Positive Impacts on Women’s Health in India

Positive Impact on Women’s Health in India
Individuals and other stakeholders have the determination to bring positive impacts to women’s health in India. Reema Kumari is an aspiring singer who is making an impact on women’s health and hygiene in India. In Indian culture, menstruation is often a taboo subject; people believe that it is unholy and unclean. Hence, the stigma of menstrual health still occurs, even when menstrual health is a normal and healthy part of a women’s life.

Kumari’s devotion to women’s health and hygiene began at the age of 17. She mentored and educated other young women on social issues including the importance of literacy and self-care. She became involved with GARIMA events where she voiced concerns and demanded better methods of sanitation for girls and women. For Kumari, self-care meant having the dignity to attend personal hygiene needs with care and privacy.

Promises and Progress

One of Kumari’s main goals is having access to incinerators for proper disposal of menstrual absorbents. The new Gram Pradhan or the village leader or head of the village heard about Kumari’s concerns and delivered. In addition, the village now has several fully operating incinerators. The work continues as they work to build inside toilets and bathrooms. Moreover, the safety of having an inside toilet adds to the safety and to the dignity of women’s health care. To move forward with construction, funds will go towards the upcoming round of allocations.

The Facts

The Indian Census of 2011 reported that 89 percent of women live without toilets. Also, only 12 percent can afford sanitary products. Unfortunately, over 355 million people struggle with monthly menstrual cycles. Lack of proper sanitation measures presents public health issues as well as safety issues. Meanwhile, limited indoor facilities force women and girls to make unsafe decisions like using facilities at nighttime which exposes them to the risk of suffering attack.

The Good News

SWaCH is a self-governing organization providing waste-management services including producing and selling yellow plastic bags with strings. These bags offer protection to waste-pickers and a sense of privacy for girls and women. Other NGO grassroots efforts include advocacy on behalf of creating and providing environmentally safe sanitary products. Shockingly, around 58 million sanitary products end up in landfills or sewage systems.

Per the National Family Health Survey, the 2015-2016 cycle estimated that only 36 percent used pads. Old rags and cloths are typical substitutes for pads. As a result, the effects of poor hygiene can lead to the dangers of contracting cervical cancer, reproductive tract infection, hepatitis B and so forth. Mental health issues can manifest in developing low self-esteem and depression. The lack of provisions and the inability to properly care for herself at a sensitive time each month affects how a young woman sees herself and her worth.

Education and Employment

Education for young girls can wain under the pressures of having poor menstrual provisions in place. A report titled Spot On by the NGO Dasra declared that school-aged girls missed multiple days of schools or dropped out completely for lack of facilities and products. Fortunately, in Tamil Nadu, UNICEF created affordable incinerators at local schools. The specialized firewood allows for properly discarding of sanitary products. Bathrooms stack with sanitary products as well.

At Jatan Sansthan, an organization on the southern region of India mobilizes and encourages women and men in the efforts to destigmatize any long-held beliefs about menstruation. Additionally, the organization encourages women to produce affordable and re-useable sanitary products. At Sukhibhava, a local social enterprise continues to educate women on basic business economic principles in slum villages. Women entrepreneurs buy and sell to other entrepreneurs. The business to business endeavor has served a population of 80,000. Women are gaining confidence from the skills they learn and the difference they make in other women’s lives. The organization has educated over 12,000 women to date. The move forward lands India at 130 out of 155 countries on the Gender Inequality Index.

Progress continues today as May 28th is Menstrual Hygiene Day and people celebrate it globally. Reema Kumari and others continue to make positive impacts on women’s health and hygiene in India by promoting and protecting the dignity of adolescent girls and women. The progress has been slow, but nonetheless, India has proven that it can and will continue to close the gap.

–  Michelle White
Photo: Flickr

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3 Ways Technology Helps Disaster Response in the Philippines

Disaster Response in the PhilippinesAnnually, about 10 tropical storms develop in the Philippines, with averages of eight to nine reaching land. These numbers do not include other disasters the country faces such as typhoons, earthquakes, monsoons and so on. Despite being one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world, efficient communication with technology in the Philippines allows social media, Google Person Finder and satellites, to provide the best relief efforts. Keep reading to learn more about the top three ways technology helps disaster response in the Philippines.

