COVID-19 Impact on Inequality: What does the Latest Analysis Show Us?
By Max Lawson Coronavirus and inequality; what is the latest? Last year at the Annual Meetings of the World Bank and IMF there was a lot of talk about the impact of Coronavirus on inequality levels; in short a widespread agreement that the likelihood was…
BUSES AND THE INEQUALITY CRISIS – With Bassam Khawaja and Matteo Rizzo
By Elizabeth Njambi We need to talk about buses. Yes, buses. And inequality. The issue that nobody’s talking about. Since the 80s, transport across the world has been privatized – fueling an inequality crisis that undermines our human rights. Liz, Nabil and Max chat to…
The Class Ceiling
By Max Lawson Years ago when I had just joined Oxfam as a young policy adviser, I had written a policy paper on the subject of World Bank Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs) which were at the time plans that all developing countries had to…
The Revolutionary Threat of the Public Park
By Max Lawson Every day I take my dog, Marx, for a walk in our local park and around the sports fields behind it. Large lime trees, planted a century ago by far-sighed Victorians, tower above you forming a sort of natural cathedral in places….
IS GREEN GROWTH A CONVENIENT LIE? – with Jason Hickel, Economic Anthropologist
By Elizabeth Njambi How fighting inequality and beating climate change means we must end our addiction to economic growth and fast. We’re asking: How are inequality, climate breakdown and growth linked? Why is green growth an impossibility? If rich nations must stop growing, what does…
Wartime fiscal measures on the pandemic profiteers could raise enough money to buy vaccines for everyone and fund for the recovery
By Anthony Kamande. 2020 was a tumultuous year as the world economy experienced an unprecedented downturn not seen in generations, and the health system even in the most developed countries got overwhelmed and crumbled due to a surging coronavirus. Billions of lives have been upended…
Tax revolution or just … meh?
By Christian Hallum and Susana Ruiz Rodriguez Last week the G20 countries endorsed the OECD’s effort to update the century-old flawed rules for taxing multinational companies. French Finance Minister Le Maire called the moment a ‘tax revolution’ and according to the G20 countries the new…
Racism, Class, Football and Prisms of Prejudice
By Max Lawson Dear Friends, I hope this finds you well. Here in England, it has been all about the football these past few weeks as you can imagine. Many have commented rightly on the huge diversity of the England team, and their stance on…
WHEN NEOLIBERALISM TOOK ON AFRICA’S ECONOMIC IMAGINATION – With Zambian Economist Grieve Chelwa
By Elizabeth Njambi Former Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda (“KK”) – who led his country in the wake of independence from colonial rule – recently died. A pan-African giant, he pursued efforts to boldly pursue equality at home and fight for liberation across the African continent….
G7 Farce and Failure; Jeff Bezos Staying in Space
By Max Lawson Dear Friends, I hope this finds you well. G7 Farce and Failure It was a summers day in Rostock, a small, rather dilapidated town on the Baltic coast north of Berlin, and all hell was breaking loose. The march had started peacefully,…