Today’s pandemic-induced humanitarian and economic crisis represents an unprecedented opportunity to go beyond emergency responses and address our economies’ structural flaws. Many governments’ stimulus and recovery packages are already shaping the future. But leaders should also recognise this rare chance to build a more inclusive and sustainable world, possible only if we end poverty in all its forms. The launch of the Global Multidimensional Poverty Index 2020 can serve as a catalyst. Recently released by the United Nations Development Programme and the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative, the index shows that 65 of the 75 countries studied had reduced their poverty levels significantly within the past decade. Moreover, the country that reduced poverty the fastest, Sierra Leone, did so despite the 2014 Ebola epidemic . The risk is that these gains could be reversed. The Covid-19 crisis requires the commitment of global and national leaders not only to preserve hard-won progress, but also turn a corner in the global effort to end poverty. This will not be easy, as the pandemic is exacerbating inequalities. It is a “myth that we are all in the same boat”, observed UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres last month. “While we are all floating on the same sea, it’s clear that some are in super yachts while others are clinging to the drifting debris.” It is essential that we extend a hand to the poor, with Covid-19 adding to an already crushing burden. Using data going back to 2010, the Global Multidimensional Poverty Index provides a comprehensive picture of how people experience disadvantages, measuring deprivations in health care, education and living standards across 10 indicators. This data can help us mitigate the pandemic’s burden on the 1.3 billion people in multidimensional poverty, while preventing many others from succumbing. National governments should consider creating their own country-specific multidimensional poverty indices to guide their anti-poverty strategies. Dozens of countries already have. Of the 47 countries to submit voluntary national reviews at the UN’s High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development last month, 21 mention multidimensional poverty. We hope they can wield this powerful tool during the pandemic. By emphasising support for the most vulnerable, all countries will be in a stronger position to “build back better” after the pandemic. Tackling multidimensional poverty is good for society and peace. But, to turn a corner on poverty, commitments at the highest levels are essential. During my [Santos’] tenure as president of Colombia, we complemented the peace process with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) with a national multidimensional poverty index that focused not just on income but also on the additional social deprivations. Our index, supported by robust data, served as the basis for programmes and policies that reduced multidimensional poverty from 30.4 per cent to 19.6 per cent within eight years. Countries without an official permanent multidimensional poverty indicator could explore the global index to strengthen their efforts. Either way, all governments must place human dignity and capabilities at the centre of their recovery strategies. National governments cannot do this alone, of course. The magnitude of the challenge demands collective action from businesses, non-governmental and civil-society organisations, and philanthropists. Now is the time to back words with action. Leaders must demonstrate grit, determination and endurance, and combine boldness with pragmatism. Mobilising all sectors of society around ending poverty will also benefit the broader economy. In the wake of World War II, Eleanor Roosevelt noted: “We cannot tell from day to day what may come. This is no ordinary time. No time for weighing anything, except what we can best do for the country as a whole”. In these challenging times, humanity has an opportunity to act with vision and determination to end poverty everywhere. At the start of this pandemic, Nobel laureate economist Amartya Sen reminded us of good and bad examples of leadership in crisis. He pointed out that during the second world war, Britain’s rationing system led to a more equal food distribution, which underpinned a sharp increase in life expectancy – 6.5 years for men and seven years for women. Forward-looking, practical, equitable policies enacted during duress do work. Let us hope that today’s leaders recognise the opportunity and adopt the multidimensional metrics needed to seize it. Juan Manuel Santos, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, is a former president of Colombia (2010-18) and a visiting professor at the Department of International Development, University of Oxford. Sabina Alkire is director of the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative, University of Oxford. Copyright: Project Syndicate