3 Ways Technology Helps Disaster Response in the Philippines 

  1. Social Media: Social media is indeed a connecting source and finds its strength in aiding the response to disasters with quickly spreading information that is, in turn, easily accessed. Popular media sites such as Facebook, WhatsApp and Twitter updated by disaster area residents offer real-time updates about the current on-ground situation.

    Thanks to organizations such as the Standby Task Force, established in 2012 by Andrej Verity, these social media updates become pillars for relief and rescue. For example, in its use for supertyphoon Haiyan in 2013. These updates transform traditional on-ground humanitarian efforts into digital humanitarian efforts with online volunteers.

    Through a streamlined process, volunteers tagged Haiyan-related social media posts. Then, sifting through them for relevancy, otherwise known as digital micro-tasking. Finally, submitting them to the U.N.’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs to compile a crisis map. With the widespread information thanks to social media, digital humanitarians take a hands-on approach to affecting the on the ground situation. Given that the combined concentration of thousands of volunteers provide time efficiency, a necessity when it comes to saving lives quicker.

  2. Communication Technology: Other communication technology such as Google Person Finder assists in finding missing persons in the Philippines. For instance, in 2012, monsoon floods from Typhoon Saola caused increased landslides and flash floods; flooding at least 50 percent of the country and creating severe rescue conditions with strong currents. There were at least 900,000 affected families and 11 individuals missing.

    For those looking for the missing or stranded, Google’s free Person Finder tool comes in extremely handy as all one needs to do is input the individual’s name. At the same time, Google cross-references entries from other websites with information about missing persons to ping and locate leads.

  3. Satellite Technology: After Haiyan, most of the traditional methods of mobile communication infrastructure diminished, thus requiring the need for something more reliable, such as satellites. Learning from the Haiyan damage, the nation’s most high-risk disaster areas now have mobile satellite equipment for easy deployment. This new tech brought forth by Inmarsat and the United Kingdom Space Agency, provides a reliable and sustainable communication method for the worst disaster days expected.

    Another example is the Tacloban Health Cluster which utilizes satellites to canvas and coordinates public health response in the worst disaster-stricken areas, allowing better tracking of diseases and medical conditions throughout disaster times in hospitals and clinics. This data collection does not only help respond in real-time. Additionally, it is beneficial for understanding health trends after a storm to allow for a more proactive approach following the next impending storm the islands are known to face.

– Elizabeth Yusuff
Photo: Flickr

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Indoor Air Pollution in Rural Cambodia

Indoor Air Pollution in Rural CambodiaCambodia has seen a rapid decrease in poverty within the last decade. More than 45 percent of the population was impoverished in 2007 when compared to 13.5 percent in 2014. It has also sustained one of the fastest economic growth rates in the world at an average of 8 percent between 1998 and 2018. However, just because the majority of the country has achieved middle-income status does not mean that the country is without its issues. Indoor air pollution in Cambodia is a growing problem.

Rural vs. Urban Areas

Many of those who have only recently overcome poverty have just barely done so. A large part of Cambodia’s population still lives on a very small amount of money per day and is at risk of slipping back into poverty. This risk is much higher in rural provinces. Eighty percent of Cambodia’s population lives in rural areas that had a poverty level of 20.8 percent in 2012. That is three times higher than the poverty rate in urban areas.

Rural Cambodians are subject as such to the hardships that many of the world’s rural poor must face. These include dilapidated electrical and internet infrastructure as well as limited access to healthcare and sanitation resources. Indoor air pollution in Cambodia is one such aspect of health that affects the rural poor disproportionately.

