United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned that the world is at a “breaking point” and calls for a new model of global governance to address inequalities exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.
During Nelson Mandela’s annual online conference on Saturday, Guterres said the pandemic “has been compared to an x-ray, revealing fractures in the fragile skeleton of the societies we’ve built.”
“It is exposing fallacies and falsehoods everywhere: the lie that free markets can provide health care for all; the fiction that unpaid care work is not work; the illusion that we live in a post-racist world; the myth that we are all in the same boat, “said the UN chief.
He described the main drivers of inequality, including systemic racism, the legacy of colonialism, patriarchy, gaps in access to technology, and inequalities in global governance.
“The nations that came out on top 70 years ago have refused to contemplate the reforms necessary to change power relations in international institutions,” Guterres said in his forceful speech, pointing to voting rights in the Security Council of the United Nations (UNSC), where the United Kingdom, China, France, Russia and the United States have veto powers.
Guterres said the response to the pandemic “must be based on a new social contract and a new global agreement that creates equal opportunities for all and respects the rights and freedoms of all.”
The new model would guarantee inclusive and equal participation in world institutions, a fair globalization, a stronger voice for the developing world in global decision-making and a more inclusive and balanced multilateral trading system, he said.
He said that developed countries are heavily invested in their own survival and have “it failed to provide the necessary support to help the developing world through these dangerous times. “
The new coronavirus has infected more than 14 million people and there have been almost 600,000 known deaths worldwide. The UN has asked for $ 10.3 billion to help poor states, but has received only $ 1.7 billion.
Remembering Mandela
Guterres’ speech marked what would have been the birthday of the former South African president and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, Mandela.
South Africa, the world’s most unequal country a quarter of a century after the end of the racist apartheid system, is fast becoming one of the most affected nations in the pandemic and now represents approximately half of Africa.‘s confirmed cases of coronavirus. Already, their public hospitals are almost overwhelmed.
The UN chief’s speech pointed to vast wealth inequality: The world’s 26 richest people have as much wealth as half the world’s population, Guterres said.
The legacy of colonialism still resonates, Guterres added, and it shows in global power relations.
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks in February with WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. [Salvatore Di Nolfi via Reuters]
Developing countries, and especially African nations, are underrepresented in power levels, including in financial institutions like the World Bank and policies like the UNSC.
“The nations that reached the top more than seven decades ago have refused to contemplate the reforms necessary to change power relations in international institutions,” said Guterres. “The composition and voting rights in the United Nations Security Council and the boards of the Bretton Woods system are a good example.
“Inequality starts at the top: in global institutions. Address you must start by reforming them,” Guterres said.
‘Pay your fair share’
A new generation of social protection is needed, including universal health coverage and perhaps a universal basic income, he said, adding “individuals and corporations must pay their fair share. “
He said spending on education in low- and middle-income countries should more than double by 2030 to $ 3 trillion a year. Faced with the enormous changes of climate change, governments should tax carbon instead of people.
Answering questions after his speech, Guterres called for “massive support” for the developing world, including debt cancellations. He said that the suspension of debt payments until the end of this year, which was agreed by the G20, the world‘s 20 great economic powers, “clearly not enough. “
And noted, without naming names, that “leadership and power are not always aligned. “
“Let’s be realistic,” Guterres said in his speech. “The world political and economic system does not offer critical global public goods: public health, climate action, sustainable development, peace.“
Guterres concluded: “Now is the time for world leaders to decide: Will we succumb to chaos, division and inequality? Or will we correct the mistakes of the past and move forward together for the good of all?”
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