Topic:
Country: South Africa
Delegate Name: Andrew Dylenski
United Nations Development Program
Income Inequality
The Republic of South Africa
Andrew Dylenski
Forest Hills Eastern
Income inequality is defined as the difference in the distribution of income within a country, population, or group of individuals. This is a huge problem internationally where 50% of the population has an income of about $3000 whereas the richest 10% has about 190 times as much. This low income is present in many developing countries where gaps across age, gender, race, ethnicity, and migrant status cause oppression and this low financial state in many families. The United Nations Sustainable Goal 10 works to reduce income inequalities in the bottom 40% of the population and adopt different wage and social protection policies. Internationally, the International Monetary Fund is just one of the organizations working to tackle the issue of income inequality in many countries by analyzing the trends of inequality in the country and implementing policies to tackle this problem. The UNDP must find a way to overcome the problem of income inequality and the poverty and malnutrition that it entails in developing and, mainly, in developed countries.
The problem of income inequality is very much present all over South Africa. The Gini Index-a measures how equally distributed a country’s income is divided among households and individuals. South Africa had a Gini Index score of 63in 2022, which is the highest of all countries in the world at the time. In the country, the lowest 20% on the income scale has a 2.4% share of income or consumption while the highest 20% has a 68% share of income and consumption. One of the major reasons for the high-income inequality in South Africa is the problem of race in the country where white and mixed-race South Africans(though a small demographic) make up to 3 times more than black South Africans. In 2017, the black unemployment rate is about 5 times higher than the white rate leading to this lack of income in black populations, leading to inequality. The government has tried to change this fairly recent apartheid society by focusing on higher social spending, action to diversify wealth ownership, promoting entrepreneurship, and equalizing wages. But, this can all do so much as a high amount of lower income civilians still are unemployed and making not much while the top 20% are making up to 30 times much income as them. South Africa is a sole example of high-income inequality due to unemployment and racism in the economy, and South Africa looks to the government to help create jobs for the poor and help pick out the racial bias in the workplace to help reduce income inequality in society.
Income inequality is a problem present throughout the world. It is seen in all countries even though it is more visible and present in some countries than others. South Africa, the country with the most income inequality in the world, sees what it’s like for 59% of the population to be in poverty and 29% of it to be unemployed. Lots of this unemployment can be due to the lack of education and the obstacles given by the workforce due to race and gender. South Africa believes it is up to the government to ensure equal opportunities for citizens of all races or gender in the workforce and it is their job to create jobs for the unemployed in all the countries. In order to get the money for this in lots of countries, governments can adopt a progressive income tax which gives more taxes to the ones on the top of the income ladder and that will close the gap on the income inequality problem while providing the government with money to create jobs. Education is also important for people of all ages to learn so they can go to school to get a job and make money. This cannot be achieved in many countries without money for teachers, buildings, or supplies. South Africa advocates for any resolution that uses government cooperation along with a progressive tax income to create jobs for the unemployed, enforce strict policies in the workforce based on no discrimination, and close the wealth gap in many countries.
