Spotlight on poverty in the region and the world

It is unimaginable that poverty exists in some GCC countries that export millions of barrels of oil every day. This was recently stated by the United Nations, which expressed its shock at the level of poverty in some GCC countries that own sovereign funds and development programmes but lack political and socioeconomic reform programmes.

The UN expressed its “shock” at the poverty level and called upon authorities in these countries to reform their system to enable everyone to participate in development.

Philip Alston, the Special Rapporteur of the United Nations on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights, expressed in a press conference last week his concerns that governments of some of these countries listen to small groups of conservative voices who control important matters and issues. According to him, this will hinder social and economic progress these countries are aiming to achieve.

News circulated worldwide that some women in the GCC scavenge through piles of garbage looking for food for their families, some men panhandle for food or money, while some children in rags lead a life of misery.

These are some of the scenes in countries considered among the richest in the world with large incomes from oil and gas production and a multimillion dollar annual surplus and citizens enjoying high life and the best luxuries.

No doubt, this imbalance is due to the lack of equitable distribution of wealth. Global reports such as the Human Development Global Report do not refer to any data on poverty in the region, whether on poor income or poor potentials despite publishing all other data on the countries of the region.

Some indicators show a number of the region’s residents living below poverty line despite benefiting from social security services provided by the agencies concerned as per allocations approved in the financial budgets for combating poverty, and other relevant programmes.

Some experts attribute these facts to growing cases of “corruption” in some GCC countries, in which the elite benefit from the countries’ wealth while the majority are barely able to make ends meet.

There is also a huge gap between the average person and their rulers, with fingers pointing at some elites with political power who use force and brutality for the uncontrolled exploitation of these countries’ resources while punishing those who dare to talk about these issues with a jail sentence.

GCC officials deny this and insist they are not ignoring these issues, especially poverty, noting that authorities recognise the existence of poverty and seek to fulfil their obligations to their people. They stress that government programmes are not enough, and development and poverty programmes need to be continuous, whereas the wealthy elite do not seriously consider the suffering of the poor in the region.

With the elite possessing and controlling the world’s resources, a big wedge has been driven between nations worldwide. Recent reports issued by Oxfam, a UK-based international confederation, indicate only eight of the world’s billionaires possess a fortune equivalent to that of the poorest half of the world’s population, which is 3.6 billion, or nearly half of the world’s population, with one out of 10 people living on less than $2.

Oxfam called upon world leaders participating in the Davos Economic Forum in Switzerland to exert more efforts to tackle this, warning that continuation of this situation threatens further political and social unrest. Oxfam also called for the need to take a host of measures to address this gap, including increasing taxes on the wealth of the mega rich and income to achieve equality, ensure financing of public services and create employment opportunities. It also called for the adoption of a new economic model in the face of inequality.

Oxfam CEO says “inequality means hundreds of millions are trapped in poverty, causing a rift in societies and posing a threat to democracy.” The estimated wealth of these eight wealthy people amounts to $426 billion, she said. “The wealth accumulated by the world’s richest one per cent in 2015 exceeded that of 99 per cent of the world’s population.”

The Gulf region needs radical treatment for the poor to be able to find work and daily subsistence and get necessary services to lead a life of luxury like other nations worldwide. This requires a fundamental review of policies and reform programmes adopted by planning agencies in the region.