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10 Facts About Child Labor in Mali

10 Facts About Child Labor in Mali
Mali, the eighth-largest country on the African continent, is home to approximately 18 million individuals, more than half of which are children. Historically, Mali has suffered economically due to excessive conflicts between multiple military coups and rebel groups. With 67 percent of the population under the age of 25, children have become the most vulnerable in a nation growing with violence and slavery. These 10 facts about child labor in Mali will detail the country’s history of child labor and how it is combatting it.

10 Facts About Child Labor in Mali

  1. Approximately half of the Malian population live in absolute poverty making children most vulnerable to hereditary slavery. Mali is one of the 31 landlocked developing countries and one of the 49 least developed countries in the world according to the United Nations (U.N.). The U.N. describes Mali as the “poorest and weakest segment of the international community.” Due to such poverty, children have little to no opportunities that ensure the practice of basic human rights and often become child laborers as a result.
  2. One of the most important of the 10 facts about child labor in Mali is that Malian children often become child laborers in an effort to bring financial support to their families. Today, 56 percent engage in child labor. The earliest age of a typical Malian child laborer is five while the most common age group is between the ages of seven and 14.
  3. The Malian government is making an effort to monitor child workers through the implementation of various social programs. The indication that children as young as five have worked, however, proves that the country has inadequately enforced such programs. Some of these programs are the National Policy for Promotion and Protection of Children and a new five-year plan that the  Malian Ministry of Justice that Mali adopted in February 2019. The five-year plan will combat trafficking in persons and assimilated practices.
  4. One in three Malian child labor victims must work in hazardous conditions where they may become exposed to accidents and diseases. According to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of International Labor Affairs, the most common industries for Mali’s child laborers are agriculture and gold mining.
  5. Only a mere 54 percent of all Malian children attend school and as a result, most Malian child labors are illiterate. Organizations like UNICEF and Save the Children provide the protection and knowledge these children need to overcome extreme impoverishment. Although Save the Children’s primary focus in Mali is on “revising curricula and enhancing quality in the classroom” for students, it has implemented other effective programs that work with adolescents, primary-school learners and early childhood as well.
  6. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the Malian government has been unsuccessful at fully implementing the National Plan to Combat Child Labor and other social programs due to insufficient funding. These initiatives were to examine the root problems of slavery in the nation. Moving forward, the government plans to reorganize its funding tactics of several enforcement agencies. The Ministry for the Promotion of Women, Children and the Family (MPFEF) is one of few agencies in Mali responsible for protecting vulnerable children and monitoring any violations of child labor laws.
  7. Child laborers, boys and girls alike, are often victims of sex trafficking. Approximations state that people sell thousands of Malian children and exploit them within multiple industries across the nation.
  8. To avoid others from determining Mali a Tier 3 nation, the Malian government agreed to implement more effective programs to help at-risk children from slavery in 2014. This was after failing to distribute anti-trafficking law enforcement efforts in 2012. This effort was not successful as the  Mali government failed to prosecute and convict perpetrators of injustice nor did it identify a sufficient number of trafficking victims. Tier 3 nations are countries that do not comply with the minimum standards of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) of 2000 which is monitored by the U.S. State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons.
  9. In 2016, the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiatives (ABA ROLI), with support from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, resumed its work in Mali and began programming to combat child labor. Through special training in Timbuktu, lawyers and civil representatives received tools to properly protect potential victims of slavery. Many lawyers and attendees of the training indicated no previous knowledge of the statistics pertaining to forced labor.
  10. In 2017, Mali raised the overall minimum wage worker’s age to 15 in order to combat child labor according to the U.S. Department of Labor. By doing so, Mali now complies with international standards. Before this transition, Mali had no permanent standards for child workers’ regulations.

Mali continues to struggle as one of the world’s poorest nations. These 10 facts about child labor in Mali illustrate how extreme poverty has driven slavery within the nation. Despite numerous failed attempts to control child labor, Mali has seen some advancement in recent years.

– Danyella Wilder
Photo: Flickr

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How Poverty Enforces Patriarchy Worldwide

Poverty and Patriarchy
While poverty and patriarchy may seem like separate issues, the two connect deeply. As long as poverty exists, women’s rights and livelihoods will suffer. Likewise, women’s oppression leads to their inability to contribute to the economy and prevents a family’s escape from cycles of poverty. Here are some examples from around the world of poverty and patriarchy reinforcing each other, and some ways humanitarian aid can improve these situations.

