Palestine

Up to 21,000 people are dying each day from conflict-fuelled hunger around the world

October 17, 2024

On World Food Day, hunger has reached an all-time high exposing the flaws in global peacebuilding and conflict recovery efforts

Between 7,000 to as many as 21,000 people are likely dying each day from hunger in countries impacted by conflict, according to a new Oxfam report published on World Food Day.

The report, Food Wars, examined 54 conflict-affected countries and found that they account for almost all of the 281.6 million people facing acute hunger today. Conflict has also been one of the main causes of forced displacement in these countries, which has globally reached a record level today of more than 117 million people.

It argues that conflict is not only a primary driver of hunger, but that warring parties are also actively weaponizing food itself by deliberately targeting food, water and energy infrastructure and by blocking food aid.

“As conflict rages around the world, starvation has become a lethal weapon wielded by warring parties against international laws, causing an alarming rise in human deaths and suffering. That civilians continue to be subjected to such slow death in the 21^st century, is a collective failure”, says Emily Farr, Oxfam’s Food and Economic Security Lead.

“Today’s food crises are largely manufactured. Nearly half a million people in Gaza – where 83% of food aid needed is currently not reaching them – and over three quarters of a million in Sudan, are currently starving as the deadly impact of wars on food will likely be felt for generations.”

The report also found that the majority of the countries studied (34 out of 54) are rich in natural resources, relying heavily on exporting raw products. For example, 95% of Sudan’s export earnings come from gold and livestock, 87% of South Sudan’s come from petroleum products, and nearly 70% of Burundi’s come from coffee.

In Central America, meanwhile, mining operations have led to violent conflicts, uprooting people from their homes as they no longer become able to live in degraded and polluted environments.

Oxfam argues that currently peacebuilding and post-conflict reconstruction efforts are too often based on encouraging more foreign investment and export-related economies. However, this focus on economic liberalization can instead create more inequality, suffering and the potential for conflict to resume.

“It is no coincidence that the lethal combination of war, displacement and hunger has often occurred in countries rich in natural resources. The exploitation of these raw commodities often means more violence, inequality, instability, and renewed conflict. Too often, large-scale private investment—both foreign and domestic —has also added to political and economic instabilities in these countries, where investors seize control over land and water resources forcing people out of their homes,” said Farr.

Conflict often compounds other factors like climate shocks, economic instability and inequalities to devastate people’s livelihoods. For example, climate shocks like droughts and floods, coupled with the surge in global food prices associated with pandemic shut-downs and additional food-chain disruptions connected to the Russia-Ukraine war, have fueled the hunger crises in East and Southern Africa.

Many of those fleeing are women and children. Aisha Ibrahim, age 37, told Oxfam that she had to walk four days with her four children, leaving their home in Sudan for Joda, across the border in South Sudan. She left her husband behind to protect their home. “I used to live in a proper home. I could never imagine myself in this situation,” she said.

The international community’s pledge of “zero hunger” by 2030 remains out of touch. Oxfam says that states and institutions globally, including the UN Security Council, must hold to account those committing “starvation crimes” in accordance with international law.

“To break the vicious cycle of food insecurity and conflict, global leaders must tackle head-on the conditions that breed conflict: the colonial legacies, injustices, human rights violations, and inequalities – rather than offering quick band-aid solutions.”

“We cannot end conflict by simply injecting foreign investments in conflict-torn countries, without uprooting the deep inequalities, generational grievances, and human rights violations that fuel those conflicts. Peace efforts must be coupled with investment in social protection, and social cohesion building. Economic solutions must prioritize fair trade and sustainable food systems,” said Farr.