Indoor Air Pollution

The typical symptoms of being regularly exposed to indoor air pollution include nasal congestion, nose bleeds, difficulty breathing, a sore throat and asthma. These symptoms seem similar to a common cold, but long-term effects can include more serious respiratory diseases like respiratory disease and cancer.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution is the greatest environmental health risk in the Western Pacific Region. In 2012, air pollution caused at least 3.2 million deaths. Indoor air pollution accounted for about 1.62 million of these deaths. Indoor air pollution is usually caused by smoking tobacco inside and by cooking with wood, coal or dung without proper indoor ventilation. Many people who are poor in rural areas with limited access to gas or electricity use these methods to cook. In rural Cambodia, the prevalence of these cooking methods reached 95 percent of households by 2013.

Biogas Stoves

The main solution to reducing indoor air pollution is to introduce efficient stoves that use clean fuel. One source of clean stove fuel would simply be electricity. However, that is an issue for rural Cambodians since the electrical infrastructure is sparse in rural areas. A better, more applicable solution would be to introduce biogas stoves with proper ventilation.

One million Cambodian households have the proper livestock to supply themselves with biogas fuel. The fuel would need to be extracted by using a biodigester that anaerobically takes methane from natural resources such as dung stored underground and siphons it to the stove. The methane would, of course, need proper ventilation to ensure the air in the household did not become poisonous just like a natural gas stove. Cambodia’s Natural Biodigester Programme (NBP) is working to distribute biodigesters to its rural population in hopes of combatting indoor air pollution. As of 2016, the state-led program has installed about 23,000 biodigesters.

The ACE 1 Stove

Using solid biomass for cooking causes much of indoor air pollution. Another alternative to solid biomass would be to use cleaner biomass stovetops that produce negligible emissions indoors. African Clean Energy (ACE) has launched the ACE 1 stove. This stove uses biomass as fuel but burns nearly all particles inside the chamber to leave barely any emissions. In addition, the stove comes with solar panels that provide LED lighting and outlet ports for mobile phones.

ACE has launched a program in northern Cambodia, the poorest Cambodian region, to try and implement the product. The ACE 1 is auctioned from a local vendor where the buyer pays a $25 downpayment. Afterward, the buyer continues to pay off the stove in small monthly increments of about $7.

Indoor air pollution in Cambodia is still rampant in rural parts despite the overall increase in income. The solutions are there, but in order to ensure economic growth that benefits everybody, Cambodia needs to focus on the implementation of these solutions in an ethical and sustainable way. This would lessen the health risks that the Cambodian poor face from simply living in their houses. It will also help facilitate more stable, lasting economic growth and development for the poor of the countryside.

– Graham Gordon
Photo: Flickr

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5 African Movies Addressing Poverty 

African Movies Addressing Poverty Under the deep turmoil of an economic crisis surrounded by political unrest and social change, Africa has a rich culture in film. Directors in African countries such as Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa are using the art of film-making to address real issues of poverty in the country. This further showcases the ability of movies to serve as a vehicle for social change. This article will highlight five African movies addressing poverty.

Considered the poorest continent on Earth, one in three people in Africa lives below the poverty line. In particular, children and women share the greatest burden of poverty. In the midst of the dire situation in Africa, the movie industry is attempting to shed light on the poverty crisis. Actors, actresses and directors alike are using film to touch the hearts of the viewers. Through these cinematic opportunities, they hope people will take action.