Microcredit in Bangladesh Has Left Millions of Women At High Risk For Domestic Violence

From the 1980s to the mid-2000s, people thought that micro-loans would be the future of international development. In Bangladesh, most of these loans went to women on the belief that women could handle money more responsibly than their male counterparts. They received a small amount of money to invest in materials to start a business and earn an independent livelihood in order to bring their families financial stability. Unfortunately, when these women were unsuccessful at lifting their families out of poverty and their families plunged into greater debt as a result of the loans, they often suffered spousal abuse. For other women, as soon as they received the money, the men and their families took it and used it, leaving them to pay off the loans by themselves. As a whole, micro-credit has not had the intended impact on the people of Bangladesh that the international community once hoped for, and rates of violence against women have climbed, increasing the correlation between poverty and patriarchy

Solution: Investing in women’s education will provide them with the knowledge they need to become financially independent and ensure greater legal protection for victims of domestic violence could greatly combat this issue.

Poverty As a Weapon Against Women in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Sixty-one percent of women living in the Democratic Republic of the Congo live in poverty, compared to only fifty-one percent of men. This is because people have systematically excluded women from peace-building efforts in the country. Because there are no women’s voices at the decision-making table, countries set policies that prioritize men, often at women’s expense. Disturbingly, women’s rights activists in the country are often a target for violence. Many think that those who advocate for women-centered poverty-relief efforts are distracting from larger issues within the country.

Solution: Studies that researchers conducted in the Democratic Republic of the Congo demonstrate that in areas with high levels of poverty, there are high levels of violence against women. Providing food security, as well as funding institutions and organizations to empower women, are important steps in relieving both poverty and oppression in the DRC.

Time Poverty Makes it Nearly Impossible for Indian Women to Contribute to the Economy

In India, the average man works seven hours per day. Although women usually work for nine hours a day, the vast majority of their labor is unpaid housework and childminding. This means that they have little time to earn any outside wages, and therefore, remain financially dependent on the men in their families.  The power dynamic that this situation creates is extremely dangerous. Women lose any agency they may have because they depend on their fathers, husbands or brothers for everything. This means that they have no power to go against their male relative’s wills. It also hurts the Indian economy, as women have little ability to contribute to it.

Solution: In rural India, women spend upwards of four hours each day gathering fuel and cleaning utensils to cook with. Providing them with solar or electric cookers could save them three hours of unpaid labor, giving them more time to do what they want to do or contribute to the economy as an untapped workforce.

These examples display just how poverty and patriarchy intertwine and push women and their families into poverty. If women could gain an education, receive food security or use alternative cooking equipment to limit labor, they might be able to improve their situation and lift themselves out of poverty.

– Gillian Buckley
Photo: Wikimedia

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10 Facts About Hunger in Algeria

10 Facts About Hunger in AlgeriaLocated in Western Sahara, Algeria is one of the largest countries in the world. Home to around 45 million people in 2022, the French-speaking nation continues to grow in population. The Algerian economy centers around oil exports and that oil has allowed the Algerian economy to become one of the biggest in Africa. Despite this, many Algerians struggle to put food on the table and the main problem lies with the poorest people in the country. The unemployed and Sahrawi refugees struggle to maintain a healthy diet due to a lack of affordable and nutritious food. Here are 10 facts about hunger in Algeria.

10 Facts About Hunger in Algeria

  1. Only 17% of Algerian land is used for agriculture. The Sahara desert covers a large amount of Algeria. As a result, Algeria is unable to produce enough food for its people which forces it to import a lot of its food.
  2. Food products and vegetables made up 16.5% of Algerian imports in 2017. At first glance, 16.5% may not seem like a large number, however, Algerian vegetables and food products make up only 1% of its exports. When a country imports more food than it can produce, prices tend to be higher for its people. This may be the reverse for meat, however. In March 2024, Algeria imported “massive amounts of beef and lamb” before Ramadan, to counter the inflated costs of local meat. 
  3. There are 173,600 Sahrawi refugees in Algeria and almost 90% are food insecure or at risk of food insecurity.  The refugees are Western Saharans that the Western Saharan War in 1975 displaced. For almost 45 years, the refugees have been living in harsh desert environments with limited access to economic opportunity.
  4. Fifty-four percent of Sahrawi women of childbearing age and more than half of children under 5 are anemic. Anemia in pregnant women can cause complications with the fetus and mother. Similarly, anemia in young children can cause serious health problems and hurt their growth.
  5. The World Food Program provides 134,000 food rations to refugees each month. The WFP also created nutrition centers to fight anemia and stunting in children. It also distributes thousands of school meals to refugee children to keep them in school.
  6. Algeria ranks 33rd out of 125 countries on the Global Hunger Index. With a score of only 6.8, Algeria boasts a low level of hunger. Over the past few years, Algeria moved up two spots in the rankings.
  7. Between 2000 and 2019, the prevalence of stunting in children under 5 years old has been reduced by almost 60%, to 9.8%.  
  8. The proportion of undernourished in Algeria, which was 8% in 2001, decreased to 3% by 2021.  
  9. Algeria’s infant mortality rate dropped from 36 (per 1,000) in 2000 to 19 in 2022, thanks to better support for infants and easier access to nutritious foods.
  10. Between 2000 and 2021, Algeria’s life expectancy grew from 72 to 76. This is three years higher than the rest of North Africa. 

