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7 Facts About Hunger in Venezuela

10 Facts About Hunger in Venezuela

Food shortages across Venezuela started to rise in 2013, around the time of President Hugo Chávez’s death. Less than a year later, the nation’s oil-dependent economy began to tank and inflation began to soar. Venezuela could no longer afford the cost of its imported basic goods, resulting in nationwide shortages in food and medicine. While the nation’s instability worsens, people are going hungry in Venezuela. Here are the top seven facts about hunger in Venezuela.

7 Facts About Hunger in Venezuela

  1. In 2017, 89.4 percent of Venezuelan households could not afford basic food supplies due to inflation and six out of 10 Venezuelans reported going to bed hungry. In February 2019, peak inflation in food prices hit a staggering 371,545.6 percent and high rates are continuing throughout 2019.
  2. Due to hunger in Venezuela, malnourishment is quite common. The United Nations reported that nearly 3.7 million Venezuelans suffered from malnourishment in 2018.
  3. Mass weight loss is also common across Venezuela as 64.3 percent of Venezuelans lost weight due to food shortages in 2017. Venezuelans who lost weight dropped an average of 11.4 kg each since the shortages began. 
  4. Available food supplies all too often end up on the black market and are sold by bachaqueros. Bachaqueros buy subsidized goods at government-set prices, then sell those goods at double, even triple, the original price, taking advantage of struggling communities. This illegal practice is exacerbated by Venezuela’s compounded crises.
  5. Without easy access to affordable food supplies, some Venezuelans resort to using alternative resources. For example, the yuca root can replace potatoes, which is a similar, yet far cheaper vegetable. In more desperate cases, scavenging for scraps has also become popular.
  6. Although President Nicolás Maduro has rejected many types of humanitarian aid, including extensive efforts to send food supplies, the government has accepted aid from nonpartisan groups. In 2018 alone, Cuatro Por Venezuela, one of the largest relief suppliers, sent 41,804 pounds of food to Venezuela, amounting to 120,000 standard meals for people in need. These supplies are distributed directly to schools, orphanages, nursing homes and homeless shelters all over Venezuela.
  7. In addition to nonpartisan NGOs, international government groups, such as the European Commission (EC), allocated another €50 million to the crisis in Venezuela, along with additional food supplies and nutritional services in March 2019. 

As food shortages continue and people remain hungry, these seven facts about hunger in Venezuela show that the country is in a clear humanitarian crisis. While there are aid efforts out there, supplies must be sent in as nonpartisan support. So long as aid efforts adhere to this restriction, there is hope for hunger relief in Venezuela.

—Suzette Shultz
Photo: Wikimedia Commons

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10 Facts about Child Labor in Iran

Child Labor in Iran

Child labor is defined by the International Labor Organization as the exploitation of children through any form of work that deprives children of their childhood and interferes “with their ability to attend regular school, and is mentally, physically, socially or morally harmful.” The Human Rights Watch estimates that around 70 million children around the world are currently working in hazardous conditions across many sectors, including agriculture, mining and domestic labor. Unfortunately, in Iran, the number of child laborers continues to grow. Keep reading to learn the top 10 facts about child labor in Iran.

