Reducing inequality: Economic growth need to be inclusive in Asia.

As reflected from Asian Development Bank Outlook reports on Asia, ranging from the years 2012 to 2021, Asia despite becoming a dynamic force attracting the entire world economy in its folds since the start of last decade, its growth is likely to be threatened by a fast increase in inequality.

An astounding fast growth achieved by Asian emerging economies during the last two decades, which no doubt has reduced absolute poverty, but at the same time has initiated an ever-widening gap between rich and poor masses, which in turn has not only rendered Millennium Developmental Goals (MDGs) unfulfilled for the majority of Asian countries but also due to lock down of economic activities in recent past due to COVID pandemic, particularly in China and severe abrupt climatic changes based disasters experienced in South Asian countries, tightening monetary policies of advanced economies and impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine has created doubts for achieving sustainable economic growth rate in the region as a whole by the targeted timeline under SDGs programme.

During the year preceding the global economic crash, there was little concern for the inequitable distribution of wealth. Incomes were increasing faster at the top than at the bottom representing the masses, but everyone was sharing the benefit of sustained economic growth. However, the ensuing financial crisis and austerity measures taken all over the globe brought in forefront distributional issues, which were totally ignored during the boom period. Even in economically rich nations like Great Britain, 8.9 million people are living in poverty. This is over and above 6.3 million who are workless or retired.

Biggest threat

Similarly during the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland inequality was on the agenda. Oxfam reported that at that point in time world's 85 richest individuals are equal to the bottom half of the population of 7 billion, hence WEF reached the conclusion that the widening gap between rich and poor is the biggest threat to global economic prosperity during the next decade.

In almost all economically rich countries including the United States, the reduction of taxes on the powerful rich class plus tax evasion by this segment going unpunished, weakening of trade unions power and monopolisation of markets by corporations have substantially contributed towards aggravating inequality status.

Further globalisation and increased automation due to advancement in...