These 10 facts about hunger in Algeria illustrate that hunger is a problem that the country may overlook. At first glance, the country may appear to be doing well, however, the most impoverished Algerians suffer greatly from food insecurity. Thankfully, the country is making progress in combating this difficult problem, which means there is hope that Algeria will one day eliminate hunger.

– Gaurav Shetty
Photo: Flickr
Updated: July 12, 2024

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10 Facts About Life Expectancy in Namibia

Life Expectancy in Namibia
Namibia has continued to make large strides in many aspects of life, including life expectancy. Having suffered a history of colonization and oppression, Namibia struggled for years with political, social and cultural issues. However, as the country has begun to strengthen and mingle on a global level, it has and is continuing to make exceptional progress. These 10 facts about life expectancy in Namibia will bring attention to the country’s progress and highlight the necessary changes.

10 Facts About Life Expectancy in Namibia

  1. Life Expectancy in Namibia is Improving: The CIA World Fact Book rates the average life expectancy for Namibians at 64.4 years, ranking the country 189th worldwide. This is a giant increase from the previous life expectancy rate of 53.5 years in 2005.
  2. Infant Mortality in Namibia is Improving: Coinciding with the steadily increasing life expectancy is the steadily decreasing infant mortality rate. According to the World Bank with data going back to 1967, the infant mortality rate has halved, going from a staggering 62.6 deaths per 1,000 births down to 31.8 deaths per 1,000 births. This is in line with countries that share a similar history to Namibia, like South Africa, which has an infant mortality rate of 28.8 deaths per 1,000 births. Both of these countries still trail behind other nations within the continent, like Egypt, which has an infant mortality rate of 18.8 deaths per 1,000 births.
  3. The Namibian Economy is Improving: There is a strong correlation between Namibia’s continually improving social and medical situation and its continued economic prosperity. According to the World Bank, the country’s GDP has more than quadrupled from the 1980s to today jumping from $2.4 billion in 1980 to an impressive $14.5 billion in 2018. Namibia continues to improve economically and was the top emerging market economy in Africa in 2013. It is also important to note that there have been continued efforts to distribute the wealth that the country is coming into. In 1990, after Namibia had gained its independence, it had the highest levels of income inequality in Africa. After policy changes, however, income inequality has significantly decreased.
  4. Social Justice Has Helped Namibia Prosper: Similar to South Africa, Namibia has a long and unfortunate history of apartheid. Apartheid prevented black Namibians from having any political rights and restricted social and economic freedom. It was not until the 1990s that Namibia gained its independence. Namibia’s large population’s roadblocks resulted in the before mentioned wealth inequality. However, once everyone received an equal footing and the Namibian Government looked at the entire population rather than a small few, the poverty rate decreased from 53 percent to 23 percent.
  5. Health Care in Namibia is Not Consistent: As Namibia has continued to improve, so has its health care. There are currently both public and private health care options with 85 percent of the population having the former. There is, however, a severe discrepancy in the service provided between private and public health care. Public hospitals are understaffed and offer limited services. The government has expressed its awareness of these issues and commitment to solving them. Its commitment is outlined in the National Health Policy Framework 2010–2020 and it is implementing efforts to grow the government budget line for health.
  6. Namibians Suffer From Preventable Diseases: Similar to many African countries, the impoverished sectors of Namibia are suffering from preventable diseases, but that is not to say that there have not been major improvements. The country has eliminated neonatal tetanus and the African Regional Certification Commission recognizes it as polio-free. This is due to the Government’s intense focus on fixing these issues. The Namibian Government has even decreased the number of malaria cases by 97 percent in just a decade.
  7. HIV is on the Decline in Namibia: One of many countries suffering from an HIV epidemic, Namibia is thankfully showing improvement. A report published by the Namibia Statistics Agency showed that the new infection rate had decreased from 14 per 1,000 adults to four per 1,000 adults. The same report stated that “as with the fight against extreme poverty, it is possible that a continuation in this effort can lead to zero new infections in the country by 2030.”
  8. Climate Has an Impact on Namibia: According to the World Health Organization, climate change and environmental safety are two major issues facing Namibia. Droughts, floods and disease outbreaks highlight the need for better planning and coordination as well as the importance of attending to environmental health as a preventative method when considering social, economic and cultural progress. Groups all over Namibia dedicate themselves to different issues within the larger context. Two of those groups are Namibia Nature Foundation, which is committed to conservation, and the Africa Drought Conference, which is part of the Government’s efforts to address the drought issue.
  9. Namibia is Rapidly Urbanizing: Urbanization has long been a sign of prosperity, but mass urbanization presents challenges. In Namibia, there are constantly high unemployment rates stemming in part from rapid urbanization. A staggering 34 percent of the total labor force, which mostly affects youth and women, do not have employment. This has been contributing to a growing number of poor who lack access to food and other social services.
  10. Namibia Has a Food Problem: Although Namibia is an upper-middle-income country, it still faces many problems including poverty and malnutrition. Namibia only produces about 40 percent of food consumed and is very reliant on imports. The limiting of access to food leads to price fluctuations harming up to 28 percent of Namibian families. The Food and Nutrition Technical Assistance III Project (FANTA) is just one of the many groups trying to improve the quality and access to nutrition. It also has an increased focus on sustainability.

