Overview
New Economies for Eradicating Poverty (NEEP) is an initiative led by the former UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Olivier De Schutter, to advance alternative development pathways that can end poverty and inequalities on a liveable planet. Launched in 2025, the initiative connects and mobilises those working on new ways to end poverty that go beyond GDP growth and the interests of a few, challenging the conventional wisdom that economic growth is the primary route to ending poverty.
Mission and focus areas
NEEP aims to connect and mobilise all those working on new ways to end poverty that go beyond profit, beyond the short term and beyond the interests of the few. The initiative focuses on dispelling the myth that economic growth is the answer to ending poverty, arguing that the pursuit of endless GDP growth exhausts the planet and its people while failing to significantly change the number of people living in poverty. It advocates for a shift toward fulfilling human rights and prioritizing human well-being over growth.
Structure and governance
NEEP is an initiative led by Olivier De Schutter, who was appointed UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights by the UN Human Rights Council. The website and initiative are not managed by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. It operates as a broad coalition involving United Nations agencies, governments, civil society, academics, and trade unions.
Programs and offerings
A central pillar of the initiative is the Roadmap for Eradicating Poverty Beyond Growth, a catalogue of concrete policy options presented to the UN in 2026. NEEP also hosts news, podcasts, and events such as international policy conferences and side events at the UN Human Rights Council and European Parliament. It provides resources such as policy profiles and the book “The Poverty of Growth” to provide a diagnosis of global poverty and effective eradication strategies.
