Commentary and analysis to persuade people to become socialist and to act for themselves, organizing democratically and without leaders, to bring about a world of common ownership and free access. We are solely concerned with building a movement of socialists for socialism. We are not reformists with a programme of policies to patch up capitalism.
Monday, February 03, 2014
South Africa's Billionaires
It is possible to capture today’s mind-boggling inequality by looking at extremes. According to Forbes Magazine, South Africa has 14 dollar-billionaires today, out of which only one is black. Their wealth amounts to about $30 billions. In comparison, according to World Bank data, one-third of the population lives on about $11 billions, annually (between $1.25 - $2.5 per day in purchasing power parity).
This means a handful of individuals possess almost three times more than what 16 million people live on during a year. Although not an exact science, this comparison illustrates one of the major problems in South Africa today. And it goes without saying that these billionaires and other wealthy individuals (the economic elite) have much more leverage and influence than people in general.
taken from here
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