Some have labeled Namibia one of the most promising countries in Africa because of its increasing social, cultural and economic status. One, however, cannot ignore that there is still a lot of room for progress, especially when looking at the less privileged groups in the country. These 10 facts about life expectancy in Namibia highlight all the good that has taken place and should pose some insight into the future.

– Samira Darwich
Photo: Flickr

 

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Fighting Poverty Through Sustainable Energy in Africa

sustainable energy in africaSustainable energy has become one of the most significant challenges and focuses worldwide over the past several decades. As most of the world begins to shift away from traditional biofuels, like coal and gasoline, other sources of energy, such as wind, solar and hydropower, have taken up a more significant share of the world’s energy production. The share of traditional sources has decreased from its peak of 81 percent in 2000 to roughly 65 percent by 2016; meanwhile, the share of wind energy has increased from 0.2 percent in 2000 to closer to 6 percent. Though this is a slow rate of progression, it demonstrates that most of the world is steadily moving further towards renewable energy sources. Sustainable energy in Africa is growing as governments push for more sustainable energy and is helping impoverished communities by increasing employment.

Pushing for Sustainability

Sustainable energy in Africa has seen significant boosts in recent years. One country making particularly significant strides in sustainable energy in Africa is Kenya. With a renewable energy rate of about 73 percent, Kenya is making efforts to retain sustainability. In fact, the largest wind farm in Africa just recently completed construction in Lake Turkana, Kenya. The facility has been under construction since 2014, and with a total of 365 wind turbines, it will mark a significant boost toward sustainable energy both in Kenya and in Africa as a whole.

In fact, Kenya is making an official, concerted effort towards becoming 100 percent green energy powered by 2020. Kenya’s president, Uhuru Kenyatta, has made clear his commitment to expanding renewable energy in Kenya and has gained support from other developed nations to help invest in those projects in Kenya. Investments have led to increases in wind, solar and hydroelectric power projects over the past 10 to 15 years, with many such facilities doubling in number. Reliance on low-emission geothermal energy has also risen sharply, with Kenya ranking ninth in the world in how much power it generates from geothermal energy.

Sustainable Energy and Fighting Poverty

Aside from being environmentally conscious, renewable energy facilities also markedly increase employment. More sustainable energy in Africa can help people out of poverty. Kenya’s pushes towards wind and solar energy have led to the direct employment of 10,000 workers. Not only that, but access to electricity from these projects has also allowed some 65,000 additional people to seek out and obtain jobs elsewhere, which they could not have found without the use of electricity. The number of workers employed in the sustainable energy sector is also expected to increase by 70 percent by 2022-2023. Similarly, in Nigeria, it is expected that sustainable energy will create 52,000 jobs by that same timeframe.

It is evident that sustainable energy in Africa will drive the future of countries like Kenya and Nigeria, and assist with uplifting people both directly via increased employment and indirectly due to expanded access to clean electricity. These industries will increase not only sustainable sources of energy, but will create a sustainable economy and a sustainable population that will not succumb to the negative impacts of unemployment and poverty.