Notes to the Editor

Read Oxfam’s report, “Food Wars”
There has been an alarming rise in global conflict – not seen in decades – both in terms of number of wars and the death toll from conflict. Source: PRIO and UPSALA
Oxfam analysed 54 active conflict, refugee-hosting, and conflict legacy countries with populations in 2023 facing “crisis-level” acute food insecurity, i.e., at Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) 3 or higher. In total, nearly 278 million people in these countries faced crisis-level hunger in 2023, accounting for 99% of the global population at IPC 3+ (281.6 million people).
Oxfam has calculated the hunger mortality figure based on the crude death rate in the Integrated Food Insecurity Technical Manual, and the Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC) 2024 Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) 3 or higher in conflict-affected countries. This was between 7,784 and 21,406 deaths per day or (5 -15 per minute). Source: GRFC 2024
In all 54 countries, conflict was a major cause of food insecurity, although in some, weather extremes or economic shocks may have been the principal driver.
34 of 54 studied countries rely mainly on primary product exports, such as food, agriculture, and extractive industry products, or light assembly and low-end manufactures.
Natural resources exports figures are based on Trading Economics. (2023). Sudan Exports; World Bank. (2022). World Bank Report: With peace and accountability, oil and agriculture can support early recovery in South Sudan. Press Release, June 15; and Trading Economics. (2024) on Burundi Exports.; and USDA (US Department of Agriculture) Foreign Agriculture Service. (2022) on Ukraine Agricultural Production and Trade.
Food insecurity figures for Gaza are from IPC 2024, and for Sudan from IPC April report.
Recent analysis from aid agencies found 83% of food aid is not making it into the Gaza Strip
Globally, 117.3m people are forcibly displaced, of which 68.3m are internally displaced by conflict in 2023, that’s 90% of all IDPs (75.9m), Source: UNHCR 2024 and Migration Data Portal

Contact information:

Rachel Schaevitz — rachel.schaevitz@oxfam.org.nz

Urgent joint statement: Northern Gaza is being erased

October 15, 2024

Oxfam and 37 other humanitarian organisations are raising the alarm about the catastrophic situation in Northern Gaza

The Israeli forces’ assault on Gaza has escalated to a horrifying level of atrocity. Northern Gaza is being wiped off the map. Under the guise of “evacuation,” Israeli forces have ordered the forced displacement of an estimated 400,000 Palestinians trapped in northern Gaza, including Gaza City. This is not an evacuation—this is forced displacement under gunfire. Since 1 October, no food has been allowed into the area, and civilians are being starved and bombed in their homes and their tents.

Hospitals, already overwhelmed, are being ordered to evacuate. They are running out of fuel and essential supplies, while doctors and nurses battle to save lives with what little they have left. The wounded flood in – children, older people, victims of Israeli airstrikes – but with no resources to treat them.

Dr. Mohammed Salha, acting director of Al-Awda Hospital in northern Gaza, described the dire situation: “The Israeli military has contacted us more than once to evacuate the hospital… [All] the departments are full of wounded people and we are discharging even the wounded who have minor or moderate injuries, because we do not have [enough] beds for them. I [told the Israeli military] clearly that we would not evacuate the hospital unless there are ambulances that can preserve the lives of the wounded people we have and reach another hospital that provides better service to the wounded.”

The world cannot continue to stand by as the Israeli government commits these atrocities. Global leaders have both a legal and moral duty to act now. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has ordered Israel to take all measures within its power to prevent the commission of all acts within the scope of Article II of the Genocide Convention including “killing members of the group; causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; and imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group”. There is no evidence that Israel has adhered to these orders, and the killing of Palestinians has only intensified.

Any attempt to alter the territorial integrity of Gaza constitutes a blatant violation of international law. This is especially egregious in light of the recent ICJ advisory opinion, which significantly heightens the obligation of third states to take decisive action. Failure to do so risks their complicity in perpetuating the illegal occupation.

All parties must allow unimpeded access for humanitarian organisations to deliver aid based on need, without restricting types, volumes, or locations. Aid delivery must remain impartial and independent of military objectives to prevent its instrumentalisation or politicisation. Civilians must not be forced to flee to receive aid; those choosing to stay in their homes must be protected under international law.

We demand an immediate ceasefire and an end to Israel’s illegal occupation. Global leaders must act in line with the UN General Assembly Resolution on the ICJ Advisory Opinion and fulfil their obligation not to facilitate or support Israel’s illegal occupation. Third states must halt now the transfer of all weapons, parts and ammunition that could be used to commit further violations of international humanitarian law.

This is not a time for silence – this is a time for action. The people of Gaza cannot wait. The world must intervene now before more innocent lives are lost.

Notes to editors

The forcible transfer of Palestinian civilians in Gaza is a grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention and does not amount to a permissible evacuation. Relocation areas have not provided safety, adequate shelter or essential services, and there has also been no guarantee that displaced populations will be able to return once hostilities end.

