Context:
Recently, Oxfam International released a report titled “Takers, Not Makers” which revealed that the UK extracted staggering wealth from India during colonial rule.
Key Highlights of the Report
- According to the Report, USD 64.82 trillion was drained from India to the UK between 1765-1900.
- Based on the average income distribution over this period, USD 17.4 trillion could have gone to the richest 1% in the UK and USD 33.8 trillion to the richest 10%.
- Beyond the richest which appropriated 52% of the total extracted wealth, the main beneficiaries of colonialism were the newly emergent middle class, which received 32% of the income.
- The Report further highlights that in 1750, the Indian subcontinent accounted for approximately 25% of global industrial output. However, by 1900 this figure had declined massively to a mere 2%.
- The report highlighted modern parallels, stating that wages in the Global South are 87–95% lower than for equivalent work in the Global North for work of equal skill.
Calculation methodology
- The authors calculated the drain from India to the UK from 1765 to 1900 cumulated to 1947 in dollar terms is $1.925 trillion. When adjusted and cumulated up to 2020, this figure reaches $64.82 trillion.
About Oxfam
- It was formed in 1995 by a group of independent non-governmental organizations.
- The name “Oxfam” comes from the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief, founded in Britain in 1942.
- It is a confederation of 21 independent charitable organizations working together with partners and local communities in more than 90 countries.
- The aim of the organization is to share knowledge and resources and combine their efforts in the fight against poverty and injustice.
- The Oxfam International Secretariat is based in Nairobi, Kenya.