After 1994 the microcredit movement helped plunge large numbers of black South Africans into heavy debt and poverty while enriching a few white elites who provided the loans.
South African opposition politician Julius Malema has blamed economic policies put in place during Nelson Mandela’s era for the country’s high levels of inequality. He may have a point.
Given the conservative stand of the Catholic Church on gays and lesbians, Pope Francis had a wonderful opportunity to extend his message of tolerance to both the religious and social realms.
Selective sympathy raises troubling questions. If you neglect suffering in other places, it is much more difficult to mobilise political actors to take it seriously.
Deborah James, London School of Economics and Political Science
In the global South, where some argue that “everyone is now middle class”, people are reluctant to acknowledge that they need to borrow money – and the stigma drives them to dodge their debts.
Newark’s children are no better off even after Mark Zuckerberg pumped $100 million to improve public schools. What opportunities have been lost? What lessons have we learned?
Financial inclusion has so far focused on enhancing a poor person’s cash flow. But it needs to involve more. Not enough consideration is given to encouraging poor people to build assets.
Twenty years ago, Brazil and South Africa were in a similar position when it comes to inequality. Brazil has made significant progress in addressing this, but South Africa hasn’t.
Will Thomas Piketty’s visit to South Africa trigger the rewriting of the country’s recent economic history? His analysis and ideas on how to address inequality are hard to ignore.
Students are going hungry on college campuses. The latest survey shows that four in 10 University of California students do not have access to nutritious food.
After two years of negotiations, the UN Sustainable Development goals will be adopted today. How can society and government actually end poverty and achieve other lofty goals?
Health has secured its place as one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. But without clear mechanisms to report, finance or engage other sectors, could more end up as less?
On his first visit to the US, Pope Francis will highlight the challenges of poverty and sustainability. A related issue, he acknowledges, is population. So what does that mean for Catholic teaching?
Inequality remains one of South Africa’s major problems. Thomas Piketty’s visit to the country provides an opportunity to explore ways to deal with this problem.