A new report shows the richest 62 people in the world have the same wealth as the poorest half of the world's population, and it has a severely magnifying effect on the spread of disease, one expert says.
The Oxfam study, An Economy for the 1%, published today, shows despite the global population growing by around 400 million people since 2010, the wealth of the poorest half of humanity has decreased by 41 percent, around US$1 trillion. That compares with the wealth of the richest 62 people growing by more than half a trillion dollars, to US$1.72 trillion in the same period.
Oxfam communications specialist Jason Garman says the figures are "alarming".
"What we're seeing is that the growth in global inequality is on the rise and rapidly so," he says.
Five years ago, the wealth of the poorest half of the world was equal to that of the wealthiest 388 people, the report stated.
"It is simply unacceptable that the poorest half of the world's population owns no more than a few dozen super-rich people who could fit onto one bus," says Oxfam New Zealand's executive director Rachael Le Mesurier.
University of Otago professor of public health Michael Baker says the major discrepancy in inequality is a threat to everyone because it makes the spread of disease easier.
Millions in poorer countries are dying from preventable diseases, he says.
"A girl born in New Zealand today can expect to live to over 80 years of age, but that same girl born in the poorest countries in the world can live to 45 years of age."
He says the prolific spread of Ebola in west Africa, which killed tens of thousands, wouldn't have happened in a developed country like the US, which has a well-developed healthcare system.
"It is no accident that started and spread in the three most poorest countries on earth.
"We have a disease which is highly preventable, highly manageable, which is allowed to spread and cause more than 30,000 cases and 20,000 deaths.
"To avoid that we need to ensure people have access to basic healthcare," Prof Baker says.
Ms Le Mesurier says the report shows that despite politicians promising action on global inequality, more work was needed.
"World leaders' concern about the inequality crisis hasn't translated into concrete action, the world has become a much more unequal place and the trend is accelerating. We cannot continue to allow hundreds of millions of people to go hungry while resources that could be used to help them are sucked up by those at the top."
The report highlighted the need to get rid of tax havens in order to share the world's wealth more equally, estimating US$7.6 trillion of global wealth was held offshore.
"Tax havens are unjust. While the vast majority of us pay the taxes that are vital for countries to function effectively, hyper-rich elites and multinational companies refuse to pay up. They have rewritten the rules of the game - the fact that 188 of 201 leading companies have a presence in at least one tax haven shows it is time to act," says Ms Le Mesurier.
Governments around the world would have access to around $190 billion of extra money if tax was paid on income, rather than being held offshore, the report said.
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