Watkins, Kevin
The Lancet. Volume 384, Issue 9961, 20 December 2014–2 January 2015, Pages 2248–2255
Published online: May 2014
doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(13)62421-6
The case for equity
Shortly before his death, Mahatma Gandhi offered a useful reflection that helps to cut through some of the complexity surrounding debates about equity. “Recall the face of the poorest and the weakest person you may have seen and ask yourself if the step you contemplate is going to be any use to them.” It’s a simple but compelling guide for policy makers concerned with combating extreme inequality. Something of the same spirit underpins the report of the High Level Panel established by the UN Secretary General to make recommendations for the post-2015 development agenda. Going beyond the identification of universal goals, the report calls for “a focus on the poorest and most marginalised” and a commitment to “leave no one behind” (panel). This approach is in-keeping with other work on the post-2015 agenda, including the Global Sustainable Development Report.2 Far more than the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)—which were largely neutral on the issue of inequality—the High Level Panel report includes a wide-ranging social justice agenda. If adopted by governments and backed by national policy commitments and a new global partnership, the Panel’s agenda could put exclusion, inequality, and marginalisation at the centre of the post-2015 development framework.
Keywords / Palabras-clave: Society, Inequality, Social Justice, Developing Countries – LDCs, Politics Risk
Language / Idioma: English
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