10 Facts About Child Labor in Iran

  1. As of 2012, around 11 percent of children in Iran were engaged in some form of illegal work. Under Iranian law, it is illegal to work under the age of 15. However, due to circumstances like poverty and organized crime, this law is not often followed. Often, criminal groups force children to sell items or beg on the street, and research shows that in some cases children as young as 3 years old have fallen victim to this kind of labor. Some children are forced to swallow packets of drugs and cross the border of Iran to excrete them. Many have died in this process. Additionally, children’s bodies have been found abandoned without certain organs in remote areas of Iran.
  2. Poverty is a major contributor to child labor in Iran, as homelessness increases a child’s vulnerability. The government reports that more than 60,000 children live on the streets in Iran. This makes it easier for perpetrators to target children who are in desperate need of food and shelter, especially if the parents are absent. In fact, About 60 percent of child laborers in Iran are the only source of income for their families.
  3. The problem is so vast that officials believe it cannot be handled by one single entity. In April 2018, Reza Jafari, the director of the Iran Welfare Organization’s office, said that “child workers are so numerous that no organization can single-handedly cope with the problem.” Government officials are working to tackle the issue from several angles, including welcoming outside help from nonprofits.
  4. Child labor has declined globally but is on the rise in Iran. Since 2000, the world has seen its child labor rate drop by a third, while Iran has experienced the opposite. Vice president of the Association for the Protection of Children’s Rights Tahereh Pazhuhesh said in June 2018 “despite the global reduction in the child labor statistics, we see child labor surge in Iran.” The worsening problem illustrates the urgent need for help in the area, as it is more and more common to see children working in sweatshops, markets, farms and more.
  5. Government officials believe that 90 percent of child laborers have been sexually assaulted. Reza Ghadimi, managing director of social services at the Organization of Tehran Municipality, released this statistic on a state-run news agency report in October 2017. He added that many of these children are also exposed to sexually transmitted diseases.
  6. The rate of HIV infection is higher for child laborers is higher than the average. The head of the AIDs Research Center of Iran, Dr. Minou Mohraz, said “the rate of HIV infection among Iran child laborers and street children is 45 times higher than the average.” Additionally, these children are often exposed to other sexually transmitted diseases such as Hepatitis B.
  7. While Iran’s government has banned child labor, state-sponsored institutions still hire child workers. Municipality contractors often recruit children aged 5 to 15 years old because they can pay them less. In fact, because children are less aware of their rights as workers, they can be paid up to 70 percent less than adults. Waste management is one industry that employs a particularly high number of children. This is especially dangerous because as Tehran City-Councilwoman Elham Eftekhari noted, “these children not only work but also live and sleep in garbage factories that are filled with vermin and odors.”
  8. The ILIA Foundation is looking to help, and the presence of NGOs in big cities like Tehran is on the rise. The organization are focusing their efforts on the root of the problem, which is extreme poverty. The ILIA Foundation is opening more outreach centers, which provide shelter and hands-on education for struggling children. The Foundation also partnered with U.N. refugee and health agencies to tackle the issue from all angles.
  9. UNICEF is working with the government to address the root of the problem. The group works with political leaders and focuses on promoting good parenting, as well as enhancing the State Welfare Organization’s capacity to monitor the problem. It also aims to improve Iran’s Child Protection in Emergency’s coordination mechanism.
  10. The Imam Ali Popular Students Relief Society is bringing a new approach to helping the street children of Iran. The group, which is recognized by the U.N., was organized in 2010 and has already gathered 12,000 volunteers to help its cause. The organization holds events for the children, like sports events, to bring them positivity and hope. Meysam Vahdei, the group’s head of sports, said “the only choice for most of these kids in their neighborhoods is violence, poverty and mis.ery. We have tried to give them self-confidence through sports to improve their lives.”

Child labor in Iran is not only a serious issue but a worsening one. These facts about child labor in Iran demonstrate the critical need for aid in the region. Poverty is at the heart of the problem and organizations are working to reduce these extreme conditions, in turn getting the children the help they need.

– Natalie Malek
Photo: Flickr

5 Facts About the Recent Hepatitis E Outbreak in Namibia

Hepatitis E Outbreak in Namibia

Hepatitis E is a condition where an individual’s liver is inflamed due to infection of the Hepatitis E virus. While it is a serious condition, it often does not receive as much attention as it should; as a result, the disease has proven difficult to eradicate globally. Namibia, for example, has been experiencing a Hepatitis E outbreak since 2017, in which 40 people have died and thousands of others contracted the disease.

