UN Eyes Tax On Football Tickets For Humanitarian Aid

A UN study of new sources of financing for its multi-billion-dollar aid operations is "recommending a voluntary tax on football matches or concerts as one option to raise funds," according to the AFP. The report also recommended "tapping into Islamic social finance and mandatory alms-giving (zakat) as well as improving the transparency of relief operations to cut costs." More wars and natural disasters over the past decade have sent the price tag for global UN aid efforts skyrocketing, from $2B in '00 to $24.5B in '15, "according to the nine experts who drafted the report." The new tax is modeled after Unitaid, a non-governmental organization that persuaded 10 countries to "impose a small tax on airline tickets to generate funds to combat malaria and AIDS. European Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva said that "a micro-levy on a massive volume is possible" on an array of transactions such as fuel, concerts, movies or sporting events (AFP, 1/17).