With leaders in New York this week for the UN General Assembly, I was encouraged to see that the heads of three major multilateral institutions all sounded the alarm – during the very first day of proceedings – that aid needs to be better targeted towards the poorest.
In a sign of growing momentum, IMF head Christine Lagarde, World Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva, and Charlotte Petri Gornitzka, Chair of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC), all made this same call to action.
This recognition at the highest level may be the first step toward redistributing aid to the countries least able to finance the end of extreme poverty themselves.
Growing evidence of the need to prioritise the poorest
The challenge of reaching the poorest is becoming clearer. Latest World Bank figures show the rate of poverty reduction is slowing, while ODI projections show the world is massively off track for ending extreme poverty by 2030 – by 400 million people.
85% of these live in fragile states. And half live in 29 countries that can’t afford even half the investment needed in education, health and social protection to end extreme poverty – even if they maximise both the tax they raise and the amount they allocate to the social sectors. While low- and middle-income countries (LICs and MICs) could raise an additional $2 trillion in taxation, 99% of this would be generated by MICs.
