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The Economic Cost of Violence Containment

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The Economic Cost of Violence Containment

A Comprehensive Assessment of the Global Cost of Violence

Institute for Economics and Peace,

5 min read
5 take-aways
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What's inside?

The traditional view is that military spending promotes economic growth. But another side to the story tilts the scales toward peace.

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Editorial Rating

9

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Recommendation

Antiviolence measures, including the huge amounts countries allocate to military use and crime prevention, cost about $9.46 trillion worldwide in 2012, according to this review from the Institute for Economics and Peace. That’s $1,300 for every human being on the planet. While this revealing report allows that some of this spending is necessary, it also tallies the opportunity costs of diverting investment from business, health care and education. getAbstract recommends this important article on a vastly underresearched topic – the economic benefits of peace – to those interested in the monetary impact of violence on the global economy.

Summary

Nearly 11% of the world’s economic output in 2012 went toward containing violence, which consists of expenditures for war, violent crime, incarceration, terrorism, and so on, and their associated negative effects on growth and productivity. Analysis suggests that every $1 saved on violence prevention adds $2 to economic activity. So while the 2012 direct and indirect costs of violence prevention totaled $4.73 trillion, an additional $4.73 trillion represents forgone opportunity costs, the unrealized benefits that would flow from more productive investment in areas such...

About the Author

The Institute for Economics and Peace is a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank that is dedicated to developing metrics to analyze peace and to quantify its economic value.


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