– Jade Follette
Photo: Flickr

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8 Facts About Education in Sierra Leone

Eight Facts About Education in Sierra Leone

Situated towards the bottom of the bulge on Africa’s west coast, Sierra Leone sits on top of one of the most concentrated gold and diamond deposits in the world. But the country’s history as a prime subject of colonialism’s horrors explains why it consistently ranks as one of the poorest in the world. Here are eight facts about education in Sierra Leone that help gage context for the country’s current state of affairs.

8 Facts About Education in Sierra Leone

  1. Poor Education Statistics- As is typical in low-income communities, the country, now with a population of more than 7.5 million people, yields unimpressive statistics when it comes to categories such as enrollment, completion and literacy. A 2016 UNESCO report found that only 47 percent of all primary school students progressed to their last year, which is the American equivalent of fifth-grade. However this social problem is well recognized, and the country’s most recent president-elect, Julius Maada Bio, even incorporated it as one of the pillars of his campaign.
  2. Recent Switch in the System- In 2017, Sierra Leone switched its education structure from a 3-6-3-4 system. The current Sierra Leonean educational system now operates under what is known as a 6-3-3-4 structure. This means that a student’s “complete” schooling is broken into four parts: six years of pre-primary school, three years of junior secondary school, three years of senior secondary school and four years at a college program.
  3. Testing into Higher Education- Students face obstacles along the way through their education, as after the first nine years, which are compulsory education, they must take a Basic Education Certificate Examination which determines who can proceed to senior secondary school. Students that pass this test must take an additional test following their completion of senior secondary school: the Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination.
  4. The Difficult BECE- This exam carries extreme importance, as its passage is necessary to be granted a spot in the Sierra Leone university system. Moreover, in 2011, only 47 percent of test-takers passed. Although alternative routes, such as trade schools, have been set in place to provide pathways for students that fail to reach this point, a general lack of funding towards them has resulted in their deterioration.
  5. New President Dedicated to Improving Education Standards- Bio’s election in 2018 meant a leadership transition from the All People’s Congress (which had been in power for the previous 10 years and had been consistently accused of corruption) to the People’s Party. In an article, the online publication Theirworld described his campaign as “tumultuous,” insinuating that the turnover was far from smooth. Despite this, Bio has since lived up to his campaign promises regarding education and is paving the way for better academic opportunities for future Sierra Leoneans.
  6. Free Education for Primary and Secondary Students- Bio recently launched a program that grants free education to the more than 1.5 million primary and secondary students in Sierra Leone, a move that holds tremendous implications towards reducing the country’s socioeconomic bias towards education completion. He also nearly doubled the country’s education budget, raising it from 11 percent to 20 percent of public spending. With the implementation of affordable education, Bio hopes to combat the low school enrollment and completion levels that have traditionally plagued the country.
  7. Free Teacher Training- The new education plan also includes increased attention to teachers across the country. The teacher competency rate currently hovers below a mere 50 percent across the board for all levels of education. Bio addresses this in his program by making teacher-education free and by opening teacher training campuses which are fairly distributed across the country.
  8. World Bank’s Positive Involvement- The last of these eight facts about education in Sierra Leone is that the World Bank is actively involved in the establishment of new programs working to remedy the aforementioned institutional problems with education. Their recent program labeled the “Revitalizing Education Development in Sierra Leone Project” has funneled $31.37 million into the education system since 2016. The fruit of this is the Performance-Based Financing (PBF) plan, where schools receive higher government grants funded through the World Bank based on “key contributors to school effectiveness”. These include student attendance, reading proficiency and school management practices. The PBF program enforces good educational practices, which in turn benefits the entire learning environment.

Even with all these improvements, it must be noted that Sierra Leone still faces significant gender discrimination in its education system, as women are currently significantly underrepresented. For instance, in 2015, the male literacy rate almost doubled the female literacy rate for the population aged 15 or older.

However, hopefully, the trend of inclusion rooted in uniform equity being promoted by Bio will soon extend to all people, especially those historically excluded. His sentiment is echoed in his own words as he said during his campaign, “Education is a fundamental right for all Sierra Leoneans.”

– Liam Manion
Photo: Global Partnership

Top 10 Facts About Living Conditions in Tokelau

Top 10 Facts About Living Conditions in Tokelau
Tokelau, a country between Hawaii and New Zealand, consists of three coral atolls and is home to a population of approximately 1,500 inhabitants. Here are the top 10 facts about living conditions in Tokelau.