5 Facts About the Recent Hepatitis E Outbreak in Namibia

  1. Contaminated water sources – The virus is most often transmitted via the fecal-oral route. In areas with poor or nonexistent sanitation services, contamination is particularly rampant. This is the case in Namibia, where 65 percent of the population uses unimproved sanitation facilities. This is largely due to the fact that much of the human waste in the country is managed unsafely.
  2. Limited resources – Two months after the first case of hepatitis E was identified in Namibia’s highly populated capital of Windhoek, officials declared an outbreak. Because other forms of hepatitis were more common in the country, the laboratory resources for diagnosing type E, in particular, were limited. Consequently, diagnostic services were inadequate during the first few weeks of the outbreak. While the outbreak began in Windhoek, it has made its way to other areas including Khomas and Erongo.
  3. Government efforts – Within a week of the outbreak’s confirmation, the country’s Ministry of Health began the campaign against the disease with a media briefing to educate the public. Since then, authorities have strengthened data collection and reporting, conducted environmental investigations, begun a national informative radio campaign and worked with local community leaders to develop culturally-sensitive interventions. Despite these efforts, however, the has virus persisted. Of note, between July 22-28, there were 19 new cases in the Otjozondjupa region alone.
  4. A potential cure – In 2015, Chinese scientists developed a vaccine to cure Hepatitis E. While the vaccine has not yet been endorsed by the World Health Organization, testing showed that the vaccine could protect subjects from Hepatitis E for up to 4.5 years. However, the vaccine has not been licensed in any country other than China, so it cannot be administered yet in Namibia.
  5. Preventative efforts are key – Health officials have maintained that the best way to fight Namibia’s Hepatitis E outbreak is through proper sanitation practices such as hand-washing and effective waste disposal. Dr. Kalumbi Shangula, the country’s Minister of Health and Social Services, commented that “the fact that the outbreak is persisting and has the potential to become endemic in Namibia is a wake-up call to action.” He also remarked on the public’s apathy towards the situation, despite several governmental efforts to communicate its urgency.

Worryingly, the rainy season is set to begin again in November. Because the virus is most often spread through contaminated water, the influx of water to the country will increase the chances of transmission. Hopefully, as the outbreak grows in severity, the government and the public will respond with renewed vigor to improve the country’s infrastructure and bring the virus to an end.

Final Thoughts

The current hepatitis E outbreak in Namibia is certainly concerning, but it provides several opportunities for the country to improve its standards of living. By fixing the sanitation infrastructure and water systems, the spread of the virus will slow and the prosperity of citizens will increase. Addressing hepatitis E will also allow the country’s officials to reinforce health care systems against other, more deadly outbreaks.

– Molly Power
Photo: Flickr

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What is the Malawi Project?

The Malawi Project

Malawi Project, Inc. is a 501(c)(3), Christian, nonprofit, humanitarian organization that focuses primarily on improving the physical and spiritual health of men, women and children in Malawi. Founded in 1999 and headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, the Malawi Project has provided aid to Malawi in areas as diverse as education, medicine, famine relief, agriculture and community development. The Borgen Project had the opportunity to speak with Richard Stephens, co-founder of the organization about the Malawi Project’s impact to date.

The Borgen Project: Is the Malawi Project the biggest provider of humanitarian aid to Malawi?

Richard Stephens: First, allow me to give some background about the nation and people of Malawi. According to USAID, More than one-half of the country’s 17 million people live below the poverty line, and more than one-third consume less than the required daily calories, contributing to the stunting of nearly one-half of children under 5 years of age.

The agency notes, “Malawi continues to score poorly on major health indicators for maternal, infant and under-5 mortality. Eighty-five percent of households engage in agricultural activities and most rely almost exclusively on rain-fed subsistence farming that is particularly vulnerable to cyclical droughts.

These challenges are compounded by threats from the highest rates of deforestation and population growth in the region.” Only 50 percent of children complete primary school, and of those, only 60 percent successfully pass the exam to access public secondary school; only 15 percent of girls are enrolled in secondary school.” However, the Malawi Project would not be the largest provider of humanitarian aid to Malawi.

TBP: What is the organization’s biggest accomplishment?

