Author: Deepak Joshi Pokhrel
Currently, we live in a world that has witnessed significant progress in various fields, including commerce, medicine, aviation, and transportation. Likewise, we live in a society where life is much easier due to the advent of technology, facilitated by digitalization. Additionally, our societies shared aspirations and common goals, such as the eradication and the achievement of equality. Despite this progress, there remains a complex wave of social issues that shatter the very foundation of society as a whole. It is therefore the need of the time to shed light on these issues and assess how they could affect our society. For instance, among multiple issues that eclipse our progress, one of the most pressing issues is social inequality.
Social inequality results from a society organized by hierarchies of class, race, and gender that broker access to resources and rights in ways that make their distribution unequal. It is a situation whereby a specific group of people lacks access to financial and other opportunities as a result of their gender, caste, race, religion, color, and other characteristics. It is a global challenge marked by disparities in income, wealth, access to resources and opportunity, fueling social unrest and undermining trust in democratic institutions, and can destabilize social cohesion and harmony. Social inequality results when certain sections of the population are denied access to basic services on the account of their caste, sex, color, creed, and geography, while some sections of the population can access these opportunities and basic services. This social issue undermines feelings of fulfilment and self-worth, jeopardizes long-term social and economic progress.
Social inequality is prevalent everywhere- be it Asia, Africa, America, or Europe- though the gravity of social inequalities varies from place to place. The social inequalities are high in African and Asian countries, as the majority of their population is illiterate. This amplifies the social inequalities to a large extent. In 2023, the adult literacy rate in sub-Saharan Africa was approximately 68.2%, while the overall adult literacy rate in Africa was around 67.97%. In Asia, the average adult literacy rate in 2024 was 86.3%. The lack of education hinders their understanding of their rights and entitlements guaranteed by their resection constitution. When citizens are not aware of their rights and entitlements, they are not bothered about the basic services provided by the government.
There are two ways to measure social inequalities: inequalities of conditions and inequalities of opportunities. Inequalities of conditions refer to unequal distribution of income, wealth, and material goods. Housing, for example, is the inequalities of conditions with the homeless and those living in housing projects sitting at the bottom of the hierarchy, while those living in multi-million dollar mansions sit at the top. Inequality of opportunities refers to the unequal distribution of life chances across all individuals. This is reflected in measures such as the level of education, health status, and treatment by the criminal justice system.
Social inequalities persist in many African and Asian countries due to a combination of historical, economic, and political factors. This includes the legacies of colonialism, discriminatory practices economic policies that favor certain groups over others. Unemployment, inadequate education, skills, and access to basic services also perpetuate social inequalities
In many African and Asian countries, the society is patriarchal, undermining the role and contribution of women in the decision-making process. The women do not have control over the resources. The women are viewed as subordinate citizens lacking access to the decision-making process that matters to them. The stereotype thinking and cultural acceptance that women are subservient to men has hindered the overall development of women, fueling social inequalities.
Discrimination at the individual, community, and institutional levels is a major part of the process of reproducing inequalities of class, race, gender, and sexuality. For example, women are systematically paid less than men for doing the same work, and sociologists have conclusively demonstrated that racism is built into the very foundation of our society and is present in all our social institutions.
Recommendations:
Social inequality is a complex wave of social issues that calls for a multipronged approach. Thus cosmetic endeavor is not the permanent solution. Rather, it calls requires a blend of social innovation, policy reform, and community empowerment.
First, shift the economic power to local communities by supporting cooperative business, community land trust, and local procurement. Likewise, create a digital platform to ensure equal access to shared resources. The initiation of incubators specifically for under-represented communities, like LGBTQ,+ to create startups that solve social problems. In addition, develop free and culturally relevant ed-tech in local languages targeting underprivileged groups. Use a mobile app like M-Pesa (common in Kenya), Aavaz, or change X UNICEF’s U-report, etc, and SMS to involve people in slums or rural areas, allowing them to decide how to allocate portions of the public budget.
It is equally important to create tools that measure social return on gender-equal investment and tie incentives to outcomes. There is also a need to connect intergenerational people by connecting older citizens with underprivileged youth for mentorship, skills sharing, and career support. Similarly, redesign urban living to be more inclusive through co-housing, community gardens, and public maker spaces.
On the other hand, the social inequalities can be reduced by engaging men in the social transformation process. Likewise, we can also build an environment to address inequality and drive meaningful change. Measures may include policy-making and recognizing gender inequality in media, the private sector, and other non-governmental sectors.
Girl education is one of the key solutions to address social inequalities. Every government across the globe must place high emphasis on girls’ education and introduce programs aimed at girls’ empowerment. An empowered girl can interface government, demanding accountability and transparency on issues that matter to them.
The other measures include the formulation and execution of plans in an effective manner. The social safety net is one such program. Likewise, the implementation of fair taxation and labor market policies ensures equal opportunities and wages for both men and women.
At the individual level, there is a need to educate individuals about social inequality and its consequences. Likewise, there is also a dire need to advocate for change, encouraging individuals to participate in advocacy efforts and support organizations working to reduce social inequality. Finally, we should develop the culture of reporting discriminatory practices and acts and ensure that every individual has access to legal remedies.
References:
- https://www.developmentaid.org/news-stream/post/173559/social-issues-that-affect-modern-society
- https://www.google.com/search?q=the+average+literacy+rate+of+asai+and+africa+in+2024&oq=the+average+literacy+rate+of+asai+and+africa+in+2024&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIKCAEQABiABBiiBDIHCAIQABjvBTIHCAMQABjvBTIHCAQQABjvBTIHCAUQABjvBdIBCTEzNzM5ajBqN6gCCLACAfEFshWrV-FhGnvxBbIVq1fhYRp7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
- https://www.exeter.ac.uk/students/grandchallenges/challenges2025/socialinequality/
- https://files.commons.gc.cuny.edu/wp-content/blogs.dir/17873/files/2021/07/Wk-1-Social-Inequality.pdf