5 African Movies Addressing Poverty

  1. Knuckle City. Written and directed by Jahmil XT Qubeka, this oscar-nominated movie follows the story of Dude Nyakama. Nyakama is a struggling boxer who uses the sport to keep himself out of poverty. The movie challenges the cultural norms of masculinity and punishes misogynists for their actions. At its core, Knuckle City is a call to action. The film shows viewers the detrimental consequences of a poverty-stricken, corrupt misogynist and violent society.
  2. Hyenas. This film takes place in a Senegalese village where the elders of the community must sell their possessions to save themselves as poverty rises. However, a surprise visit from a former resident has the villagers hopeful that the visitor will donate. Alas, upon learning that the woman has other plans, the residents realize the price they must pay. The movie looks at the desperate actions people in need will take and the way human folly can lead those in poverty down the wrong path.
  3. The First Grader. Based on a true story, this movie emphasizes the importance of education. An 84-year-old Kenyan villager and veteran fights for his right to go to school after being denied the right as a child due to a lack of money. The movie is a triumphant testimony to the force of education. Further, it shows just how important it is for education to be affordable for all social classes.
  4. Neria. As Zimbabwe’s highest-grossing film, this movie analyzes the issues faced by a rural woman left in poverty. When Jesesi Mungoshi loses her husband, her farm and her livelihood, she is forced to find a way to survive in a time where women are considered inferior. Her journey is empowering. Ultimately, her defiance of cultural norms leads her on a path to independence.
  5. Stealing Africa. Companies have extracted more than $29 billion worth of copper from Zambia in the last 10 years. However, the country remains one of the poorest in the world. Stealing Africa exposes foreign corporations for the culprits they are. In the documentary, an investigation finds that all the money lost due to “dodgy tax practices” could amount to 10 times the international aid that Zambia currently receives. Essentially, if foreign corporations were to follow tax regulations, Zambia’s development would significantly improve.

The film industry in Africa is taking a creative twist on the war against extreme poverty. The writers and directors involved are creating stories that capture one’s attention and characters that steal your heart. These African movies addressing poverty are prompting viewers to take action.

– Shvetali Thatte
Photo: Pixabay

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9 Facts about Cholera in Burundi

Cholera in BurundiThe World Health Organization (WHO) has identified more than 1,000 cases of cholera in cities across the Republic of Burundi. Burundi is an East African country that has been plagued by violence, disease and poor sanitation for years. Most of the population lives in rural areas where drinking water is unsafe and sanitation practices are nearly non-existent. This has created the perfect storm for cholera to spread quickly across the country. It has led to six deaths from an otherwise treatable disease. Below are nine facts about the outbreak of cholera in the Republic of Burundi.

9 Facts about Cholera in Burundi

  1. Cholera is a gastrointestinal infection caused by bacteria. Generally, it is attributed to unsafe drinking
    water and often associated with raw or undercooked fish. It is transmitted from person to person through oral-fecal contamination due to improper sanitation and poor hygiene.
  2. This outbreak started in a time of political peril in Burundi. Rebel forces and the country’s army are fighting across rural areas, which is displacing people. Instability and lack of security make it difficult for people to find safety and sources of income. This has created a high level of poverty for Burundi’s people and exacerbated the poor water conditions.
  3. Most patients are displaced persons (IDPs) from rural Bujumbura. Fighting in Bujumbura became so violent that the government moved the capital to Gitega in February 2019. When the capital moved, many people were left without the support and resources of the government.
  4. Treatment usually takes several days per patient. Patients typically present symptoms related to dehydration. Dehydration occurs because of the excessive vomiting and diarrhea that comes with cholera. Patients are usually treated with an oral rehydration solution made up of a sugar and salt mixture in clean water. In extreme situations, patients may need intravenous fluids and antibiotics.
  5. Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has three treatment centers for cholera in Burundi where professionals are trained and supervised. The goal of these facilities is to provide free patient care and increase the local public health staff. These centers provide care when most of the hospitals are unable to respond to the needs of cholera patients. MSF has also set up a 50-person treatment center in Bujumbura.
  6. Sterilization is a very important part of reducing the spread of cholera, so the MSF staff uses a chlorine solution to disinfect the center. This reduces the chances of another outbreak or infecting the staff. This solution can also be used to disinfect the homes of families who have been infected.
  7. Disinfecting isn’t the only solution to preventing the spread of cholera because the problem is directly related to the distribution of water. Without proper containment of poor water sources, the disease will continue to spread. To ameliorate the risks of cholera related to unsafe drinking water, MSF installed two water distribution bladders in the most affected areas. These bladders supply 30,000 liters of potable water.
  8. UNICEF has been providing cholera kits to people in Burundi. There are four different kinds of kits to help with various aspects of need. UNICEF has also established two cholera treatment centers to control the spread of the disease.
  9. To avoid contamination, experts suggest drinking disinfected water and eating a balanced, thoroughly cooked diet. Organizations like WHO are emphasizing the importance of washing hands frequently with soap and water or an alcohol-based sanitizer to reduce the risk of transmission.

