Policy Papers

The gap between the richest and the rest in Indonesia has grown faster in the past two decades than in any other country in South-East Asia. This report shows how President Jokowi could fight inequality by enforcing a living wage for all workers, increasing spending on public services, and making big corporations and rich individuals pay their fair share of tax.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development gives business a significant role to play in efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, based on its ability to invest and innovate. This paper explores ways in which companies can provide more meaningful contributions to governments’ commitments to reach the SDGs.

Aid donors increasingly seek to inject private-sector resources into development by ‘blending’ official development assistance (ODA) with private finance. There is little evidence of the development impact, and projects often do not align with country ownership, transparency and accountability.

‘Blending’ combines official development assistance with other private or public resources, in order to ‘leverage’ additional funds from other actors. This report aims to clarify what it is, how it works and how it is used, to foster greater understanding of this increasingly prominent development finance mechanism.

As part of its emergency response in Diffa, Oxfam in Niger undertook a modified Emergency Market Mapping Analysis in November 2016. The broad aim was to understand the effect of the Boko Haram conflict and the military operations to counter them on the critical livelihood activities of conflict-affected people.

After years of international isolation, Myanmar is liberalizing its economy and seeking to attract foreign investment. This paper outlines potential risks to communities posed by these investments, and explores state regulation as a way to promote responsible business practices in the sector.

Conflict in Yemen has left thousands dead, millions homeless or hungry, and an economy in ruins. But hopes for peace talks are fading and a new approach is needed. Women and girls are particularly affected by the conflict and have a crucial role to play in building peace at the local level.

This report draws on evidence from the South-East Asia region to explore the impacts of special economic zones (SEZs). It shows that without transparency and accountable governance, SEZs are more likely to result in harmful environmental and social impacts.

On 4 February 2016, the international community agreed on a ‘comprehensive new approach’ to address the Syria crisis at the London Conference. Nearly one year on, this report sets out what needs to be done to ensure that people’s lives are positively and measurably impacted by the funding disbursed so far.

Gaza's dairy sector has been severely damaged by Israel’s separation policy, blockade and three rounds of hostilities. However, there are opportunities for the sector to grow and reduce its dependence on external markets.

New estimates show that just eight men own the same wealth as the poorest half of the world. As growth benefits the richest, the rest of society – especially the poorest – suffers. Our economy must stop excessively rewarding those at the top and start working for all people.

Ending extreme inequality to end poverty has no lack of policy options: from corporate tax reform to investment in health and education, and from raising the minimum wage to ending gender discrimination. This discussion paper aims to put one of these solutions on the agenda: the billionaire tax.

Vietnam has a strong record of poverty reduction, but today, increasing inequality is threatening decades of progress. To tackle the dangerous gap between rich and poor, Vietnam should urgently implement progressive policies on governance, taxation, public spending, public services, labour rights, and civic engagement.

Oxfam’s research shows that less than three percent of the Syrian refugee population have actually arrived in rich countries through resettlement programmes. By analysing resettlement policies and practices in eight key countries, this paper shows why resettling at least 10 percent of the refugee population from Syria is both necessary and possible.

Farmer seed systems and community seed banks provide an important safety net for cash-strapped, vulnerable people. They also help small-scale farmers manage climate risk. Supporting them is an adaptation opportunity that is currently being missed.

Thousands of people are at risk this winter as the EU-Turkey deal keeps migrants, including refugees, stuck in dangerous and degrading conditions in Greece, a coalition of more than 20 humanitarian agencies and human rights organisations warned in a joint statement. EU leaders need to take urgent action to improve the situation on the ground and save lives.

Collecting tax is one of the key means by which governments are able to address poverty. But big business is dodging tax on an industrial scale. This report exposes the world’s worst corporate tax havens and calls on governments to work together to put a stop to this race to the bottom.

Combating inequality in Latin America requires addressing the extreme concentration in access to and control over land, as well as in the distribution of benefits from its use.

At a time of great need, aid and other forms of development cooperation are at risk. Representatives from donor countries and developing countries alike will meet at the end of 2016 to discuss the way forward. The direction they take has the potential to affect millions of lives, for better or worse.