In 2016 the number was 61.

The report said many governments were making inequality worse by failing to invest enough in public services.

READ ALSO: FDA releases list of 41 harmful cosmetic products in Ghana

It noted that about 10,000 people per day die due to the lack of healthcare and there were 262 million children not in school; often because their parents were unable to afford the fees, uniforms or textbooks.

Ghana News Today: NAM1 Arrested / GPHA Public Affairs Boss Stabbed to Death | #Yencomgh

Subscribe to watch new videos

Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page.

Source: YEN.com.gh

Online view pixel