Are UN Member States Ready to Eradicate Poverty and Promote Gender Equality by Tackling Inequality?

The 2017 High-Level Political Forum focused on eradicating poverty and promoting prosperity (Goal 1) and combating gender inequality (Goal 5). This special high-level panel engaged some of the key global leaders in this effort, including two key member states in a multi-stakeholder debate. This high-level panel discussed two reports that highlight issues of poverty, gender equality and income inequality. “Are the Multilateral Organizations Fighting Inequality?”, prepared by New Rules for Global Finance and Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, assesses six multilateral organizations (IMF, World Bank, FSB, OECD, G20 and UN) for their impact on poverty, shared prosperity and gender inequality.  The “Commitment to Reducing Inequality Index” prepared by Oxfam and Development Finance International, ranks 152 countries by their policy commitments to reduce poverty, gender inequality and broader income inequality. This high-level event also provided an excellent opportunity for key Northern and Southern member states and leaders of UN agencies to update the audience on initiatives they are taking both at home and for global development.