RS: According to Dambisa Moyo, a recognized Zambian economist, in her book “Dead Aid,” developed nations delivered over $1 trillion in aid to Africa over the past 50 years. The result? Moyo notes that from 1970 to 1998 when that aid was at its peak, the unemployment picture went from a low of 11 percent in 1970 to a high of 66 percent in 1998. 

Obviously, something was wrong in the way aid was administered. The Malawi Project is proud of its stance of supplying its aid packages in such a way as to inspire creative thinking among the recipients, development of oversight and management by in-country local management, and the creation of an infrastructure to carry out their own work with little or no outside oversight or management.

The Project supports grassroots development of businesses, churches and community groups that will build up and develop the nation from within. Action for Progress is an example. Made up of business, church and community leaders from all three regions of Malawi, this not-for-project organization is taking the lead in the identification of specific need areas and the successful distribution and follow up reporting on nearly all of the aid currently being delivered to Malawi by the Malawi Project.

In the past 26 years, more than 375 forty-foot shipping containers have delivered over $300 million in aid from the Malawi Project. This aid has been delivered to every region, every religion and every walk of life. Additionally, more than 800 people have traveled to Malawi with Project teams to assist the citizens.

More than $3 million in cash infusion has been delivered in the form of locally purchased food, and through a food processing plant constructed under the sponsorship of [our organization] employing more than 100 people, purchasing raw food materials from over 1,000 Malawi farmers, and feeding over 60,000 people a day — as well as an agricultural village, inspired by the Malawi Project, is training 50 farm families a year in current agricultural practices. Additionally, a five-building, 110-bed medical complex serves the needs of people north of the capital and a 27-building childcare center takes care of more than 160 parentless children. These programs are now working independently of support from the Malawi Project and many others are in the development stage of creating this same independent approach to their future.

TBP: Does the Malawi Project ever collaborate with other humanitarian organizations? If so, could you provide some examples?

RS: Yes, the Malawi Project has teamed up with Feed the Children, Nourish the Children, USAID and the governments of Canada, Sweden, Israel, Holland and Germany to supply food and medical assistance to Malawi. Organizations such as Universal Aid and Compassionate Resources in Canada, World Emergency Relief, Amigo International, Breedlove Foods in the U.S. have supplied food, medical assistance and agricultural assistance through the Malawi Project. Hoffnung fur kinder in Germany, Children’s Hope Fund in Hong Kong and Aid to Africa in Washington D.C. have all given financial assistance. Healing Hands International has supplied technical expertise in areas of food processing and agricultural development. Proctor and Gamble, Adidas and Nike are but a sampling of corporations that have extended assistance through the donations of various products.

TBP: How many Malawians have been helped by the Malawi Project?

RS: “The number would be impossible to estimate, but one can note that medical supplies have gone into every district of the nation, to some 600 medical facilities, and school supplies and textbooks have been delivered to well over 1,000 schools and colleges throughout the nation.”

The scope of the Malawi Project work and the impact it has made in Malawi make it an excellent humanitarian organization. In fact, GreatNonprofits recognized the organization as a top-rated nonprofit in both 2017 and 2018. Yet, Stephens’ answers reveal that there is still great need throughout Malawi. Thus, he and the rest of the Malawi Project have no desire to end their work in this country any time soon.

– Jacob Stubbs
Photo: Wikimedia

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Living Conditions in Saint Pierre and Miquelon

Living Conditions in Saint Pierre and Miquelon
A short distance from the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador lies Saint Pierre and Miquelon, an overseas collectivity of France. Its remoteness and obscurity marks it as culturally, economically and demographically distinct from the rest of North America. Living conditions in Saint Pierre and Miquelon compare well with much of the developed world in some respects, but not all. Below are the top 10 facts about living conditions in Saint Pierre and Miquelon.

