Tackling the Inequality Pandemic

The 18th Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture commemorating Mandela’s birthday, 18 July, was delivered by the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. The lecture was given at the UN headquarters in New York City. In light of the global pandemic, it was an online-only event.

In paying tribute to Mandela, the Secretary-General highlighted the inequalities that exist in the world - inequalities that Madiba (how we, South Africans, love to call Mr. Mandela) devoted his life to fighting.

Mr. Guterres says that the pandemic is shining a spotlight on these inequalities. He acknowledges that the world is in turmoil and that economies are in freefall. “We have been brought to our knees by a microscopic virus,” Guterres says; the world is facing the deepest recession since World War II.

And this pandemic has shown us the fragile state of our world. We have come face to face with issues we have neglected for decades, such as inadequate health care systems, structural inequalities, gaps in social protection, and the climate crisis.

He likens COVID-19 to an x-ray showing the fractures in the skeleton of the world we have built. The virus poses a higher risk to the most vulnerable in society: the elderly, the poor, people with disabilities, and pre-existing conditions.

It is a myth to believe:

"We are all in the same boat because while we are all floating on the same sea, it’s clear that some of us are in superyachts while others are clinging to the floating debris," says the Secretary-General

But wealth is not the only measure of inequality that defines our time. Gender, ethnicity, race, and multiple other factors add to this inequality.

Mr. Guterres touched on the effects patriarchy and colonialism have on the world. He agrees that inequality starts at the top with global institutions not representing all countries equally. He also acknowledges that we live in a male-dominated world, and women everywhere are worse off than their male counterparts with inequality and discrimination the norm.

It is time to address the failures exposed by the pandemic. The Secretary-General suggests that education and digital technology must be equalizers and enablers. He said that governments need to prioritize equal access from early learning to life-long learning. He aptly quoted Nelson Mandela:

“Education is the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world.”

Mr. Guterres reiterates that the pandemic shows us the disconnect between self-interest and the common interest. He highlighted instances where private hospitals and businesses were hoarding much-needed equipment and said that the pandemic shows us that we must stand together to survive and overcome.

A new model is required for global governance - a redistribution of power, wealth, and opportunities. Otherwise, we will face widening inequalities.

The Secretary-General reminded us that Mandela said,

“One of the challenges of our time...is to reinstil in the consciousness of our people that sense of human solidarity, of being in the world for one another and because of and through others.”

Mr. Guterres reminds world powers that we are at breaking point, and now is the time for them to be on the right side of history.

The speech was persuasive, powerful, and eye-opening. I am sure that Madiba would have been nodding his head in agreement.

On 18 July, South Africans worldwide celebrate Mr. M andela's birthday by spending 67 minutes doing community service.

Let us all endeavor to do better on Madiba's birthday and every day.