G20 Experts Call for Global Action on Inequality as Wealth Gap Reaches Crisis Levels

A G20 taskforce led by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has called for the establishment of a global panel to tackle inequality, warning that widening wealth gaps threaten democracy and global economic stability. The group, known as the Extraordinary Committee of Independent Experts on Global Inequality, is chaired by Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz.

Stiglitz emphasized the urgency of the issue, saying, “The world understands that we have a climate emergency; it’s time we recognise that we face an inequality emergency too.” The committee’s findings, prepared under South Africa’s G20 presidency, reveal that the richest 1% of people have captured 41% of new wealth generated since 2000, while the poorest 50% saw their wealth grow by just 1%, according to data from the World Inequality Lab.

The report argues that extreme inequality is not only unjust but also undermines social cohesion, weakens economies, and destabilizes politics. It urges the formation of an international panel on inequality modeled after the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). This new body would monitor inequality trends, assess policy impacts, and provide evidence-based guidance to global leaders.

The taskforce warned that 83% of countries—home to 90% of the world’s population—meet the World Bank’s criteria for inequality. High inequality, it said, increases the risk of democratic decline. The report also highlighted how global shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and ongoing trade disputes have deepened poverty, noting that one in four people regularly skip meals while billionaire wealth has reached record highs.

This G20 inequality taskforce, the first of its kind, is set to present its full findings at the upcoming G20 summit in Johannesburg in November. The United States will assume the rotating G20 presidency at the end of the year.