10 Facts About Living Conditions in Saint Pierre and Miquelon

  1. Economic Disputes Disrupted the Fishing Industry – Fishing quota disputes with neighboring Canada have devastated the islands’ traditional economic reliance on the fishing industry. Moreover, in response to rampant overfishing, the International Arbitration Tribunal of New York’s prohibition on deep-sea cod fishing in 1992 ended centuries of this practice, contributing to the decline in living conditions in Saint Pierre and Miquelon.
  2. The Service and Energy Sectors and Government Employment Supplanted Fishing – With the decline of the fishing industry, the service sector and government employment dominate the economy. As of 2010, the services sector comprised 86 percent of the islands’ GDP, while 2006 data indicates that (as of that year) agriculture constituted two percent of the GDP and industry comprised 15 percent. The construction of a thermal power plant in 2015 precipitated the expansion of the extractive industries and energy sector.
  3. Sex Ratios Differ Between Age Groups in this Aging Population – As of July 2018, the population of Saint Pierre and Miquelon stood at 5,471. At 41.44 percent of the total population, citizens 25 to 54 years old comprise the largest share of the population. Citizens 55 to 64 years old are 13.69 percent and citizens 65 years and older are 21 percent of the population. In younger age groups, the sex ratio skews in favor of males, a characteristic shared with citizens 55 to 64 years old but not with those 25 to 54 years old or 65 years and older.
  4. A Transforming Economy Impacts Unemployment Rates – Unemployment in the islands decreased from 9.9 percent of the labor force in 2008 to 8.7 percent of the labor force in 2015. The marginalization of the traditional fishing industry and the rise of the service sector and certain industries influence employment rates.
  5. Most Inhabitants are French-Speaking Catholic Basques and Bretons – As an overseas collectivity of the Republic of France, French is the official language of the islands. Most of the population descends from Basque and Breton fishermen. An estimated 99 percent of the population identifies as Roman Catholic.
  6. With Little Arable Land, the Population is Overwhelmingly Urban – As of 2018, 90.2 percent of the population resided in urban centers, mostly concentrated on Saint Pierre Island. Agriculture constituted two percent of the GDP as of 2006, although it employs as much as 18 percent of the labor force. As of 2011, only 8.7 percent of the land qualified as arable.
  7. Fertility is Low, While Life Expectancy is High – Estimates in 2018 indicated that total life expectancy was 80.7 years, 78.4 years for men and 83.2 years for women. Infant mortality lies at 6.4 deaths per 1,000 live births, 7.4 per 1,000 for male births and 5.3 per 1,000 for female births. However, the fertility rate is low, averaging at 1.57 children born per woman as of 2018.
  8. The Health Care System Functions Well – Saint-Pierre and Miquelon boasts a universal health care system. Until 2015, pursuant to an agreement between France and Canada, islanders could seek medical treatment in St. John’s, the capital of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Starting in 2015, Saint-Pierre and Miquelon began probing for an alternative to this prior arrangement as a result of increasing costs.
  9. The Educational System Conforms to Metropolitan France – Saint Pierre and Miquelon provides mandatory and free education from the ages of six to 16. Primary education lasts five years and secondary education lasts up to seven years, following the French model. Secondary education consists of a four-year program followed by three further years of study and the bestowal of a baccalaureate degree.
  10. Citizens Directly Elect Representatives to a Local Autonomous Legislature – As an overseas collectivity of the French Republic, Saint Pierre and Miquelon governs itself through a unicameral territorial council elected by absolute majority vote. This legislative body consists of 19 seats, 15 from Saint Pierre and four from Miquelon. An electoral college vote guarantees representation in the French Senate by a single senator for five-year terms.

Though living conditions in Saint Pierre and Miquelon are not intolerable, opportunities for improvement exist. The archipelago’s relative remoteness allows it to avoid the attention of outsiders, yet it has not escaped the forces of globalization, of which the economic and cultural consequences have been tremendous. These top 10 facts about living conditions in Saint Pierre and Miquelon ought to dispel any notion that this is an inconsequential territory.

