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Economy
Jun 10, 2026
Analyzed by Llama- 4 Scout 17B 16E Instruct

The Failure of Economic Growth: A New Approach to Eradicating Poverty

AI Summary
Economists argue that the current economic model has failed to eradicate poverty and has become ecologically unsustainable. They propose a new approach that prioritizes human rights and collective wellbeing over GDP growth.

The Failure of Economic Growth

We live in an age of manufactured scarcity. In a world richer than ever before, roughly one 10th of the world’s population still lives in extreme destitution. Millions of people cannot afford enough food, proper housing or basic healthcare, while a tiny minority accumulates unprecedented wealth and power.

The Symptoms of a Failing Economic Model

These are not separate crises. They are symptoms of an economic model that has reached the end of the road. Poverty and inequality are not accidents; they are predictable outcomes of policy choices: how we design tax systems, regulate labour markets, value care, structure public services and decide whose needs and whose voices matter.

The Data Analysis: A Growing Wealth Gap

For decades, the recipe was simple: grow the economy, and poverty would gradually disappear. But the promise that economic growth would “lift all boats” has not been kept. While national incomes expanded, wages stagnated, work became more precarious and public services were cut.

The Impact Analysis: Ecological Unsustainability

It has also become ecologically unsustainable. We are edging towards a “hothouse Earth”, where rising emissions and biodiversity loss are destabilising the conditions that support human life. Around 92% of excess global carbon emissions can be attributed to the global north, and the wealthiest 10% of individuals are responsible for nearly half of global emissions.

The Prediction: A New Approach to Eradicating Poverty

That is why we have come together to develop and support the “roadmap for eradicating poverty beyond growth”. The roadmap provides a range of alternatives on how to move beyond the narrow “grow-tax-transfer” approach that has shaped policy for decades. We need to change the rules upstream. That means, for instance, decent work and employment guarantees, living wages and fair remuneration, stronger unions and workplace democracy.