Signatories:

ActionAid
Action For Humanity
Afri (Action from Ireland)
Amos Trust
Bloody Sunday Trust
Centre for Global Education
CESVI
Children Not Numbers
Christian Aid
Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP)
Comhlamh Justice for Palestine
Council for Arab-British Understanding (Caabu)
Embrace the Middle East
Feminist Humanitarian Network (FHN)
Gender Action for Peace and Security (GAPS)
Global Justice Now
HelpAge International
Interpal
Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign
Islamic Relief
KinderUSA
Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP)
Médecins du Monde Spain
Middle East Children’s Alliance
Muslim Aid
Novact Institute for Nonviolence
Oxfam
Plan International Jordan
Sabeel-Kairos UK
Sadaka-The Ireland Palestine Alliance
TDH Italy
Trócaire
Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union/ Aontas Mac Léinn Choláiste na Tríonóide (TCDSU/AMLCT)
Vento di Terra
War Child
War on Want
WeWorld
Welfare Association

Contact information

Spokespersons are available for interviews. Please contact:

Oxfam Media office | Media.OPTI@oxfam.org

For updates, please follow @NewsFromOxfam and @OxfamJerusalem.

World’s top 1% own more wealth than 95% of humanity

September 24, 2024

Over a third of world’s biggest 50 corporations —worth $13.3 trillion— now run by a billionaire or has a billionaire as a principal shareholder.
Global South countries own just 31 percent of global wealth, despite being home to 79 percent of global population.
Oxfam urges multilateral action to advance new global framework on tax, cancel debts and rewrite intellectual property rules for pandemics.

The richest 1 percent have more wealth than the bottom 95 percent of the world’s population put together, new Oxfam analysis of UBS data reveals today ahead of the annual UN High-Level General Debate.

Billionaires are exerting new levels of control over economies, with a billionaire either running or the principal shareholder of more than a third of the world’s top 50 corporations. The combined market capitalization of these corporations is $13.3 trillion.

Oxfam’s briefing paper “Multilateralism in an Era of Global Oligarchy” warns that multilateral efforts to respond to critical global challenges, including the climate crisis and persistent poverty and inequality, are being undermined by the ultra-wealthy and mega-corporations fueling inequality within and between countries.

Despite being home to 79 percent of the world’s population, Global South countries own just 31 percent of global wealth.

“The shadow of global oligarchy hangs over this year’s UN General Assembly. The ultra-wealthy and the mega-corporations they control are shaping global rules to serve their interests at the expense of people everywhere. The iconic UN podium is increasingly feeling diminished in a world in which billionaires are calling the shots,” said Amitabh Behar, Oxfam International’s Executive Director.

The paper describes a “movement toward a global oligarchy,” where the ultra-rich, often through their increasingly monopolistic corporations, shape global political decision-making and rules to enrich themselves while thwarting vital global progress.

The top 1 percent own 43 percent of all global financial assets. Just two corporations control 40 percent of the global seed market. The “big three” US-based asset managers —BlackRock, State Street, and Vanguard— hold $20 trillion in assets, close to one-fifth of all investable assets in the world.

“While we often hear about great power rivalries undermining multilateralism —it is clear that extreme inequality is playing a massive role. In recent years the ultra-wealthy and powerful corporations have used their vast influence to undermine efforts to solve major global problems such as tackling tax dodging, making Covid-19 vaccines available to the world and canceling the albatross of sovereign debt,” said Behar.

Oxfam details three recent examples of extreme inequality eroding multilateral efforts —and where civil society and Global South leaders have offered inequality-busting solutions:

Powerful corporations undermining tax cooperation. The OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on Base Erosion and Profit Sharing (BEPS) fell short of realizing its potential, with new rules for profit allocation that will deliver only tiny extra revenues for lower-income countries of as little as 0.026 percent of their GDP. The exclusion of financial services from OECD rules is a carve-out attributed to lobbying from countries with large banking and financial sectors. Global South countries, led by African countries, are instead advancing negotiations for a fairer tax convention at the UN that, along with Brazil’s leadership at the G20, offer a pathway for fairly taxing the super-rich and mega-corporations.