– Philip Daniel Glass
Photo: Flickr

5 Facts About Organized Crime in the Northern Triangle

Organized Crime in the Northern Triangle
Two previously published articles on The Borgen Project’s website have mentioned the issues of violence, poverty and corruption in the Northern Triangle of Central America (NTCA). This article’s focus is on the organized crime in the northern triangle that engenders the violence and corruption, which includes street gangs, drug cartels and paramilitary organizations. Daily life in the NTCA is rife with immediate danger from many different sources.

5 Facts About Organized Crime in the Northern Triangle

  1. Gangs’ Influence: Gangs are a part of daily life, particularly for urban residents in the cities of the Northern Triangle. Gangs control swaths of city territory and young children must learn the boundaries from an early age—or risk being harassed, kidnapped, or even killed. In the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa, gang violence is so common that the residents have adapted to it. Fortunately, there are local organizations (along with the help of foreign humanitarian aid) that are working to provide children with safe places where they can play without having to worry about crossing gang borders.
  2. Hard National Borders Exaberates Gang Activity: During the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s, the Northern Triangle became a focus of U.S. Policy—not for aid, but as a theater of operations in the War on Drugs. This led to a tightening of both the U.S. and Mexico’s southern border. Lack of adequate protection in Mexico and the U.S. put Northern Triangle migrants at risk of violence from paramilitaries and cartels, and detention and deportation from local authorities. Detention comes with its own set of health and safety risks, and deportation is tantamount to a death sentence for many migrants that were fleeing violence in the first place.
  3. Majority of Refugees Fleeing the Northern Triangle are Women and Children: Although there are several factors contributing to the surge of refugees coming from the NTCA, the two main ones are systemic poverty and the threat of gang violence. Many citizens of Northern Triangle countries live on less than $1.90 per day, making them extremely vulnerable to extortion from gangs which pose the threat of sexual violence and even death. In some cases, poverty leads to desperation for young men, prompting them to voluntarily join gangs for day-to-day security.
  4. Violence and Organized Crime in the Northern Triangle: In the last two decades of the 20th century, both Guatemala and El Salvador experienced violent civil wars that resulted in a major shakeup of the entire states’ power structures. Honduras itself was not involved in a civil conflict but the southern regions of the country were used as staging areas for the Nicaraguan contras during their rebellion against the Sandinista government in the 1980s. The end of the military conflicts instead led to a surge in criminal violence, with large numbers of armed and unemployed men forming their own paramilitary organizations, or finding work with street gangs and drug cartels.
  5. U.S. Deportations are a Direct Contributor to the Problem: While gang violence (both domestic and foreign) has been a consideration for the U.S. government for some decades now, methods differ on how to address it. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) usually deport any immigrant that commits a crime on U.S. soil, even if the deportee was not a member of a gang before deportation. This means they have limited recourse upon return to their home countries for reintegration, and tracking deportees after their return is difficult without information sharing. The lack of shared information is something that entities such as USAID and the State Department are hoping to address, via NGOs and independent commissions.

Organized crime in the Northern Triangle is one of the biggest obstacles to promoting stability and welfare in the region, exacerbated by many political and economic factors—the largest being the influence of international gangs. Corruption also enables many of the organized crime entities to operate with impunity, which in turn forces immigrants northward to flee threats of violence, extortion and forced recruitment. However, other articles have touched upon growing international visibility of the corruption—and efforts to fight it—in the Northern Triangle, and the spotlight on corruption has revealed the full extent of these gangs’ power and influence over the region.

In addition, U.S. Congress has introduced legislation targeted at addressing the root causes of migration from the NTCA which includes the threat of gang violence and organized crime. One such bill, the United States-Northern Triangle Enhanced Engagement Act already passed in the House of Representatives in July 2019. Click here to encourage your Senators to support this bill when it is introduced in the Senate.

– Rob Sprankle
Photo: Flickr

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Plastic For Change: How Ocean Cleanups Help the World’s Poorest

Plastic For ChangeUsually, the highest rates of plastic waste are correlated with areas highest in poverty. In fact, 80 percent of ocean plastic comes from areas of high poverty. What if there was a way to use plastic for change to clean up the ocean, and in doing so, lift people out of poverty?