Cholera is an easily treatable and preventable disease that occurs in poverty-stricken areas with poor sanitation. Many organizations have reached out to add potable water sources and aid by training the people of Burundi to treat and prevent the disease themselves. With rebel fighting and insurgent forces crossing the country, the disease is projected to spread to further areas of rural poverty.

– Kaylee Seddio, PhD
Photo: Iwacu

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Child Abandonment in South Africa

Child Abandonment in South Africa
Someone finds a crying child in the desert, alone. Immediately, the blame goes to the mother because of the perception that she might be mad and stupid, too lazy to use birth control or too uncaring to put the child up for adoption. The reality, however, is that these women are merely scapegoats for the underlying problem. The number one cause of child abandonment in South Africa is poverty.

People desert over 3,500 unwanted babies every year. Child abandonment is an epidemic in South Africa with very little help from the government to create awareness about the growing crisis. Fortunately, there are relief organizations working to help save these innocent children.

3 Relief Organizations Tackling Child Abandonment in South Africa

  1. SOS Children’s Village: SOS Children’s Village is a global organization that works in accordance with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child to create a protective environment for every child. SOS has four key action areas that it emphasizes including awareness, prevention, reporting and responding. Through its efforts in South Africa, SOS Children’s Village has managed to open 11 facilities, support 5,356 children and youth and ensure that over 52 percent of the youth leave the program as self-reliant individuals. With continued donations, SOS Children’s Village can expand its already fruitful impact in South Africa.
  2. Door of Hope: As the foremost home in Johannesburg for abandoned babies, Door of Hope cares for children who do not have a place at home. The Door of Hope has a hole in the wall of its church property where people can place abandoned babies at any time during the day. In the past two decades, Door of Hope has received over 1,500 infants, and it found at least 12 percent of those in the wall hatch.
  3. Courage: Launched by the National Adoption Coalition of South Africa (NACSA), Courage is a child protection toolkit that helps child protection organizations develop strategies by guiding them through the various factors they must consider. Additionally, the program offers support for women experiencing a crisis pregnancy through open counseling, in the hopes that they will not flee without their child. Past work has found that the Courage program helped in the practical implementation of the South African Children’s Act. The success of Courage goes beyond the borders of South Africa, and as the organization enters its global stage, it is looking to empower teenagers and young adults to make wise choices so that they can avoid unwanted pregnancies.

Abandoned babies that people never find usually end up buried, flushed down drains or eaten by animals or rodents. These babies do not have a life the minute they enter the world. The organizations above are doing justice by attempting to save these babies, but they require more manpower to solve the issue of child abandonment in South Africa. To make a difference, consider contributing to one of the organizations above.

– Shvetali Thatte
Photo: Flickr

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Teaching Indonesia’s Impoverished Population to Fish 

Teaching Indonesia’s Impoverished Population to Fish “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” – Ancient Proverb. The Indonesian government is taking the above saying to heart. It is doing its best to teach the poor population how to provide for themselves rather than merely providing aid. The government has grouped poverty reduction programs in Indonesia into three clusters: Social assistance, community empowerment and microenterprise empowerment. Simply put, cluster one is similar to giving Indonesia’s impoverished population fish while cluster two is giving the population a fishing rod and teaching them to fish. Finally, cluster three is facilitating fishing by providing a boat.

