Research by charity group Oxfam, in collaboration with
King’s College London and the Australian National University analyzed the after
effects of coronavirus on global monetary poverty and concluded that the pandemic could push an extra half a billion people into poverty.
That is around 8% of the world’s population that may reach the
World Bank poverty lines of people earning below $5.50 per day.
According to the research, poverty levels would increase
with a great margin for the first time since 1990. It is also anticipated that the
impact would be greater in hard-hit areas such as North Africa, Sub-Saharan
Africa, and the Middle East.
The most affected scenario would be a 20% fall in income. This
would add an extra 548 million people who are earning less than $5.50 per day. The
United Nations also warns that around $2.5 trillion would be required to support
the countries that are impacted the worst due to COVID-19. The UN also predicts
that nearly half of all Africa’s jobs could be lost as a result of the recession.
A meeting to discuss the debt relief of poor countries is to
be held in the coming week. The meeting would be attended by G20 ministers, The
World Bank, and the IMF. Charity group Oxfam urges the global community to announce
a rescue package to aid every country that would be facing a shortfall after
the pandemic is over.
It is expected that the IMF would announce an immediate
cancellation of $1 trillion in debt and issue a further $1 trillion in Special Drawings
Right for the struggling countries.
In the following Infographic, let’s take a look at the number
of people who would reach the poverty line, after the 20% loss in income.
