FIA Kenya Urges G20 to Put People Before Profits, Calls for Bold Action on Global Inequality

Nairobi, November 13, 2025 — The Fight Inequality Alliance Kenya (FIA Kenya) has urged world leaders gathering for the upcoming G20 Summit in South Africa to prioritize people and the planet over corporate profits, saying the current global economic framework entrenches poverty and inequality instead of addressing them.

In a strongly worded statement, FIA Kenya said the G20 must “deliver economic justice for all — not just the privileged few,” warning that widening inequality is fuelling global and domestic crises.

> “The G20 continues to operate within an economic framework that deepens inequality rather than confronting it,” the statement read. “The current state of inequality in Kenya is a crisis fuelled by unjust global policies and weak domestic accountability.”

The Alliance noted that despite Kenya being viewed as an emerging economy, the fruits of growth remain unequally distributed. Citing data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics, FIA Kenya said 36 percent of Kenyans live below the poverty line, while millions face unstable employment, rising living costs, and limited access to basic services.

Meanwhile, the country’s wealth continues to be concentrated in the hands of a few, with public debt now standing at KSh 11.81 trillion, about 67.8 percent of GDP. “More than half of every shilling collected goes to creditors, not Kenyan families,” FIA Kenya noted, adding that the government spends more on debt repayment than on any single social sector.

The statement also blamed the global financial system for maintaining inequality through policies that allow multinational corporations to exploit tax loopholes, shift profits abroad, and avoid paying their fair share of taxes. It further criticized international lenders for imposing austerity measures that “cut subsidies, freeze public hiring, and privatize essential services in the name of efficiency,” arguing that such policies have worsened poverty and inequality.

Domestically, the Alliance challenged the Kenyan government to move beyond “managing poverty” and instead focus on dismantling systemic inequality through progressive taxation, social protection, and investments that empower communities.

FIA Kenya outlined five key proposals to confront inequality globally and locally:

1. A comprehensive public debt audit and the creation of an African debt negotiation platform to ensure countries prioritize citizens over creditors.

2. Progressive taxation targeting wealth and luxury goods.

3. Adoption of a UN global tax convention to ensure corporations pay taxes where they operate.

4. Expansion and prioritization of public services.

5. Citizen participation in budget and debt decision-making to strengthen democratic accountability.

“The inequality crisis is a result of policy choices — and those choices can be reversed,” FIA Kenya said. “What is needed now is political will, courage, and global solidarity.”

The Alliance called on the G20 to move beyond rhetoric and embrace transformative reforms that center human dignity, social justice, and economic fairness.