Poverty is like a cancer for society — it is debilitating and does not have a cure-all solution. People in extreme poverty live on less than $1.90 a day and face poverty traps due to factors such as geographic location, malnutrition, effort required to meet daily needs, lack of education and poor governance. With so many ways for people to become poor, it’s not surprising that different regions need to focus on different issues when determining how to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger.
Poverty Eradication Across the Globe
According to the 2017 World Bank Annual Report, Europe and Central Asia focused 41 percent of the $5.3 billion they borrowed from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development as well as the International Development Association on energy and extractives but only two percent on education.
In contrast, South Asia concentrated 14 percent of the $6.1 billion they borrowed on energy and extractives, and 12 percent on education. Despite such disparities between these two countries’ prioritization of their energy and education sectors, both areas took action to build resilience to climate change, invest in human capital and improve infrastructure.
Benefits of Migration
For poor households trapped by low-productivity and in oftentimes remote, rural locations, migration could be a viable solution to increasing their standard of living. Such families may not be willing to migrate because it would put their sources of subsistence at risk. However, there are large potential gains from migrating to a highly productive country like the U.S.
According to a study by Clemens, Montenegro and Pritchett in 2016, the annual gain from working in a high-productivity environment is more than four times the total lifetime value of the most successful anti-poverty program.
Cash Transfer Solutions
On the policy side, well-targeted and structured cash transfers have been an increasingly popular tool for alleviating poverty in low-income countries. Cash transfers not only provide safety nets by raising the incomes of the poor, but they also help them escape from ‘psychological poverty traps.’
Contrary to the common concern that welfare programs can discourage work, a study done by Banerjee et al. in 2016 found no systematic evidence that cash transfer programs affect the overall number of hours worked nor the propensity to work among the men and women in the seven programs carried out in the Honduras, Indonesia, Morocco, Mexico (which had two programs), Nicaragua and the Philippines.
There are also solutions that require the consideration of measuring poverty based on other factors besides income and consumption. One example would be the offshoring of low-skilled jobs. While these jobs do provide a steady source of income, they are often also unpleasant, risky and may lead to adverse health effects. So, although these jobs can provide a short-term safety net, they are not a long-term solution to poverty.
Small Changes, Big Outcomes
Specific strategy government programs that have lasting effects countering poverty involve multifaceted household-level interventions. In one study by Banerjee et al., implementation of an anti-poverty program at the household level in India, Ethiopia and Pakistan (as well as both the village and household level in Ghana, Honduras and Peru) led to at least a year’s worth of lasting impact after the short-term intervention of the program.
Statistically significant impacts were made in the areas of consumption, food security, productive and household assets, financial inclusion, time use, income and revenues, physical health, mental health, political involvement and women’s empowerment. The intervention consisted of six elements: a productive asset grant, temporary cash consumption support, technical skills training, high frequency home visits, a savings program and health education and services.
Pros and Cons of Policy Change
On the other hand, governments also need to be careful when deciding on policies that involve low-income countries. Bill Clinton admitted in 2010 that his policy to dump American tariff-free rice in Haiti was a mistake. By forcing Haiti to drop tariffs on imported subsidized U.S. rice, the damage done to rice farming severely hindered Haiti’s ability to be self-sufficient.
In response to the incident, Oxfam recommended that food aid should be bought in local markets inside the country receiving aid.
Oxfam also said the Haitian government should decentralise services away from the capital, make sure farmers have credit access and improve their land tenure system where farmers could be cheated by judges able to transfer land into the hands of ‘whoever offers the biggest bribe.’
Eradicating Extreme Poverty and Hunger
The same goes for humanitarian organizations in deciding what kinds of resources and assistance to provide. To answer the question of how to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, these organizations need to first determine what consequences their intervention would lead to. By looking for methods to complement local capacities to combat poverty, humanitarians can prevent their efforts from displacing local businesses.
A great example is The Hunger Project — a global nonprofit organization dedicated to ending world hunger. With programs throughout Africa, South Asia and Latin America, this organization empowers women and men in rural villages to sustainably overcome hunger and poverty. Members of the community accomplish this feat by mobilizing and fostering effective partnerships to engage local government.