Big Pharma resisting efforts to break up their monopolies over Covid-19 vaccine technologies to unlock supply. Monopoly control over vaccine production was highly profitable during the pandemic. In 2021 alone, the seven largest manufacturers generated an estimated $50 billion in net profit from the sale of Covid-19 vaccines, resulting in huge payouts to rich shareholders and the emergence of new vaccine billionaires. The CEO of Pfizer Albert Bourla described the call to share Covid-19 vaccine technologies as “dangerous nonsense.” The failure to equitably share vaccines contributed to as many as 1.3 million excess deaths worldwide. A new pandemic treaty with strong provisions to suspend patents and allow for easier transfers of technology offers promise.

Private creditors exacerbating the global debt crisis. Low-income countries spend nearly 40 percent of their annual budgets on debt service, over 60 percent more than they spend on education, health, and social protection combined. Over half of low- and middle-income countries’ external debt is owed to private lenders like banks and hedge funds. Some of these creditors are “vulture funds,” which purchase distressed debt on the cheap and exploit legal mechanisms to be repaid in full, reaping outsized profits.

“Only a solidarity-based multilateralism can reverse the movement toward global oligarchy. Some world leaders are showing they recognize this and are stepping up to fight inequality —but we need many more to demonstrate this courage,” said Behar.

“Ultimately, a fairer world and international order —where corporations pay their fair share, global public health is prioritized, and where all countries can invest in their own people— benefits us all. This is not new, and it’s long what leaders especially from the Global South have called for.”

ENDS

Notes to editors

Download Oxfam’s briefing paper “Multilateralism in an Era of Global Oligarchy.”.

The pandemic has created at least 40 new pharmaceutical billionaires.

O xfam’s recent analysis of more than 180 of the largest US public corporations shows that they collectively spent $746 million on lobbying in 2022, an average of $4.1 million each.

Contact information:

Rachel Schaevitz — rachel.schaevitz@oxfam.org.nz

Oxfam calls for reform of the UN Security Council

September 20, 2024

Ahead of the UN Summit for the Future, Oxfam calls for reform of the UN Security Council to stop the “Permanent Five” from being their own “judge and jury”

The UN Security Council (UNSC) is failing people living in conflict, with Russia and the United States particularly responsible for abusing their veto power which is blocking progress toward peace in Ukraine, Syria, and the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel.

A new Oxfam report, Vetoing Humanity, studied 23 of the world’s most protracted conflicts over the past decade, including Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Libya, Niger, the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Ukraine, Venezuela and Yemen, and found that 27 of the 30 UNSC vetoes cast on these conflicts were on OPT, Syria and Ukraine.

The report concludes that the five permanent members of the UNSC (the P5) are exploiting their exclusive voting and negotiating powers to suit their own geopolitical interests. In doing so, they are undermining the Council’s ability to maintain international peace and security.

More than a million people have been killed in these 23 conflicts alone and more than 230 million people are today in urgent need of aid – an increase of over 50 percent since 2015.

“China, France, Russia, the UK and the US took responsibility for global security at the UNSC in what is now a bygone colonial age. The contradictions of their acting as judge and jury of their own military alliances, interests and adventures are incompatible with a world seeking peace and justice for all,” said Oxfam International Executive Director Amitabh Behar.

For instance, in 2023 Russia vetoed a nine-month extension of cross-border assistance to Northern Syria which left 4.1 million people with little or no access to food, water and medicine. Russia has also used its veto four times on Ukraine, despite being an aggressor in the conflict and by UN rules should therefore be disqualified from voting.

While the UN General Assembly (UNGA) has passed at least 77 resolutions over the last decade supporting Palestinian self-determination and human rights and an end to Israel’s illegal occupation, the US has used its veto power six times to block resolutions perceived as unfavourable to its ally Israel. The US vetoes have created a permissive environment for Israel to expand illegal settlements in the Palestinian territory with impunity.

“More often than not the Security Council permanent members’ vetoes have contradicted the will of the UN General Assembly, in which all states are represented,” Behar said.

The report critiques another of the P5’s powers called “pen-holding”, which allows them to lead on negotiations and direct how resolutions are drafted and tabled, or ignored – again, too often according to their own interests.

While France and the UK have not used their veto last decade, they and the US have held the pen on two-thirds of resolutions relating to the 23 protracted crises studied by Oxfam. The UK holds the pen on Yemen, for example, where it has a colonial legacy and strategic interests to maintain the maritime routes. In 2023, Mali objected to French pen-holding given what it considered “acts of aggression and destabilization” there.