Top 10 Facts About Living Conditions in Tokelau

  1. Tokelau’s culture, maintained through civil unification and tradition, emphasizes language, arts, song and dance. There exists a strong sense of social unity in terms of care and protection among Tokelau’s people.
  2. The coral atolls which make up this Oceanian nation are a mere one to five meters above the sea level. As such, the global rise in seawater levels is a significant threat to the preservation of Tokelauan lands. As a part of the Tokelau Emergency Plan, the country has tasked villages with the construction and upkeep of seawalls to protect from flooding.
  3. Emigration to New Zealand, where Tokelauans can travel without restriction, has been largely common among the population since 1962. Additional communities of Tokelauans exist in Samoa and Australia.
  4. Poor soil quality on the atolls largely restricts the expansion of Tokelau’s agricultural economy. Tokelau successfully cultivates only a handful of tropical crops, including bananas and coconut. Since 2011, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has assisted Tokelau on how to plan efficient land use to improve agriculture practices.
  5. The main source of animal protein in the atolls comes from fisheries located in the reefs and deep ocean. Additionally, the fisheries account for the majority of Tokelau’s annual income.
  6. The long-term health of the Tokelauan people has decreased over generations thus prompting the implementation of public health programs. This worsening health is due to an increase in noncommunicable diseases, particularly obesity. Despite this, the life expectancy in Tokelau, 69.1 years, is of the highest among small pacific locations.
  7. For international and inter-atoll travel, the people of Tokelau are limited to sea travel by the government ship, Mataliki. The ship travels to Tokelau every two weeks unless cases of medical or environmental emergencies disrupt the schedule. In the event that something disrupts the ship’s schedule, travelers must remain at their current locations until transit resumes.
  8. The 400 students living in Tokelau study in one of three schools, one on each atoll. The schools offer education from early childhood to year 13 with emphasis on Tokelau language, English, math, social sciences and science.
  9. Tokelau natives depend on solar panels for almost all electrical needs. In 2013, Tokelau became the first nation to go 100 percent solar. A reduced number of diesel generators remain as a contingency plan, though.
  10. Tokelauans do not currently have an established cell phone network available for use but landline installation is possible among households. Additionally, in 2017, Tokelau introduced a 4G broadband internet network to improve communication efforts. Education, health, commerce and transportation services have also been able to utilize the network for further efficiency.

As a result of Tokelau’s diminutive size and remoteness, the people of Tokelau live in accordingly interdependent communities. Extreme tropical weather and the effects of rising sea levels present challenges to life in the atolls. As a result, Tokelau has implemented plans for sustainability and preventative measures for emergencies to combat these issues. Recent advances in public services facilitate efforts to modernize the nation. As demonstrated by the top 10 facts about living conditions in Tokelau, the country and its people plan only to prosper.

– Bhavya Girotra
Photo: Wikipedia Commons

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Ending Child Witch Hunts in Nigeria

Child Witch HuntThree priests stand around Joy, a 15-year-old girl, pinching and slapping her. Joy, like many other children, is a victim of the child witch hunts in Nigeria. “My grandmother was sick, and her leg became very swollen. She said I was the one responsible, that I was a witch,” Godbless told Al-Jazeera. Now he is one of the many street children on the outskirts of Calabar, scouring dumpsites for plastic bottles and cans to cash-in for food.

Child witch hunts are not exclusive to Nigeria. Cases have been documented in Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Bolivia, Guatemala, India, Iran, Saudi Arabia and even communities in Europe and the United States.

The “Simple” Answer to Complicated Problems

In some regions, witchcraft has become a way to explain misfortune and hardships, such as death, divorce or illness in families and communities. A part of the problem is limited knowledge about illnesses, which when coupled with strong cultural beliefs, prompts people to search for metaphysical answers. Children who seem aggressive, solitary or have physical deformities are more likely to be accused, as well as orphans raised by relatives, such as Godbless.

Children and even babies have been branded witches, and cases of abuse include being ostracized, chained, starved or beaten. Some children are even set on fire and are beheaded. Humanitarian organizations have reported an increase in accusations of witchcraft over the past 10 years and especially against children.

In the Niger Delta, child witch hunts are a manifestation of severe socio-economic problems, such as poverty, conflict and HIV/AIDS. Although the region has an abundance of natural resources it remains crippled by economic underdevelopment, inequality and environmental degradation, with up to 46 percent of the population living in poverty. The average daily wage is a little more than a dollar. Economic pressure and misfortunes make children in the Delta an easy scapegoat for familiar problems. In the Congo, the first cases of child witchcraft came with the rise of urbanization due to poverty and war, and the emergence of religious sects.

Homelessness is a Common Outcome

In 2010, researchers found that 85 percent of street children in Akwa Ibom, a state in Nigeria, were accused of witchcraft. An earlier report estimated that 15,000 children in Akwa Ibom and Cross River were accused. In Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, more than 20,000 street children were victims of the child witch hunt phenomenon. In 2017, 640 boys and more than 1,000 girls between the ages of 6 and 17 were accused of witchcraft in the Congo and subjected to violent exorcisms.

Examples of Solutions

Despite these concerning statistics, today, there are numerous local and international organizations dedicated to protecting victims, raising awareness of child abuse and improving education, legislation and law enforcement.

Nigeria’s criminal code and 2003 Child Rights Act outlaws abuse and accusations of witchcraft, although implementing the law at the state level has been slow. Only three-quarters of Nigeria’s states have domesticated the law. The charity, Safe Child Africa, however, was able to persuade the Akwa Ibom state government to make child witchcraft accusations illegal. By investing in sheltering and educating alleged child witches, Akwa Ibom is the only state that is specifically providing for the abuse of children accused of witchcraft.

In Cross River, UNICEF has been working with the ministry of sustainable development and social welfare to address their version of the Child Rights Act, which does not explicitly outlaw witch-branding. Cross River’s 2018 budget included shelter for children at risk of being accused of witchcraft.

The orphanage DINNoedjaelp – founded by the Danish humanitarian Anja Ringgren Loven – provides medical care, food and education to over 30 alleged child witches. “Right now, Nigeria is the African country with the most children out of school. When the Nigerian government does not use agents to inform and educate, we must through our educational work try to stop the superstition,” Loven told People Magazine.

Reuniting Families

The small Nigerian volunteer organization, Today for Tomorrow, meets street children near the Lemna dumpsite in Calabar – where Godbless now lives – to provide food and health care. Way to Nations, DINNoedhjaelp and other Nigerian organizations do not only rescue children but try to reunite them with their families as part of restoring and educating communities.

“Home visits is the most important part in our advocacy program. When children, who were previously accused of being witches come back to their family and village again, and look healthy, strong, speak good English, have gotten their confidence and hope back, that gives the whole village something to think about,” Loven said of reuniting the children with their families.

Ending child witch hunts requires education just as much as addressing widespread poverty. After government agencies held a series of meetings regarding the issue of child witches and abuse, religious and civil liberty organizations began working to end the hysteria, including several Nigerian Pentecostal churches, who mobilized people through sermons, print media and film. According to Dr. Utibe Effiong, churches have started producing movies that highlight the damage these accusations cause.

Although change is happening, the fight is far from over. Providing a stable future for children in Nigeria and beyond means alleviating poverty by revitalizing economies and educating the masses, so cultural and economic change can happen.

– Emma Uk
Photo: Flickr

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Top 8 Most Influential First Ladies for Global Issues

First Ladies for Global Issues

U.S. presidents are often put in the spotlight, but what many people overlook is the work of America’s First Ladies. This list offers insight into the most influential First Ladies for global issues and their efforts to address these issues.

Top 8 Most Influential First Ladies for Global Issues

  1. Eleanor Roosevelt- Weeks after Franklin Roosevelt assumed his role as president, Adolf Hitler became the chancellor of Germany. Hitler’s reign spurred a European refugee crisis. Eleanor Roosevelt used her platform as First Lady to garner U.S. support for refugees. To that end, she came out as a supporter of the Wagner-Rogers bill. This bill would allow the entry of 20,000 German children into the U.S. The Wagner-Roger bill ended up dying in committee, but the First Lady didn’t stop there. Eleanor Roosevelt proceeded to establish the U.S. Committee for the Care of European Children. USCOM was able to bring refugee children from France safely into the U.S.
  2. Patricia Nixon- This First Lady was known for her avid support of volunteerism and charitable causes. During her time in the White House, she made numerous journeys abroad. The first solo trip Patricia Nixon took was to Peru to provide relief supplies to earthquake victims. She later traveled as her husband’s Personal Representative to Africa and South America.
  3. Rosalynn Carter- Rosalynn Carter embarked on perhaps one of the most ambitious international missions taken by a First Lady. In 1977, she visited Venezuela, Colombia, Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Costa Rica and Jamaica and assumed the position of the President’s representative. She took part in meetings to discuss policy issues such as drug trafficking, arms reduction and human rights. She continued her work in 1979 when she learned of the Cambodian refugee crisis. After seeing the conditions of the crisis for herself, she urged the U.N. to get involved in the issue. As a result of her urging, the National Cambodian Crisis Committee was established.
  4. Nancy Reagan- This First Lady is well known for her efforts to address the global drug epidemic. In 1985, Nancy Reagan held a First Ladies Conference on Drug Abuse to discuss solutions to drug abuse with other first ladies from across the globe. The following year, Reagan became the first First Lady to meet with the U.N. General Assembly where she highlighted the importance of attacking the world’s growing drug epidemic.
  5. Hillary Clinton- Hillary Clinton formed an impressive network with female global leaders across the world. She helped establish Vital Voices, an initiative that encouraged the incorporation of women in politics. She spoke out about gender equality at home and abroad. Clinton was one of the only political figures to draw attention to the violent treatment of Afghan women by the Taliban regime.
  6. Laura Bush- As First Lady, Laura Bush allocated much of her time towards improving global education and health. In 2005, she made the journey to Afghanistan to promote teacher-training institutions for women. Towards the end of her husband’s presidency, Bush continued traveling the world to promote the importance of global health. In 2007, she traveled to the Middle East to raise awareness for women’s health and breast cancer.
  7. Michelle Obama- In 2015, Michelle Obama launched the Let Girls Learn program. This program focuses on getting girls worldwide into school and making sure they remain in school. Let Girls Learn works with USAID, the State Department and the Peace Corps to carry out its mission. In 2016, Obama traveled to greet recipients of the benefits of the Let Girls Learn program in Liberia and Morocco.
  8. Melania Trump- Melania Trump has shown that she intends on following in the steps of her predecessors. She has targeted disease, trafficking and hunger as some of her main issues. The First Lady urged the U.N. to do more to aid these causes. She most recently embarked on a trip to Kenya, Egypt and Ghana. The First Lady was touched by the experience, and according to President Trump, there are intentions of helping these regions in the future.

– Gabriella Gonzalez
Photo: Flickr

10 Facts about Child Labor in China

Child Labor in ChinaChina has made huge strides in becoming one of the largest economic and cultural hubs of the world over the past several years. However, child labor is one of the biggest contributors and problems of the Chinese economy. The following are the top 10 facts about child labor in China.

Top 10 Facts About Child Labor in China

  1. Child labor is a growing concern. About 7.74 percent of children between the ages of 10-15 are laborers although the legal working age in China is 16.
  2. There is a positive correlation between child labor and school drop out rates. One study found that on average, a child who works 6.75 hours a day has 6.42 fewer hours to study. While about 90 percent of underage workers attend school, many of them will eventually drop out.
  3. China’s less developed regions have more prevalent rates of child labor. For example, the Northwest and Qinghai-Tibetan regions (which make up the Western part of the country) are the least developed and have the highest rates of child labor. While in the more advanced Eastern and Central regions it is less of a problem.
  4. China’s incredibly competitive economy makes companies take any opportunity they can to get a leg up over their competitors, even illegally. For instance, factors such as worker shortages, high inflation and a rising currency reduce profit margins, resulting in underage labor. The Chinese government has acknowledged that child labor is a problem that is at the heart of its export economy.
  5. The Chinese government is working to stop child labor. In 2008 authorities in China’s southern province of Guangdong (near Hong Kong) broke up a massive child labor ring. The resulting arrests broke up a child labor apparatus in one of China’s biggest manufacturing cities. As a result, more than 100 children were freed.
  6. Many of these children are from poor families and are often between the ages of 13 through 15. Employment agencies will either trick or kidnap them and send them to work in any part of the country for up to 300 hours a month.
  7. China has signed many laws into effect to prevent child labor. These include international treaties like the U.N.’s Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as the International Labor Organization’s Minimum Age Convention. The Chinese government is also trying to solve the problem at a national level. For example, regulations and provisions aiming at child labor include the Chinese Labour Law, the Law on the Protection of Women’s Rights and Interests, the Law on the Protection of Minors, Regulations on the Prohibition of Child Labour and the Notice on the Prohibition of Child Labor.
  8. Quantities of migrant labor have caused increases in the exploitation of child labor in China. There is a very clear link between the lack of education for migrant workers and the rise of underage workers in urban areas.
  9. Child labor in China is minimal in comparison to other industrialized nations. China’s protective laws and heightened importance of education have helped reduce child labor. More families recognize the value of education, leading to adherence to labor law in more parts of the country.
  10. Several solutions to China’s labor problem have been proposed. These include new economic policies that would reduce poverty in rural areas. Empowering poor, rural families is critical to eliminating child labor. The formation of independent trade unions would give more power to the workers and protect their rights. As a result, reducing child labor. Finally, a greater effort by Chinese authorities is crucial. Child labor will continue to be a problem if enforcement of laws is not kept to.

– Henry Burkert