The impacts of COVID-19, rising global inequality and soaring food prices caused by the war in Ukraine are set to send more than a quarterbillion more people into poverty this year, the charity group, Oxfam International, has said. The combined hit may result in a total of 860 million people living below the $1.90 a day line by the end of 2022, or 263 million more than the projection before the pandemic, the group said in a report on Tuesday. That’s equivalent to the entire population of the UK, France, Germany and Spain combined. Oxfam released the report ahead of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Spring Meetings taking place next week in Washington, where global economic challenges and the shock of Russia’s invasion are set to feature as two of the main focuses.