Many other initiatives are not even written up or tabled because they would inevitability be vetoed, the report says. As a result, the 23 crises studied by Oxfam are being treated in wildly different ways. Nearly half of them have been largely neglected with fewer than five resolutions each over the last decade, including just one on Myanmar and none on Ethiopia or Venezuela.

On the other hand, the UNSC has passed more nearly 80 on both South Sudan and Sudan, 53 on Somalia and 48 on Libya. None have led to lasting peace. Despite the Democratic Republic of Congo having had 24 UNSC resolutions in the past 10 years, for instance, the UN mission there (MONUSCO) has been hindered by chronic underfunding and lack of coordination.

“The erratic and self-interested behaviour of UNSC members has contributed to an explosion of humanitarian needs that is now outpacing humanitarian organizations’ ability to respond. This demands a fundamental change of our international security architecture at the very top,” Behar said.

Globally, the number of people needing humanitarian assistance has risen nearly four times in the last decade, triggering massive funding needs. Between 2014 and 2023, the UN appeal has nearly tripled from $20 billion to over $56 billion – but less than half of this amount was met last year.

The report is critical of the fact that humanitarian funding remains entirely dependent upon voluntary contributions. In contrast, UN member state funding for peacekeeping operations is mandatory.

As the Summit of the Future kicks off this week to envision a revitalized UN, Oxfam calls for a wholesale reform of the UN Security Council, including the abolition of the P5’s veto power.

“We need a new vision for a UN system that meets its original ambitions and made fit for purpose for today’s reality,” Behar said. “A Council that works for the global majority not a powerful few. This starts with renouncing the veto and pen-holding privilege of the P5 and expanding membership to more countries.”

Notes to the Editors

Read Oxfam’s “Vetoing Humanity” report (Link will go live once embargo is lifted)

Oxfam looked at 23 crises that were listed in the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA)’s “Global Humanitarian Needs Overviews” for at least five consecutive years over the last decade. These are: Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Haiti, Iraq, Libya, Mali, Myanmar, Niger, Nigeria, the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Ukraine, Venezuela and Yemen. Source: UNOCHA Global Humanitarian Overview 2024 and UNOCHA 2014-2018.

Over the past decade, the UNSC has passed 454 resolutions and vetoed 30 resolutions on these 23 protracted crises. 8 out of 12 resolutions on Palestine and Israel; 15 out of 53 on Syria; 4 out of 6 in Ukraine; one on Venezuela; one on Malia; and one on Yemen, have been vetoed respectively. Sudan and South Sudan have had 79 resolutions passed since 2015. Oxfam’s vetoes calculations are based on UN data and UNSC data. Analysis of UNGA Resolutions is based on UN Dag Hammarskjöld Library. (n.d.). UN General Assembly Resolutions Tables.

Russia and the United States have together cast 75% of the 88 UNSC vetoes since 1989, with the rest by China – neither France nor the UK have used their veto power over that period. Source: For details on UNSC vetoes, see UN Dag Hammarskjöld Library. (n.d.). UN Security Council Meetings & Outcomes Tables: Veto List. Accessed 20 July 2024. For details on approved resolutions see UNSC Resolutions.

11 of the total 23 protracted crises (48%) had each fewer than five resolutions over the last decade. Source: see above.

Oxfam calculated 1.1 million people died during 2014–23 in the 23 protracted crises using the conflict-level version of the dataset and the best estimates of battle-related deaths (as opposed to the high or the low estimates). Source: The Uppsala University Conflict Data Program Battle Related Deaths dataset version 24.1

Oxfam calculated global funding needs based on the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs Financial Tracking Service database coordinated appeals data from 2014 to 2023. Only 43% of the total $54.1bn appeal was met in 2023.

According to the UN Charter article 27(3), “a party to a dispute shall abstain from voting”.

The number of people in urgent need of humanitarian assistance living in these 23 protracted crises has grown by 157% to 233.5 million in 2024, up from 90.84 in 2015. Source: UNOCHA’s Global Humanitarian Overview (2015) and (2024).

According to UNOCHA, the global number of people in need of humanitarian assistance has risen nearly four times in the last decade – from 77.9m in 2015 to 299.4m in 2024. Source: See above.

According to the Global Report on Food Crises 2024, the number of people experiencing acute or worse levels of hunger across 20 of the 23 countries was 199.6 million. Data from Iraq, Libya and Venezuela were insufficient or did not meet the requirements of the GRFC.

Contacts

At UNGA Nesrine Aly / Lauren Hartnett

Oxfam and partners at UNGA79

September 17, 2024

Oxfam leaders, experts, and partners are joining the UN 79th General Assembly, Summit of the Future, and Climate Action week in New York, hosting and attending events focused on UN Security Council Reform, gender, digital rights, inequality, climate action, and humanitarian issues. They will be urging global leaders to take bold decisions and action as they deliberate the pressing issues of our time.

This year’s theme is “leaving no one behind: Acting Together for the Advancement of Peace, Sustainable Development and Human Dignity for Present and Future Generations.”

Oxfam International Executive Director Amitabh Behar said: 

“Our global systems have failed to address the unprecedented challenges we face today, leaving millions behind. Conflict is rampant, the climate crisis is at a breaking point, and inequality is soaring. As we gather at this year’s Assembly, leaders cannot squander the opportunity to restore people’s faith in the UN’s role as the flagbearer for global peace, security, and cooperation. They must move beyond mere rhetoric and make bold choices to create a system that serves all of humanity, not just the powerful few.”

An overview of Oxfam’s key events, including a press conference on a report on UN Security Council Reform, media spokespeople, and products:

A FEW HIGHLIGHTS FROM OXFAM’S AGENDA (all times in EST) :

Thursday, September 19: Oxfam will publish a report titled,“Vetoing Humanity,” which highlights how the five UN Security Council Permanent Member States’ (P5) have abused the veto and negotiating powers in their own geopolitical interests; and how they have paralyzed the Council’s ability to maintain international peace and security or mitigate prolonged conflicts and human suffering.

At 8:30am, Oxfam will be hosting a photo call at an art installation in Tudor City outside the UN, featuring a large dove shackled to a “veto” weight, signifying how the Security Council veto has restrained efforts for global peace. Brooklyn-based artist Miles Giordani built the installation with Oxfam.

At 11:00 am, Oxfam will also hold a press conference on the “Vetoing Humanity” report in the UN Correspondents Association briefing room.

At 5:30pm, Oxfam and other civil society organizations will be hosting a media happy hour for a chance for experts and journalists to connect. Media can RSVP here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/unga-media-civil-society-happy-hour-tickets-1009525918197

Saturday, September 21: Oxfam and partners will host a Summit of the Future Action Days Official Side Event on “Reforming the UN Security Council for an Equal and Sustainable Future” at the UN Headquarters. Speakers will include Amitabh Behar, Oxfam International Executive Director; Anne-Marie Slaughter, CEO of the New America; Ambassador Lazalous Kapambwe former Zambia Permanent Representative to the UN and 67th President of UN ECOSOC; Wameedh Shakir, Founder and Chairperson of Itar Foundation in Yemen; Augusto Lopez-Claros, Executive Director and Chair – Global Governance Forum and Ishaan Shah co-founded Stolen Dreams. Register to participate or watch the Livestream here: Reforming the UN Security Council for an Equal and Sustainable Future (Side Event, Action Day 2, Summit of the Future) | UN Web TV

Monday, September 23: Oxfam will publish “Multilateralism in an Era of Global Oligarchy: How Extreme Inequality Undermines International Cooperation,” a report highlighting how ultrawealthy individuals — often enabled by the richest countries — exert disproportionate influence over policy decision. The paper proposes the solutions needed for progress and provides new global data prepared for UNGA. On Thursday, September 26, a joint event with the Ford Foundation will outline key aspects the report; the panelists will include: Oxfam International Executive Director Amitabh Behar; Ronald Lamola, South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation; and Nanjala Nyabola, Kenyan writer, researcher, and political analyst; moderated by The Washington Post’s Karen Attiah.

Reactive Statements:

Oxfam will be making statements regarding Summit of the Future outcomes, Heads of State Speeches during the High-Level Debate and other developments throughout.

OXFAM SPOKESPEOPLE:

Amitabh Behar, Oxfam International, Executive Director: Sustainable Development Goals, UN Reform, Inequality, Climate, Democracy, Human Rights, war in Gaza

Abby Maxman, Oxfam America President and CEO: Sustainable Development Goals, Inequality, Humanitarian Issues

Lebogang Ramafoko, Oxfam South Africa Executive Director: Summit of the Future, Climate and Inequality

Brenda Mofya, Head of Oxfam New York Office: Sustainable Development Goals, The Summit of the Future, Humanitarian Issues

Dr. Tawanda Mutasah, Oxfam America Vice President of Global Partnerships and Impact: Sustainable Development Goals, UN Reform

Ashfaq Khalfan, Oxfam America Director of Climate Justice: U.S. position and context on climate issues in UN agenda, Climate and Inequality, Future Generations

Nabil Ahmed, Oxfam America Director of Economic and Racial Justice: Economic/Wealth Inequality, Progressive Taxation, Corporate Power, Multilateralism

Pauline Chetcuti, Oxfam International Head of Humanitarian Advocacy and Campaigns; Humanitarian and Climate Financing, Humanitarian Issues

Neal McCarthy, Oxfam America Associate Director of Digital in Program: Summit of the Future Digital Compact

Rebecca Shadwick, Oxfam International Gender Rights & Justice Policy & Advocacy Lead: Gender Justice and Rights in the Summit of the Future

Abdulwasea Mohammed, Oxfam in Yemen Advocacy, Policy, and Campaigns Lead; Yemen, Inclusive Peace and Security

Partners:

Marinel Ubaldo, Climate Activist from the Philippines; Climate and Youth Activism

Hilda Nakabuye, Climate Activist from Uganda: Climate and Youth Activism

Wameedh Shakir, Chairwoman of Itar Foundation for Social Development in Yemen; Yemen, Gender, UN Reform

FULL LIST OF EVENTS AND MEDIA PRODUCTS:

Wednesday, September 18:

YEMEN JOINT NGO BRIEFING NOTE: Humanitarian Situation and Funding in Yemen on the Occasion of the 79th United Nations General Assembly

Thursday, September 19:

OXFAM REPORT + PRESS CONFERENCE + PHOTO CALL: Oxfam is publishing the report “Vetoing Humanity: How a few powerful nations hijacked global peace and why reform is needed at the UN Security Council.”

Embargoed press release and report

Public press release and report (links will go live at 00:01 EST)

As detailed above, Oxfam will be presenting the report at a press conference and presenting a temporary art installation featuring a dove of peace shackled by the weight of the veto by Brooklyn-based artist Miles Giordani.

OXFAM JOINT CIVIL SOCIETY MEDIA HAPPY HOUR: Oxfam and civil society partners are hosting a happy hour to connect policy experts with media. Media RSVP: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/unga-media-civil-society-happy-hour-tickets-1009525918197
TIME: 5:30-8:30pm
LOCATION: The Stag’s Head, 252 E 51st Street (at 2nd Avenue)

Friday, September 20:

FRIDAYS FOR FUTURE + OXFAM EVENT: Youth Climate Strike: Tear Down the Pillars of Fossil Fuels. Oxfam staff and partners will take part; Climate activist Hilda Nakabuye will speak at the rally
TIME: 2:00-4:00pm
LOCATION: Meet at Foley Square, RSVP at https://actionnetwork.org/events/youth-climate-strike-tear-down-the-pillars-of-fossil-fuels-2

OXFAM + TRUST AFRICA EVENT: African Civil Society Dialogue on the Summit of the Future
LOCATION: Jay Suites – Fifth Avenue, 15 W 38th Street
Note: This event continues to September 21. For more information contact Gail Smith (gail.smith@oxfam.org.za).

Saturday, September 21:

OXFAM SIDE EVENT: Summit of the Future – “Transforming Economies beyond GDP: towards a caring and feminist future with people, wellbeing and planet at the center.”
TIME: 9:00-10:45am
LOCATION: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_pmurQXRqTlqJFa4Ysp_AFA

OXFAM EVENT: “Connecting the Global North and South in fulfilling existing legal obligations on climate finance, including loss and damage”
TIME: 11:00am-12:30pm
LOCATION: Oxfam NY Office, 369 Lexington Avenue
Note: For more information contact Karelia Pallan (karelia.pallan@oxfam.org)

OXFAM + IMPACT COALITION ON AI EVENT: Oxfam’s Neal McCarthy will be speaking on the Panel on AI & Technology Governance”
TIME: 4:00-5:15pm
LOCATION: UNHQ – CR12

Monday, September 23:

OXFAM REPORT: “Multilateralism in an Era of Global Oligarchy” will outline how extreme economic inequality undermines multilateral efforts to effectively respond to critical global challenges like global taxation, health, and debt and proposes the solutions needed for progress. The paper provides new global data prepared for UNGA.

