What are obstacles to tackling the causes?

Extremely poor states

J. Sachs describes  that the poorest countries (per capita income) can not even achieve the bottom level of the welfare-ladder by themselves. They need aid from outside. This has several reasons beyond the issue of corruption and failed government. This also depends on demography, geography and cultural restrictions.

Failed States

There is a ranking list of the failed states all over the world. Most are in Africa. Besides corruption this can be caused by a missing monopole of power (as in Libya, Afghanistan, Somalia), social inability, (deficits in rules of ) insufficient laws and their enforcement. Furthermore lack of involvement of the public.

Corruption and organized crime

This issue is concerning industrial and underdeveloped countries alike. It has to be noticed that countries with raw materials like Africa, e.g. oil or diamonds, are especially at risk. If the income from national natural resources ends up in the hands of cleptocrats, the country does not benefit from the profits of these financial sources. This is undermining the development of infrastructure, education- and health-systems. ‚Transparency International‘ annually publishes a ranking list of all countries in the area of corruption.

There is a thin line between corruption an organized crime. When chief politicians, their family and followers park billions of Dollars in secret bank accounts in foreign countries this is certainly a criminal act. The panama papers have revealed some names. 

Politics, power and elites (system)

In oder to change the world man-made “systems” cannot be disregarded. Here we find many inhibiting factors, which can be considered as part of the human factor (root cause). Every social system is man-made. The majority of people are seducible, believe in populistic promises, scaremongering and enemy-images – which are often generated in the background by the establishment and elites, with little concern for the people and their needs.

Distrust

People rather distrust rescuers from above or from outside. Too often rescuers and leaders became corrupted by the power of their position. We can observe this with Erdogan in Turkey. Positive nominated examples, like George Washington, or some Roman dictators, are rare. It does not really help to change the figure on top without a basic change of awareness within the population. (Human factor 1)

Even philanthropists who want to contribute to society often are met with distrust of the public.

Other obstacles to world-change

There is the issue of justice and equality. The degree of inequality differs from country to country. The importance which is given to this issue depends on the cultural systems.  

In industrialized countries economic growth and globalization is raising questions about the benefits of this development. But this critical questioning does not exist in countries which are still trying to catch up.