The Taxation of Wealth for Eradication of Poverty and Inequality

The policy brief advocates for progressive wealth taxation—specifically financial transaction taxes, net wealth taxes, property taxes, and resource rent taxes—as a means to reduce global inequality and fund Sustainable Development Goals. It highlights the failure of regressive tax structures in regions like Sub-Saharan Africa and calls for G20 leadership and UN-led international cooperation to implement these measures.

• Progressive wealth tax instruments can generate significant global revenue: a financial transaction tax (FTT) could yield up to $900 billion annually, while a global wealth tax targeting the richest 3,000 individuals could raise approximately $250 billion annually.
• In Sub-Saharan Africa, extreme poverty continues despite economic growth because tax systems are regressive and rely heavily on consumption taxes such as VAT.
• The G20 is identified as a key platform to promote wealth taxation and international tax cooperation, specifically through a UN framework, to achieve inclusive economic growth.

APA

iej_admin (2024). The Taxation of Wealth for Eradication of Poverty and Inequality. Institute for Economic Justice. https://iej.org.za/resource/policy-brief/the-taxation-of-wealth-for-eradication-of-poverty-and-inequality/

Chicago

iej_admin. The Taxation of Wealth for Eradication of Poverty and Inequality. Institute for Economic Justice, 2024. https://iej.org.za/resource/policy-brief/the-taxation-of-wealth-for-eradication-of-poverty-and-inequality/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=iej_admin |title=The Taxation of Wealth for Eradication of Poverty and Inequality |publisher=Institute for Economic Justice |date=15 August 2024 |url=https://iej.org.za/resource/policy-brief/the-taxation-of-wealth-for-eradication-of-poverty-and-inequality/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{iejadmin2024taxation, author = {iej\_admin}, title = {{The Taxation of Wealth for Eradication of Poverty and Inequality}}, institution = {Institute for Economic Justice}, year = {2024}, month = aug, url = {https://iej.org.za/resource/policy-brief/the-taxation-of-wealth-for-eradication-of-poverty-and-inequality/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }