Editorials
Reducing inequality
COVID-19 pandemic caused the steepest rise in global ine-
quality since the Second World War. Some people couldn’t
go to work or saw their jobs furloughed, whereas others —
would have benefits mostly in higher-level jobs — were able to move their work
online, says Ida Kubiszewski, an ecological economist at
across the SDGs University College London.
Then inflation rose. The global average for 2021 was 4.7%,
but the rate was much higher in many low- and middle-
income countries (LMICs). And that was before Russia’s
Those urging world leaders to take action on invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Although many high-
inequality should study why earlier efforts did er-income countries increased social protections for the
not translate to changes in policy. most vulnerable, lower-income countries found it a strug-
gle to do so. The aid group Oxfam and the non-profit organ-
L
ization Development Finance International have created an
ast month, researchers from 67 nations wrote index that measures what governments are doing to tackle
an open letter to United Nations secretary-gen- inequality. The 2022 edition assessed 161 governments
eral António Guterres and World Bank president between 2020 and 2022. It found that, during this period,
Ajay Banga, urging them to “redouble efforts to 70% of governments cut their share of spending on educa-
address rising extreme inequality”. The move was tion and two-thirds failed to increase the minimum wage
motivated, in part, by the lack of progress on the 10th of in line with GDP (see go.nature.com/3ywfbif). Some high-
the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Nature income nations are also reducing their development assis-
is examining each goal in a series of editorials. Reducing tance, and direct investment in LMICs by foreign countries
The aim of SDG 10 is to “reduce inequality within and inequality is also falling, data from the World Bank show.
among countries”. That means narrowing the difference Researchers say that progress on SDG 10 would have
between the incomes of the richest and the poorest, on
involves been dismal even without the pandemic and the invasion
both a national and an international level. The goal also pro- up-front of Ukraine. A large part of the problem is that each of the
poses ensuring equality of opportunity. Unfortunately, the increases in 17 SDGs has tended to be pursued in isolation, with policy
world is clearly failing to meet SDG 10. The letter’s authors makers unaware that reducing inequality would benefit
go further, saying that the goal is being “largely ignored”.
expenditure.” many of the other goals. A 2019 network analysis studying
This is not the first time that researchers have tried interactions between SDGs found that reducing inequality
to focus the world’s attention on inequality. For a better in wealthy nations would help to achieve almost all of the
chance of success, the letter’s authors should study what other goals (D. Lusseau & F. Mancini Nature Sustain. 2, 242–
happened to previous efforts — in particular, the 2009 247; 2019). The same is true of reducing poverty in poorer
publication of the influential text The Spirit Level by epi- nations. This brings us back to last month’s open letter and
demiologists Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett. They the arguments made in The Spirit Level. Reducing inequality
showed that reducing inequality has a cascade of bene- involves up-front increases in expenditure in areas includ-
fits, from better health to lower crime rates and better ing health care, social protection and education.
educational outcomes. The letter calls for Guterres and Banga to “back vital new
The book was a sensation. It was read avidly and quoted strategic goals and indicators”. Among other factors, its
widely; its findings referenced by David Cameron, later UK authors say, significant improvements in the data on ine-
prime minister, and Christine Lagarde, now president of the quality, especially on estimates of top incomes, should
European Central Bank, among others. Yet despite being make it possible to better understand how policy changes
widely respected, the authors’ careful synthesis of evidence could influence the divide between rich and poor.
on the benefits of equality — and subsequent invites to Better data are essential, and the lack of good data to
give talks and policy advice worldwide — did not change support work on the SDGs is becoming something of a
governments’ approaches to inequality. theme in this editorials series. But better data alone will
Not all of the targets for SDG 10 are failing. Overall not reduce inequality, Wilkinson points out. Asked why
income inequality between countries is dropping. Another he thinks SDG 10 is failing, he points to a reduction in ine-
target, to reduce the costs incurred by migrant workers quality that occurred in high-income nations from the
sending remittances to their families, is also on its way 1930s until the end of the 1970s, broadly because social
to being met — although not by the SDGs’ 2030 deadline. movements challenged the state to play a bigger part in
But income inequality within countries is rising, as protecting vulnerable people. He thinks something like
measured by the Gini index, a measure of income distri- that will need to happen again. “Given the powerful inter-
bution across a population. Globally, in the 15 years to 2019, ests involved,” he says. “I don’t know why anyone thought
economic output in terms of gross domestic product (GDP) that a statement of goals such as the SDGs would succeed.”
roughly doubled, but the share of economic output earned Researchers are right to urge leaders to prioritize ine-
by the workers producing the goods and services behind quality. They would do even better to study the efforts of
the increase fell from 54.1% in 2004 to 52.6% in 2019. Pickett, Wilkinson and others, and determine the reasons
So what has gone wrong? Between 2019 and 2020, the why these did not bear fruit.
468 | Nature | Vol 620 | 17 August 2023
