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The cost of the world’s biggest problems, and who could afford to fix them

The price tag of the most pressing global issues
Eliminating trachoma: $1 billion (£730m)
...equivalent to the wealth of Jay-Z and Beyoncé
Eradicating polio: $1.5 billion (£1.1bn)
...equivalent to the wealth of Michael Jordan
Wiping out rabies: $6.3 billion (£4.6bn)
…equivalent to the wealth of Travis Kalanick
Saving 42 million people from starvation: $6.6 billion (£4.9bn)
...equivalent to less than 2.5% of the wealth of Elon Musk
Eliminating elephantiasis: $8 billion (£5.87bn)
...equivalent to the wealth of Silvio Berlusconi
Eradicating malaria: $8.5 billion (£6.2bn)
...equivalent to the net worth of Henry Kravis
Ending world hunger: $30 billion (£24bn) per year
...equivalent to the wealth of Alain Wertheimer
Vaccinating the world against COVID-19: $50 billion (£37.7bn)
...equivalent to the wealth of MacKenzie Scott
Delivering safe water and sanitation: $150 billion (£110bn) a year
...equivalent to the combined wealth of Mark Zuckerberg and Jack Ma
Ending extreme poverty: $175 billion (£128.5bn) per year
...less than the wealth of the Arnault family
Stabilising greenhouse gas levels: $13 trillion (£9.5tn)
…equivalent to 50% of the wealth of North America's high-net-worth individuals
Ditching fossil fuels by 2050: at least $44 trillion (£32.3tn)
…equivalent to the combined wealth of most of the world's high-net-worth individuals
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Courtesy Time magazine

The price tag of the most pressing global issues

How much would it actually cost to vaccinate the world against COVID-19, wipe out global poverty and reverse climate change? After the UN outlined how it could fight world hunger with just 2% of Elon Musk's fortune, read on as we reveal the likely cost of dealing with the planet's most serious issues, compared to the wealth of the world's richest people. All dollar values in US dollars.

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lovemoney staff

15 December 2021

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