The Three Clusters

  • Social Assistance – This cluster of poverty-reduction programs in Indonesia is focused on providing direct assistance to poor households. In the past, the government had taken measures to implement “a single ‘combo’ card-based cashless payment system” in order to promote financial inclusion. It also reallocated fuel subsidies to directly assist poor and vulnerable families. Furthermore, the non-cash food assistance program has transformed the delivery of nutrition-sensitive food assistance. This is the first step to reducing Indonesia’s impoverished population.
  • Community Empowerment – With a more macro focus when compared to social assistance, this cluster gives poor communities the social funds they need to improve basic social and economic services. The programs included in community empowerment fall under PNPM. PNPM is an umbrella policy that attempts to self-help community capacity by creating jobs and achieving a better standard of community welfare. Examples of PNPM programs include social activities, such as the activity of posyandu (a community-based vehicle to improve child development) and BKM, which provides free medical service. It also includes economic activities such as women entrepreneurs weaving traditional clothes and micro-credits for women entrepreneur groups. The PNPM programs have seen great success in recent years with the community participation level reaching 39 percent and per capita consumption increasing 9.1 percent.
  • Microenterprise Empowerment – This third cluster looks at providing access to credits for microenterprises without having them be “hindered by the requirement to provide collaterals.” Most of these enterprises are independent and “highly labor-intensive,” employing “low levels of skills and technology.” According to the SMERU Research Institute, microenterprises provide income and employment for significant portions of workers in rural and urban areas. Microenterprises comprise more than 50 percent of the nation’s GDP. Each unit microenterprise can absorb 1-5 workers. In addition to the independent enterprises, “the government provides a subsidized guarantee scheme at 70 percent in which the government pays the premium” to find unbankable businesses that lack collateral.

The above programs have already achieved a great measure of success. They have reduced poverty by half from 24.3 percent in 1999 to 10.4 percent in 2013. However, there is room for further improvements. In 2014, “only one-fifth of the poorest 10 percent in Indonesia” had received all the benefits to which they were entitled.

Future Reformation

Possibilities for reformation in cluster one include a two-way updating system to the connection between the target database and the program-based beneficiary lists. This would help major social assistance programs reach the right people. Since needs change during certain times, having additional monitoring and evaluation to fill in the gaps in program design will improve the planning of the programs. Moreover, redesigning the Credit for People Initiatives by providing an incentive for smallholders for productive assets accumulation would leverage the poor with adequate access to the program and increase the impact of clusters two and three as well.

To add to the effectiveness of programs that are reducing Indonesia’s impoverished communities, the government has also established a national team, chaired by the Vice President. It is the Vice President’s hope that with the specific changes being looked at in each of the clusters, Indonesia will eventually bring the vast majority of those in poverty to a more sustainable economic situation.

– Shvetali Thatte
Photo: Flickr

10 Facts About Overpopulation in Africa

10 Facts About Overpopulation in AfricaAfrica as a continent is growing in many ways. Many of its countries’ economies are growing quickly, lifting people out of extreme poverty. As economies grow and escape extreme poverty, several countries are developing issues with overpopulation. Though the issues exist for many reasons, there are viable solutions that, in some cases, are already being implemented. Hopefully, some solutions will provide a path for the future of the developing continent. Below are the top 10 facts about overpopulation in Africa. They describe how the issue came about and what is being done to solve it.

