💰 A new billionaire has emerged every 26 hours since the pandemic began.

📈 According to @Oxfam, the world's richest people including @ElonMusk and @JeffBezos have seen their fortunes soar.

🌎 So what has COVID-19 meant for inequality?

⭕️ Here are 4 facts you need to know. 🧵
1️⃣ The rich got richer...

⭕️ The 10 wealthiest men earned $1.3bn a day during the pandemic.

They own more than the world's poorest 3.1bn people combined.

💰 The increase in @JeffBezos’ fortune alone could pay for everyone on earth to be safely vaccinated, says @Oxfam.
2️⃣ The poor became poorer...

🏚More than 160m people have been pushed into poverty. Inequality between nations is set to rise for the first time in a generation.

⭕️Yet wealthy countries are recovering faster from COVID-19 and output could return to pre-pandemic levels by 2023.
3️⃣ Poverty continues to kill…

⭕️ Inequality is contributing to the death of at least 21,300 people each day.

📊 That’s one person every four seconds.

🌽 Many are dying because of hunger. Others are lacking vital access to healthcare.

news.trust.org/item/202201162…
4️⃣ And COVID-19 remains deadly...

🌎 People in developing countries are twice as likely to die from being infected.

📈 More than 75% in wealthy countries have been vaccinated.

💉 But only about 7% of people in low-income countries have received a vaccine dose.
⭕️ Health experts say Omicron's appearance highlights the need to share vaccines more fairly.

⚡️ Here's what it teaches us about vaccine equity. 👇

twitter.com/i/events/14653…
⭕️ Read more about how the super rich got even richer during the pandemic, as millions were pushed into poverty 👇

news.trust.org/item/202201162…

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More from @TRF_Stories

Jan 18,
📈 The #NFT market has exploded over the past year.

💰 Sales soared past $24.9 billion in 2021, according to market tracker @DappRadar.

⚠️ But more artists are sounding the alarm over thieves stealing their digital work.

⭕️ How big is the industry's fraud problem? 🧵 ImageImage
1️⃣ What are NFTs?

🖥 NFTs represent a digital item like an image or video.

⚡️ They're usually bought with #crypto and transactions are recorded on a blockchain.

📱 On some marketplaces, anyone can create and sell NFTs, without showing proof of ownership of the original image. Image
2️⃣ Who is embracing them?

✨ More celebrities are joining the craze like rapper @SnoopDogg who unveiled his first collection in 2021.

🦧 TV host @jimmyfallon bought @BoredApeYC NFTs while actress @ReeseW voiced her support for more women in NFT spaces.
Read 11 tweets
Dec 22, 2021
🤯 Did you know the global metaverse market could hit nearly $42 billion globally by 2026?

🌎 From tech giants to pop stars and entire cities, more are racing to embrace these virtual worlds.

Here are 5 major players emerging in the metaverse. 🧵 ImageImageImage
🏗 The builders

Firms like @Meta and @Microsoft are doing the groundwork to build the metaverse and develop the tech underpinning it.

🎮 They’re joined by video game platform @Roblox which said it aims to help users create their own vast virtual places. news.trust.org/item/202112211… ImageImage
👗 The designers

👟 @Nike bought virtual sneaker company RTFKT and built a new digital world "NIKELAND".

@BALENCIAGA teamed up with #Fortnite to bring the brand’s clothing and 'fit sets' into the game.

@VANS_66 has even created a virtual skateboarding playground for fans. 🛹 ImageImageImage
Read 8 tweets
Dec 7, 2021
🇺🇸 In the U.S., a new war is emerging in classrooms.

🚫 Texas recently banned teaching critical race theory, an academic concept examining how race and racism has shaped society in America.

But it’s not the only state outlawing CRT. Here's what's happening across the nation. 🧵
🔴 Texas

💬 @GovAbbott's Senate Bill 3 came into effect last week. The measure says teachers can't discuss how one race is "inherently superior" or that someone is responsible for past actions of their race.

Students should also not feel "distress on account of... race or sex.”
🔴 Arizona

🚫 In June, a similar law was signed by governor @DougDucey banning teachers from “instruction that presents any form of blame or judgment on the basis of race, ethnicity, or sex.”

Schools that violate HB 2898 face a fine of up to $5,000. news.trust.org/item/202110011…
Read 9 tweets
Dec 6, 2021
♀️ How much does it cost to 'become a virgin' in Egypt?

🇪🇬 For some women, surgery to repair torn hymens can cost thousands.

⭕️ That's why more brides are turning to cheaper ways to 'prove' virginity and avoid being shamed - or even killed.

But this can also lead to tragedy.🧵
♀️ Hymens can be damaged through sports or car accidents.

🇪🇬 But in some conservative societies, an 'intact' hymen is still seen as confirming virginity.

♀️ For women getting married in rural Egypt, 'proving’ they haven't had sex can be the difference between life and death.
🇪🇬A torn hymen can lead to shaming by relatives or future in-laws.

♀️ In worst cases, it can motivate so-called ‘honour killings’.

⭕️ A hymenoplasty is often seen as the best procedure - but access is difficult and healthcare services are limited.
news.trust.org/item/202112052…
Read 9 tweets
Nov 29, 2021
🚨 The #OmicronVariant could spread COVID-19 faster than ever.

🗣️ Scientists have linked it to vaccine inequity, with Africa being the least immunised continent partly due to vaccine hoarding by rich nations.

Will Omicron convince them to change? We answer the key questions. 🧵
🤔 Who now needs vaccines the most?

💰 While wealthy countries are rolling out third vaccines, less than 6% of people in low-income nations have had even one dose.

💉 An estimated 11 billion doses are needed to give everyone in the world two jabs.

news.trust.org/item/202109211…
⭕️ How many people in the UK have had at least one shot?
Read 10 tweets
Oct 13, 2021
🪙 10 years ago, Afghan entrepreneur @RoyaMahboob started paying her all-female staff in #bitcoin.

🇦🇫 It helped some of them to leave the country when the Taliban took power.

But she isn’t alone. Here's why Afghans are embracing #crypto. 👇
news.trust.org/item/202110102…
1⃣ Failing banking system

🔴 In a country where most people don’t have bank accounts, many turned to #cryptocurrency to send and receive cash safely.

💱 It was also a way for women to gain financial independence.
2⃣ Currency dive

🏦 Crypto is becoming increasingly popular for those in conflict zones or in nations with weak governance, according to tech experts.

🇻🇪 In Venezuela, people have bought essentials with #dogecoin after the nation's currency went into freefall.
Read 7 tweets

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