Providing property land rights to the world’s poor could unlock $$9.3 trillion in assets, according to Peruvian economist Hernando de Soto. Approximately 5.3 billion people are believed to lack such rights, which provide the foundation for borrowing money and launching businesses. De Soto also links the absence of property rights to events as diverse as the emergence of religious extremism in the Middle East, protests in China, conflicts over “blood diamonds” and the start of the Arab Spring.
Providing property land rights to the world’s poor could unlock $9.3tn in assets, according to Peruvian economist Hernando de Soto. Approximately 5.3 billion people are believed to lack such rights, which provide the foundation for borrowing money and launching businesses. De Soto also links the absence of property rights to events as diverse as the emergence of religious extremism in the Middle East, protests in China, conflicts over “blood diamonds” and the start of the Arab Spring.