10 Facts About Overpopulation in Africa

  1. By 2050 Africa’s population is predicted to double. With so many countries having such a high birth rate, the populations of African countries are rising very quickly. Africa’s current population of more than 1.1 billion is expected to exceed 2 billion in the next 30 years. The population is growing at a rate faster than any other continent.
  2. By 2100, five of the top 10 most populous countries will be in Africa. Currently, Nigeria is the only country in Africa with a population in the top 10. Its population is expected to grow by another 527 million people by that time. With African countries growing at such fast rates, it is estimated that by 2100 the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Egypt will join Nigeria in the top 10.
  3. Africa holds 27 out of 30 of the countries with the highest birth rates. An overwhelming majority of the countries with the highest birth rates reside in Africa. Niger, Angola and Mali all have an average of around six births per woman. These rates are much higher than in developed nations. To compare, the U.S. has a birth rate of 1.88. Other developing countries such as Bangladesh and Sri Lanka have birth rates around 2.1.
  4. Seventy percent of Africans are under 30 years old. The African population is the youngest in the world. As this younger population reaches working age, the demand for jobs will increase. Jobs will need to be developed to satisfy this job market.
  5. Africa is urbanizing quickly. Around 80 percent of Africa’s massive population growth will occur in cities. This is in addition to the massive rush to urbanization that has already occurred in Africa. While Africa may not be lacking land, its population is crowded into cities. In 2010, 90 percent of the continent’s population was living on only 21 percent of the land.
  6. Forty-seven percent of Sub-Saharan Africa’s urban population lives in slums. The influx of people into African cities is putting stress on the housing and living situations within the cities. Close to half of all people on the continent are living in slums. They live in conditions that are crowded, lacking proper sanitation and often poorly constructed.
  7. One cause of overpopulation is actually positive for Africa as a whole. One of the major causes for population increase is actually increased quality of life. More children surviving into adulthood and healthier adults have lowered the death rate in several African countries. The impact of healthcare is a major positive. However, if fertility rates do not fall while death rates continue to decrease, the population will boom and lead to overpopulation.
  8. There are known solutions to overpopulation. Education is one of the key ingredients to reducing overpopulation. Educating people on how to properly family plan can help them to keep families smaller. Along with this, people must be provided with the resources to implement what they have learned.
  9. Kenya serves as a model for other countries. In 2009, Kenya started a program called Vision 2030. this vision aimed to lower the country’s birth rate from five in 2009 to three by 2030. By 2018, Kenya had already achieved its goal with a fertility rate of 2.81. Vision 2030 accomplished this with funding from USAID along with education programs and policies that informed people about family planning.
  10. There are active organizations helping to reduce overpopulation. An organization called Rutgers is already active in Africa to fight overpopulation. This organization works to raise awareness about sexual reproductive health. It recently opened an office in Uganda to carry out its mission through partnerships with schools, government advocacy and local authorities.

These 10 facts about overpopulation in Africa show that it is an issue that continues to plague the continent. Despite the prevalence of the issue, however, there are known solutions that are being implemented to solve the problem.

– Josh Fritzjunker
Photo: Flickr

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Top 4 Technologies Solving Water Scarcity

Top Four Technologies Solving Water Scarcity
Access to healthy drinking water is a basic human right and billions of people are suffering from water scarcity. The world has more salt water than fresh water, which makes it hard to find drinking water. Some have created technologies for this reason. Here are the top four technologies solving water scarcity all over the world.

Top 4 Technologies Solving Water Scarcity

  1. The WaterSeer: Among these top four technologies to solve water scarcity is a machine that VICI Labs developed called the WaterSeer. It can pull moisture from the air and produce up to 11 gallons of clean drinking water. It blows wind into an underground chamber that condenses and forms water. There have not been many field tests yet which has caused critics to raise an eyebrow. Hopefully, the machine does its job and can help produce clean drinking water for countries that have limited access to it.
  2. The Desolenator: Creating safe drinking water is very important but a machine needs to be sustainable enough to continue to give that resource. This is why this next technology ranks as one of the top five technologies solving water scarcity. The Desolenator is a solar desalination tool that removes 99 percent of contaminants from water. It is portable and can produce about 15 liters of fresh water a day. The company says that it has a 20-year life span making it an efficient and sustainable device for solving water scarcity. The reason for this device lies behind the Desolenator company’s philosophy on the importance of clean drinking water. The company’s philosophy is based on, “A desire to provide assured access to clean water in the toughest situations, whilst protecting the planet we depend on.” The Desolenator company aims to design a better water future for people and the planet.
  3. Janicki Omni Processor: The Janicki Omni Processor is another of the top four technologies trying to solve water scarcity. It was originally going to be a machine to clean waste in cities but it can produce clean drinking water from human feces as well. The way it works is a three-step process to create accessible drinking water. These steps include solid fuel combustion, steam power generation and water treatment. At the end of all these steps, water is then ready for human consumption.
  4. Desalination: Converting salt water into fresh water, is another way people can solve water scarcity. The process is called desalination, and it is a huge step towards ending water scarcity. The process may take a lot of energy to conduct but there are affordable ways to do so. Graphene filters are a way to waste less energy in the process of desalination. These filters could reduce the cost of the energy that desalination requires. The Lockheed Martin company has developed a filter that will take into account the amount of energy this process uses in the hopes of providing clean drinking water while also saving energy.