In conclusion, there are many factors to consider in different parts of the world when looking at how to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger. Auspicious solutions to poverty traps include migration, conditional cash transfers and multifaceted household-level programs. On the side of humanitarian organizations and the government, much deliberation is essential to providing goods, services and policies that complement and protect rather than displace local needs and markets.
– Connie Loo
Photo: Flickr
A Stronger Economy and a Changing Côte d’ Ivoire
Côte d’Ivoire is located in Western Africa off the Gulf of Guinea. In recent years, Côte d’Ivoire’s increased stability has attracted foreign investment and its swelling middle class has created domestic demand. Both of these have been possible as a changing Côte d’Ivoire evolves with its three main crops: cocoa, coffee and cashews.
History of Côte d’Ivoire
Côte d’Ivoire is a country with a troubled past. It began as a French colony that was granted independence in 1960 under President Felix Houphouet-Boigny, who held the post until his death in 1993. There was relative peace and democracy until the 2000 election when Alassane Ouattara decided to run against the current President Henri Konan Bedie. This election split the country into the north and south.
The north, led by Ouattara, was a Muslim-based rebel group; the South turned into a Christian-based government. Then, after some deadly hostilities, the U.N. sent a peacekeeping force in 2004. Events continued in this vein until 2010 when Ouattara was elected president. Laurent Gbagbo (who at the time had claimed leadership for himself) refused to accept terms, which led Ouattara to lead troops across the country in 2011. Gbagbo was captured and later tried for crimes against humanity.
It has been a long road since the end of the civil war in 2011, but the country has been on track for beginning to turn life around for its citizens. There are still instances of unrest, such as in 2017 when demobilized soldiers took to the streets, demanded pay and did not return to their barracks until the government had paid them back $21,000. In this particular instance, 15 people died.
Points of Concern
There are also suggestions of the government using false accusation to hold journalists or publishers back. On February 12th, six journalists were held for 48 hours after they reported the payment to the mutineers. Another instance was when an online news editor was charged for releasing fake news after an interview with ex-President Gbagbo’s son, Michel.
Along with potentially wrongful convictions is the concern over Côte d’Ivoire’s ability to handle criminals. Particularly those accused of the human rights abuse during the civil war. The trial of former First Lady Simone Gbagbo led many to lose belief in the judiciary system after she was released.
A Bright Future
Despite concerns, there have been some impressive steps in the right direction. President Ouattara is helping to create a changing Côte d’Ivoire with a new constitution as well as putting forth continued efforts to strengthen the judicial system. The government has also adopted a decree to help enforce the law that strengthened human rights defenders three years ago.
The increased stability has led to increased investment and the ability to focus on agricultural strengths. Côte d’Ivoire has the second highest growth rate in Sub-Saharan Africa standing around 8.8 percent as of 2016. While the middle class is currently at 23 percent. Both of these growth trajectories have been made possible by the cash crops (cocoa, coffee, and cashews).
Cashews, while not being a native to Côte d’Ivoire, hit a record of 625,000 tons in its first growing season of 2015. By the end of 2015 Côte d’Ivoire passed India in cashew exports making it the largest cashew exporter. The Côte d’Ivoire government offered a bonus payment of CFA 400 for every kilogram of cashew exports.
Moments of Success
The Côte d’Ivoire has evolved as successes and incentives increased interest from foreign investors. China has invested and given foreign aid totaling around $4 billion to the Côte d’Ivoire in the last 15 years. Such investments lead to improved infrastructure, especially in Côte d’Ivoire’s energy sector. With its growing energy sector, power demand has grown 10 percent within the nation each year from 2012-2017.
A changing Côte d’Ivoire has brought wealth and prosperity to the country. However, there is still a ways to go as Côte d’Ivoire learns how to face and deal with the aftermaths of the civil war.
