What is a solidarity levy?

A solidarity levy is a tax or fee, coordinated internationally but collected nationally, from which revenue is allocated towards a global public good. It differs from regular domestic taxes, which typically serve local budgets, and from global taxes, which are internationally governed.

Solidarity levies are:

Collected nationally
Coordinated internationally
Earmarked for shared international goals

While existing solidarity levies have demonstrated the feasibility of such initiatives, they remain limited in scale and participation. The Global Solidarity Levies Taskforce calls for greater international collaboration to establish more substantial and widely supported global solidarity levies.

Existing Solidarity Mechanisms

UNITAID Airline Ticket Levy

Launched by France in 2006
A solidarity levy on airline tickets, with part of the revenue going to UNITAID, a global health initiative whiched funds HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis programs.
The coalition of participating countries expanded to 10 as of 2016: Cameroon, Chile, Republic of Congo, France, Guinea, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritius, Niger and South Korea.
Certain countries, such as Brazil and Norway, have adopted special mechanisms to make budgetary contributions.
The tax has raised over $2 billion since its inception, providing substantial financing for health programs in developing countries.

UNITLIFE Extractives Levy

Established in 2015 by the Republic of Congo, Niger, Mali, and Guinea.
A small levy on revenues from oil, gas, gold, and other mining activities.
The revenue from these extractives levies are intended to fund UNITLIFE, a UN-backed initiative aimed at fighting malnutrition and spuring growth in sub-Saharan Africa.

Fiji’s Environment & Climate Adaptation Levy

A tax introduced in alignment to Fiji’s recognition of the importance of safeguarding the environment and the impact the economy has had on climate change.
Between its inception and April 2019, ECAL collected approximately FJ$270.2 million, with FJ$255.9 million allocated to finance 102 projects addressing climate change and environmental conservation.

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