Solutions to the Plastic Problem

This is the very motivation behind the Plastic Bank. Founded in 2013 by David Katz and Shaun Frankson, Plastic Bank is a nonprofit that pays people in poverty-stricken areas to pick up ocean trash. The organization pays these individuals a digital income in order to monitor corruption and ensure accuracy. Plastic Bank also throws in benefits including school tuition, cooking oil and more for people in these countries.

So far the organization has completed one major project in the Philippines, employing fishermen for $2.50 an hour (nearly double the average wage in the Philippines) who were able to remove three tons of waste as a result. Plastic Bank is working in Haiti and Indonesia to do projects of the same, or greater, magnitude.

Further Impact of Plastic Bank

Not only is this method far cheaper and more effective than government-run programs, but it is also teaching local communities who are often most directly affected by pollution, the importance of recycling and the proper way to go about it. In many countries like the Philippines or Haiti, survival trumps recycling etiquette, and therefore trash accumulates in the streets and waters. This contaminates the water sources, creating large numbers of people without access to clean drinking water. In Haiti, 75 percent of the population lacks access to this basic necessity.

Plastic Bank is transforming the way plastic is seen. The organization wants to help people realize the value of plastic and how we can use plastic for change. By educating individuals about the uses of plastic, they learn to view it as precious — a kind of currency almost.

Plastic Bank uses the recycled plastic to make what they dub, “social plastic,” plastic that other companies can use knowing they have helped people out of life in extreme poverty. Companies like Dell are using plastic in pellet form to make products such as computers and other electronics.

Going Above and Beyond

Other organizations have headed up similar efforts, including The Bounty Network, which recently completed a clean-up project in the Philippines, specifically in Manila Bay. Working with Filipino locals, the organization cleaned up nearly three tons of trash. Project participants were paid in both cryptocurrency and knowledge — having learned about the importance of caring for the earth.

This new trend of cleaning oceans by empowering disenfranchised people to make a difference is a win-win solution. With a steady income, people in countries like Haiti and the Philippines can overcome poverty, and with clean oceans, they can have safer, healthier environments that could even become good sources of food.

– Hannah Stewart
Photo: Wikimedia

4 Facts About Health Care in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Health care in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), once lauded for its health care system, is now a country with a lack of resources and access. In the past few decades, the DRC has experienced political unrest, war and military disputes, leaving the country’s health care system in shambles. Now, almost 70 percent of Congolese people have little or no access to basic health care.  Here are the top four facts about health care in the Democratic Republic of the Congo:

Top 4 Facts About Health Care in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

  1. Hospitals- As of 2016, there were 401 hospitals in the DRC.  Despite this, access to medical care remains sparse in rural areas. In fact, it is still difficult for many citizens to obtain necessary medical aid. Additionally, these hospitals often lack proper equipment and staff to meet some of the needs of the patients. Many times, hospitals run out of essential medicines and supplies required for various treatments. Multiple organizations recognize the gravity of this situation and are reaching out to help. This includes a health program from USAID, which provides more than 12 million citizens of the DRC with primary health care services.
  2. Vaccines- In 2018, The Emergency Plan for the Revitalization of Immunization was implemented with the goal of increasing vaccinations for children in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This plan is also known as the Mashako plan, in honor of the DRC’s former minister of health, Professor Leonard Mashako Mamba. The goal of the Mashako plan is to increase the coverage of children vaccinated by 15 percent by 2020. This means that, under the Mashako plan, 220,000 children who would otherwise be susceptible to life-threatening, preventable diseases will now have access to vaccines.
  3. Health Care Workers- The number of health care workers in the DRC averages out to .09 physicians to 1,000 individuals. This is drastically less than many other countries, such as the United States with almost 3 physicians per 1,000 individuals. Additionally, there are more than 4 physicians to 1,000 individuals in Italy. Furthermore, one-third of health care workers are over 60 years old. These numbers are odd and surprising, considering the country produces up to 9,000 new health care workers each year. Despite this, there is a significant shortage of health care workers in many areas and facilities in the DRC. This is due to a lack of proper record keeping. In recent years, however, the DRC has been working with IntraHealth International to implement iHRIS. This program aims to aid the country in recording and managing data pertaining to the health care workforce. The goal of iHRIS is to help record missing information and better disperse doctors throughout the DRC.
  4. Government Spending- The Government of the DRC (GRDC) has recently given more attention to health care and is making the health of its citizens a higher priority. In 2015, the government increased health care spending to almost 9 percent of the overall budget, in comparison to 3.4 percent in 2011. Also in 2015, and for the very first time, the GRDC reserved funds specifically for drugs and contraceptives, which are crucial for various parts of the population. Despite these improvements, government spending on health care in the DRC continues to be among the lowest in the world.

