More than 1,500 academics and economists from more than 100 countries have called on world leaders to support a new international initiative aimed at addressing extreme inequality in wealth and income.
The experts have signed an open letter backing the proposed International Panel on Inequality (IPI) ahead of the United Nations General Assembly in New York next week.
The proposed panel is designed to provide governments with reliable research on the scale, causes and consequences of inequality and to examine policy options for reducing the economic and social gaps between the richest and poorest.
The initiative has received support from the governments of South Africa, Spain, Brazil and Norway and is being championed by UN Secretary-General António Guterres. Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz is expected to chair the panel.
The proposed body would operate in a similar way to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, bringing together experts, governments and international institutions to develop a shared evidence base on inequality.
Supporters say the concentration of wealth and income has implications beyond household finances, affecting economic opportunity, social stability, political participation and public trust.
The campaign has also attracted backing from former heads of government. Thirty-eight former leaders, including figures from different regions and political backgrounds, signed a separate statement this week urging governments to support the establishment of the panel.
The push comes amid concerns over the widening gap between wealthy and poorer countries and significant inequalities within individual economies.
United Nations discussions on the proposed panel have highlighted research showing that the world’s richest 1% captured more than 40% of new wealth created over the past 25 years, while the bottom half received about 1%.
Supporters argue that a permanent international body could help governments better understand the drivers of inequality and compare the effects of different economic policies.
The proposal is expected to receive further attention during a high-level UN event scheduled for September 23, where governments and international organisations will discuss the global inequality crisis and the proposed International Panel on Inequality.
The initiative therefore seeks to place inequality higher on the international policy agenda, with its supporters calling for stronger cooperation and evidence-based approaches to understanding the distribution of wealth and economic opportunity around the world.
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