Africa is so rich in farmland – so why is it still hungry?
By Anthony Kamande and Dailes Judge It’s been more than two months since it rained in Nakuru County, Kenya, and Jane’s bean crop is long gone. Her only hope on her small plot of 0.8 hectares is the maize crop – but it will also…
Explaining Oxfam’s Projections for Extreme Poverty in 2022
By Max Lawson This blog responds to Noah Smiths’ substack criticism of Oxfam’s extreme poverty numbers. Dear Noah, First of all, I would like to thank you for the scrutiny of our numbers, which I really believe increases accountability. As we did a couple of…
Monarchy, inequality and just how rich is the queen?
By Max Lawson Those who know me, know that I am not a royalist. This puts me firmly in a minority here in the UK. Six out of ten adults believe Britain should have a monarchy in the future, compared to just 22% who think…
Is science a public service, and are scientists public servants?
By Max Lawson Sometimes Davos has a way of creating moments of great theatre; where the elites who run the world can be in some ways held to account, or at least called out. On a panel this week at Davos, my boss, Gabriela Bucher…
Profiting from Pain
By Max Lawson We are living through extraordinary times. Extraordinarily bad for the vast majority of humanity. Extraordinarily good if you are one of the richest people in the world. Normally they meet in January at Davos, but that face-to-face meeting was postponed, due to…
Debt Crisis and Austerity could Worsen Extremely High Inequality in SADC Region
By Anthony Kamande Southern Africa is the most unequal region in Africa and the most unequal subregion in the world. Decades of colonial legacy, corruption, elite power and poor governance have hampered inclusive development in the region as wealth and income are increasingly concentrated in the hands…
Austerity is Not the Answer to Africa’s Colliding Crises
By Anthony Kamande Our continent faces droughts and spiking prices that are pushing millions into hunger and poverty, a debt crisis and the ongoing pandemic. So why are countries cutting billions in spending? Anthony Kamande introduces a new Oxfam Pan Africa briefing based on our…
Golden Passports – Inequality and Refugees
By Max Lawson and Evelien van Roemburg Once again, daily our screens are filled with the heart-breaking scenes of many hundreds of thousands of people fleeing. At such moments, stories are told in the simplest way, and all distinctions are blurred; refugees become just that,…
CUI BONO COVID?
By Hernan Saenz Cortes Cui Bono? is one of those legal-jargon phrases that all law students (should) know. For the rest of us, it sounds like another Latin phrased that is used only by those who had a very expensive education. However, answering it can…
In East Africa, the Pandemic has Pushed Millions out of Work: Here’s what Governments Need to do
Anthony Kamande Out of the blue over Christmas, while I was visiting my home village some 200km from Nairobi, a helicopter landed. This was extraordinary: my village only got electricity in 2017 and an event like this had never happened before. (Even now, as most…