Over time, recent government changes and shifting priorities are making significant and notable improvements to the health care system in the DRC. These top four facts about health care in the Democratic Republic of the Congo demonstrate that access to health care is critical in both citizens and the country’s future.

– Melissa Quist
Photo: Flickr

3 Strategies for Improving Agriculture in North Korea

Agriculture in North Korea
A massive famine struck North Korea in the 1990s with a death toll of more than one million. While grain production has nearly doubled since the famine, many agricultural scientists and international humanitarian aid liaisons believe it is not enough to sustain the nation. According to the World Health Organization, two out of every five North Koreans were undernourished in 2017 and 28 percent of North Korean children are stunted in growth due to a “largely irreversible outcome of inadequate nutrition and repeated bouts of infection during the first 1,000 days of their life.”

After Kim Jong Un took power in 2011, the government is more willing to admit its administrative shortcomings in perpetuating food insecurity across the country. In 2018, Former Premier Pak Pong Ju, a member of the ruling Korean Worker’s Party and longtime member of the political elite hierarchy, admitted an agricultural crisis had formed a chokehold on the North Korean economy. In a report, he mentioned that “Some have failed to conduct seed production and management in a responsible way and also fell short of doing proper strain distribution in line with climatic conditions and characteristics of fields.” With lower food production, many locals are going hungry and the poorest are affected the most.

North Korea has many tactics underway in order to improve agricultural conditions in their nation. Here are three strategies for improving agriculture in North Korea.

  1. A 5-Year Strategy – North Korea’s 5-year strategy for improving agricultural development is already underway. The plan includes increasing fruit, vegetable and mushroom cultivation along with improving domestic animal breeds. Furthermore, North Korea plans to upgrade fishing boats and farm equipment in order to use modern scientific methods. As 2018 came to an end, North Korea has already improved plant species with high-yield, created agricultural machinery and scientific farming, increased greenhouse farming production and increased livestock and development of fish aquaculture. They are also in the second stage of constructing the South Hwanghae Province waterway.
  2. Juche Farming Method –  The Juche Farming Method uses the nation’s government style ideals to give farmers a plot of land and a house to live in on collective farms in exchange for the food they produce. Additionally, in just six months after the method was implemented, 650 greenhouses were built across the country allowing for four to five harvests a year. Without greenhouses, locals say the soil is too salty and not sufficient enough for growing crops. Salt increases the acidity in plants which results in poor harvests.
  3. International Aid – International Aid can improve agricultural development in North Korea significantly. The American Friends Service Committee’s Publication and Advocacy Coordinator, Daniel Jasper, says his organization is working on multiple techniques to improve North Korea’s agriculture. For example, one of the organization’s projects is rice cultivation and the introduction of plastic trays. The project has been very successful, raising yields 15 to 20 percent in some farms. North Korea is also interested in joining institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Trade Organization (WTO). These institutions would allow North Korea to gain additional international aid.

Agriculture in North Korea has greatly improved since the famine in the 1990s, but the nation’s mountainous geography still makes farming difficult. With 11 million North Koreans malnourished, it is vital that the nation continues to correct the problems within its agricultural industry.

– Maura Byrne

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