A group of UN human rights experts on Tuesday urged action to combat inequality and discrimination in society across the globe.

The statement comes on the thirty-second anniversary of the Declaration on the Right to Development, reaffirming the UN’s stance that it is critical for nations across the world to address issues of inequality, discrimination and marginalization of minority groups. The experts stated that rising inequality is “one of the defining challenges confronting the world today.” According to the statement, despite the UN’s efforts over the past 30 years, inequality has continued to rise throughout the world. This inequality is a major “obstacle to the realisation [sic] of the right to development, [and] also remains among the major threats to peace, security, and human rights worldwide.”

The statement specifically cites issues of inequality and discrimination in economics, gender relations and government. According to the research of the UN, “income inequality in [Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development] countries is at its highest level for 50 years,” and that such inequality has prevented a large percentage of the world population from escaping extreme poverty. Likewise, systemic discrimination “on the basis of sex, gender, age, disability, race, ethnicity, religion, and legal, economic or other status” has led to many groups “remain[ing] marginalised [sic] and entirely excluded from development.” Finally, the statement calls for action by the members of the UN, stating that combating inequality and discrimination is a “legally binding obligation” on the members of the body, and that overcoming them is the “core of international human right [sic] law.”