While these four technologies are working to solve water scarcity, there was also the Urban Drinking Water Challenge of 2018 working to eliminate water scarcity through innovations. This was a global innovation competition to identify and deploy drinking water solutions. The challenge provided $250,000 in awards to promising water technology startups. Those who participated in the challenge had to follow three themes that included alternative supply, distributed access and delivery and ecosystem health. This challenge presented opportunities for solutions that encompass the benefits of economies in urban settings to ensure affordability, reach and sustainability of drinking water services.

Water scarcity is a huge crisis, but with advanced technologies paving the way for change, there may be a solution.

– Jessica Jones
Photo: Flickr

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Major Improvements for Deaf People in China

Improvements for Deaf People in China
There have been many improvements for deaf people in China, especially in the areas of education, language and health care. Providing a sense of self-worth and pride, deaf individuals globally are seeing a shift in their impairment. While people once considered deafness a weakness, this disability has become a model of strength and purpose.

China’s population of 1.3 billion includes 27.8 million who suffer from hearing loss. This figure involves an estimated 11 percent of people older than 60 years of age and 20 million in the elderly segment, who suffer from moderate to severe hearing problems. The Ministry of Health has identified 115,000 children under the age of 7 with severe to profound hearing loss. Further, 30,000 babies are born with hearing impairment each year.

The Challenges

Improvements for deaf people in China are still an ongoing process. Deaf students face significant challenges such as education, language and acceptance. Parents of deaf children fought against their children learning Chinese Sign Language (CSL) for the stigma of not being normal. Parents preferred a more mainstream learning environment.

Moreover, deaf students were at a disadvantage when applying for colleges. These students fell behind their hearing peers, despite the schools expecting them to keep pace. Fortunately for deaf students, soon came the introduction of bilingual learning; students could still learn CSL, as well as spoken and written Chinese. Also, to their benefit, adapted materials included the availability of the National Higher Education Examination.

Still, China has made significant progress. In the past decade, there has been an increase in education accessibility for schools exclusively for deaf individuals, as well as schools for all other forms of disability.

Programs Launched and Progress

The World Health Organization (WHO) has praised China for the improvements of the programs for deaf people. The population of focus includes children with deafness, growing children with hearing loss/problems and the elderly community.

As of 1999, China has initiated the Universal Newborn Hearing Screening (UNHS) on the recommendation of the Central Government. The UNHS involves screenings offered in hospital-based programs. Newborns from low-income families receive pre-screenings for hearing-aids, as well as pre-screenings for cochlear implants. Additionally, China provides free hearing aids to deaf or hearing-impaired adults over 60 years of age. To date, over 400,000 individuals have benefited from these programs.

Hearing Screening Process

There are three categories in the hearing screening process. The first category includes large cities with extensive resources that provide UNHS hospital-based programs. This has lead to the screening of 95 percent of babies. The second category involves targeted screenings of high-risk newborns. Within one month of birth, newborns may visit early screening centers upon referral. The last category consists of the wide dissemination of questionnaires and simple tests. These tests, that community doctors provide, monitor each child’s hearing.

According to the UNHS, hearing loss in babies ranges from three to six per 1,000 births. The Otoacoustic emissions/Automated Auditory brainstem response methods perform screenings. These methods (OAE/AABR) offer a simple pass/fail result or a referral-based result, depending on the recommendation of extensive tests.

The Impact

The improvements of deaf people in China continue today, including in areas of educational and career opportunities. China is encouraging feedback from the deaf community in decision making. Further, these efforts ensure a more inclusive and informed environment, that does not highlight limitations and welcomes diversity.

– Michelle White
Photo: Flickr