OXFAM STATEMENT: Oxfam will issue a media reaction to the Pact of the Future and Summit of the Future outcomes

OXFAM STATEMENT: Oxfam will issue a statement ahead of President Biden’s address at the General Debate

Tuesday, September 24:

OXFAM EVENT: “Building Global Consensus for Justice in Mining for the Energy Transition: Can the UN Critical Energy Transition Minerals (CETM) Panel lead the way?” RSVP: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/un-panel-on-critical-energy-transition-minerals-toward-the-change-we-need-tickets-999360422927
TIME: 3:00-4:30pm
LOCATION: Oxfam NY Office – Sinatra Room (2nd Floor), 15 W 38th Street

Wednesday, September 25:

OXFAM SPEAKING ON DEVEX PANEL: “Food as a weapon in the new age of starvation.” Oxfam in Yemen’s Abdulwasea Mohammed, Advocacy, Policy and Media Lead, will speak about the food security crisis in Yemen
TIME: 10:25-11:00am
LOCATION: In-person in New York and online at https://pages.devex.com/devex-at-unga-79.html

Thursday, September 26:

OXFAM + FORD FOUNDATION EVENT: “Multilateralism in an Era of Oligarchy” will explore how extreme economic inequality undermines multilateral efforts to effectively respond to critical global challenges like global taxation, health, and debt; Oxfam panelists will be moderated by The Washington Post’s Karen Attiah.
TIME: 12:30-2:30pm
LOCATION: Ford Foundation, 320 E 43rd Street
Note: Please contact Shelby Bolen (shelby.bolen@oxfam.org) to be added to the RSVP list.

ABOUT OXFAM

Oxfam is a global organization that fights inequality to end poverty and injustice and will highlight the urgent need in tackling the intersections of rising inequality, humanitarian emergencies, and the climate crisis.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

For any media requests or for more information on anything below, please reach out to Lauren Hartnett at lauren.hartnett@oxfam.org and +1 203-247-3920 or Nesrine Aly at nesrine.aly@oxfam.org or +44 750 398 9838 (WhatsApp only).

To keep up with the Oxfam delegation’s activities, follow @Oxfam

Amitabh Behar named Oxfam International’s Executive Director

August 9, 2024

Oxfam International is pleased to announce the appointment of Amitabh Behar as its new Executive Director. Behar is a respected global civil society leader, with three decades of experience and extensive work on human rights, economic inequalities, governance accountability, philanthropy, democracy and social justice. He was selected following a competitive recruitment process.

Behar joined Oxfam in April 2018 as the Chief Executive of Oxfam India. More recently, he served as Oxfam International’s Interim Executive Director.

“Behar is a thoughtful and creative feminist leader, with an in-depth understanding of the causes and complexities of poverty, inequality, discrimination and suffering. We are confident in his ability to convene our confederation, alongside our partners, to deliver our vision for a just and equal world,” said Dr. Aruna Rao, the Chair of the Oxfam International Board of Directors.

Behar said: “I embark on this new chapter acutely aware of the global and interconnected challenges we face in our world today. We require urgent action built on new solidarities, new imaginations, and new dreams to deliver a more equal and sustainable future for all.

“Oxfam carries a rich legacy rooted in working with communities while advocating for systemic change. I am eager to channel our collective energies, boldness, resources, and partnerships in support of peoples’ power for the good of majority of the global population.”

Behar has made valuable contributions to Oxfam’s transformation of its own confederation, decolonizing its decision-making and strengthening its collective structure and policies. He has been widely recognized for his work on people-centric advocacy, governance accountability, social and economic equality, and citizen participation.

Prior to Oxfam, Behar was Executive Director of the National Foundation for India and Co-Chair of the Global Call to Action Against Poverty. He has also served as the Vice-Chair of the Board of CIVICUS and the Chair of Navsarjan (Ahmedabad) and President of Yuva in Mumbai. He currently serves on the boards of several other organizations, including the Global Fund for Community Foundation and the Norwegian Human Rights Fund.

Contact: Rachel Schaevitz, rachel.schaevitz@oxfam.org.nz