Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The “End Of Poverty” Illusion: Global And East Asian Realities In The Covid-19 Pandemic, Mel Gurtov

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

The World Bank’s “International Poverty Line,” a politically driven standard, obscures the reality that, in East Asia as elsewhere, poverty is increasing alongside enormous wealth for the richest ten percent. The COVID-19 pandemic is driving tens of millions more people into poverty in East Asia than would otherwise be the case, challenging all governments to meet the crisis where it most counts: in health care, food, aid to small businesses, and income. For that to happen , however, requires a dramatically different approach to economic globalization by governments and international lending agencies. Two events, the COVID-19 pandemic and the climate …