Reducing inequality within and among countries amidst Covid-19

Introduction

This article is a part of the series under the Sustainable Development Goal (“SDG”) – 10 of the United Nations, targeting “Reduce inequality within and among countries". The UN has always been giving the African region relatively greater attention to support people in terms of health and education. However, with the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, more and more parts of the world warrant the UN’s attention. This second article will focus on the impacts of Covid-19.

Impacts of Covid-19

The effects of the Covid-19 pandemic have significantly intensified social exclusion. According to the Sustainable Development Goals Report 2022, the pandemic wiped out more than four years of progress on poverty eradication and pushed 93 million more people into extreme poverty in 2020. Numerous data shows its dreadful impact: between-country inequality is projected to rise by 1.2% between 2017 and 2021 – the first such increase in a generation – owing to the weak recoveries in emerging market and developing economies; while income inequality within countries will also have increased around 1% due to severe job and income losses among lower-income population groups.

What is equally problematic is the issue of discrimination. The pandemic has exacerbated pre-existing racism and xenophobia on grounds prohibited under international human rights law, with data showing that 1 in 5 people have experienced discrimination amidst Covid-19. For instance, there is a notable increase in anti-Asian sentiment and xenophobia towards people of Asian descent, which manifested in verbal and physical attacks, along with instances of social exclusion.

The UN’s Efforts

Living and working conditions determine the chances of infection, poorer people, and those from marginalized groups are more likely to be infected. Therefore, the UN Secretary-General urges countries to show solidarity with poorer and more vulnerable countries: ‘Now is the time to stand by our commitment to leave no one behind.’ To address the global economic setback, the UN has called for an extraordinary scale-up of international support and political commitment, including funding through the UN Covid-19 Response and Recovery Fund which aims to support low- and middle- income countries and vulnerable groups who are disproportionately bearing the socio-economic impacts of the pandemic. The Fund contributes to financing the three objectives of the UN Secretary General’s Call for Solidarity – a plea for global action to stop the pandemic and the suffering it has caused: (1) Tackle the health emergency; (2) Focus on the social impact; and (3) Help countries recover better. This helps mobilize resources, and ensure that people around the world have access to essential services and social protection.

Regarding racial discrimination, UN proposes priorities to tackle structural racial and ethnicity-based discrimination for Covid-19 recovery. The UN Frontier Dialogue, led by WHO and UNESCO with support by OHCHR, is an initiative that seeks to create the foundations for more inclusive and equitable societies. Quoting Dr. Mary T. Bassett from the consultation process, one of the actionable recommendations is to ‘counter stereotypes and hate speech and improve communication, to foster anti-discrimination measures and grievance redress mechanisms, to invest in strong social inclusion policies, and pay attention to the realization of the rights of indigenous peoples.’ This shows the UN’s acknowledgement of the importance of countering the vulnerability of minorities and migrants.

Conclusion

While global economic recovery cannot be achieved in a short period of time, and the eradication of racial discrimination highly depends on other factors, such as education, the UN’s policies and proposals demonstrate the international community’s efforts to address the issues caused by the pandemic.

By Emma Lau