Low-income countries… need an additional $308.5 billion per year… International support is needed to achieve this goal.
Half of the world's people lack social protection amid climate crisis, ILO warns
September 12, 2024 climate and environment
Social protection is crucial to protecting people from shocks, but half of the world’s people have no social protection whatsoever, including more than 90 percent of people living in climate-vulnerable countries, a new report from the International Labor Organization (ILO) shows on Thursday. people.
About 50% of us do have access to at least one Social Security benefit, but 3.8 billion people still lack any form of safety net, including 1.8 billion children worldwide, according to the agency. World Social Protection Report 2024-26: Universal social protection for climate action and a just transition.
“Climate change Don't know the boundarieswe cannot build a wall to keep the crisis out,” said Gilbert Houngbo, Director-General of the International Labor Organization. “The climate crisis affects us all and is the single most serious threat to social justice today”.
The findings show that governments are failing to fully harness the powerful potential of social protection to combat the impacts of the climate crisis and support a just transition to a green future.
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Low-income countries, including those most vulnerable to climate impacts, need an additional $308.5 billion per year, or 52.3% of their GDP, to guarantee at least basic coverage, and international support is needed to achieve this.
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The report also recommends prioritizing investment in social protection, including external support for countries with limited fiscal space.
Even if the money were somehow raised, it would not bring any benefit to the intended recipient. The following comes from Kenyan economics expert James Shikwati;
“For God's sake, please stop the aid!”
James Shikwati, a 35-year-old Kenyan economic expert, said aid to Africa would do more harm than good. In an interview with Der Spiegel, the passionate supporter of globalization discussed the disastrous impact of Western development policies in Africa, corrupt rulers and the tendency to exaggerate the AIDS problem.
July 4, 2005 12:00 noon
Der Spiegel:
Mr Shikwati, Gleneagles G8 summit to boost development aid to Africa…
marriage: …For the love of God, please stop.
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marriage: This intention has been damaging our continent for the past 40 years. If industrial countries really want to help Africans, they should finally end this horrific aid. The countries that receive the most development aid are also the countries that are in the worst shape. Despite billions of dollars pouring into Africa, the continent remains poor.
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marriage: Huge bureaucracies were funded (through aid money), corruption and complacency were fostered, and Africans were taught to be beggars rather than independent. Furthermore, development aid weakens local markets everywhere, eroding the entrepreneurship we so desperately need. As ridiculous as it sounds: development aid is one of the causes of Africa's problems. If the West canceled these payments, ordinary Africans wouldn't even notice. Only officials are severely hit. That's why they insist that without this development aid, the world would stop functioning.
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Der Spiegel: After World War II, Germany was able to get back on its feet because the United States injected funds into Germany through the Marshall Plan. Doesn’t this count as successful development aid?
marriage: As far as Germany is concerned, only the destroyed infrastructure needs to be repaired. Despite the economic crisis of the Weimar Republic, Germany remained a highly industrialized country before the war. The damage caused by the tsunami in Thailand can also be repaired with a little money and some reconstruction aid. However, Africa must take the first steps towards modernization on its own. There must be a change in mentality. We have to stop thinking of ourselves as beggars. Today, Africans only see themselves as victims. On the other hand, no one can really imagine an African as a businessman. To change the status quo, it is helpful for aid organizations to withdraw.
We all want to help – if you see a picture of a child starving in extreme desolation and don't want to reach out and provide food and other assistance, you must be very heartless.
But according to Shikiwati, all the help Westerners offered actually made things worse, as the economic imbalances that led to hunger continued to worsen.
The only thing we can do is make things better in poor countries and let them sort out their own messes so they can learn how to prosper, just like our ancestors learned how to create the prosperity they left us.