– Natasha Komen
Photo: Flickr
Rescuing Migrants Crossing the Mediterranean Sea
For thousands of years, the Mediterranean Sea has been a giver of life to those who settle near its shores. Today, the body of water is seen as a gateway to a better life for many migrants fleeing violence and poverty. But their journey does not end at the first sight of Mediterranean. It is estimated by The Mediterranean Situation, an organization which monitors migrant activity in the Mediterranean, that over 16,000 migrants have died or gone missing crossing the Mediterranean Sea between 2018 and 2014.
Migrants Crossing the Mediterranean Sea
Small overcrowded boats are often used by thugs and smugglers who charge over a thousand dollars per person for abusive transportation from Africa to Europe. These boats, piloted by unskilled captains, are not built for open water travel or to withstand the ever-changing weather of the Mediterranean Sea. This is why countries most affected by the smuggling activities are prioritizing the rescue of migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea.
Rescuing migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea is no easy task — especially if your nation is split by a power vacuum caused by a civil war. Libya is a popular starting point for many migrants who plan to cross over the sea to Italy. Aside from being geographically close to Italy, the Libyan government and its navy are underfunded and trained. This status makes it difficult to thoroughly patrol the north African nation’s coastline.
Italy has taken the brunt of migrants crossing the Mediterranean with nearly 120,000 migrants arriving to its borders in 2017, and almost 190,000 in 2016. The migrant crisis was one of the most important issues during the recent Italian election, which helped to bring a coalition government of two eurosceptic parties to power.
Governments and Charities
Rescuing migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea is still important to Italy; in fact, $52 million has been pledged to increase Libya’s capacity to combat human smuggling through 2020.
State governments are not the only actors attempting to rescue migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea. Charities, such as the Spanish Proactiva Open Arms, patrol the Mediterranean Sea searching for migrants in need of rescue. Indeed, Proactiva Open Arms’ mission in the Mediterranean has saved over 26,000 lives. Due to the organization’s claims that migrants undergo human-rights abuses when returned to Libya, Proactiva Open Arms often brings rescued migrants to shore in Europe.
According to international maritime law, all vessels, private or otherwise, must rescue those in need. The vessel’s origin does not mean that the rescued people are now the responsibility of its national origin; but where the rescued people are put ashore does. This has put Proactiva Open Arms in conflict with the Italian government.
Rescue Efforts and Proactiva Open Arms
When Proactiva Open Arms volunteers and their boat brought migrants to Italy in April 2017, the volunteers were arrested and their boat impounded. The Italian government sought to press charges against the volunteers for bringing the migrants to Italy and not back to Libya, but a Sicilian judge disagreed. The judge agreed with the Proactiva Open Arms volunteers who claimed that Lyiba does not have the proper resources to help the migrants and that they would face abuse as a consequence.
Rescuing migrants in the Mediterranean is a messy business. Countries such as Italy do not want to see people die at sea at the hands of neglectful smugglers, but they also have trouble dealing with the influx of migrants at home. Charities want to help people who are taken advantage of and help them to a better life; but oftentimes these organizations are not always supported. This difficult task does not seem to let up any time soon, and could possibly get worse.
A combined effort is needed to protect people. More should be done to lessen the need for people to flee from their homes, and governments need to step up to protect the human rights of those in need — especially to save helpless children at sea.
– Nick DeMarco
Photo: Flickr
Economic Development In Iraq Contributes To Fight Poverty
According to the World Bank, after the complete eradication of ISIS in all of its territory, economic development in Iraq will most likely be deployed and bear fruitful results.
ISIS and Iraq
More specifically, the increase of oil prices and the promising rise of investments towards reconstruction are presumably fueled by a set of government actions. These decisions are set to facilitate and accelerate the process of economic and social recovery in the wake of ISIS which, as of December 2017, is no longer a major threat for Iraq.
Since 2014, the ISIS war and prolonged decrease of oil prices heavily contributed to the contraction of a non-oil economy by 21.6 percent. Therefore, a safer economic and social environment will bring nothing but economic and social relief.
Indeed, the most treasured tool for economic development in Iraq is certainly oil extraction, which accounts for 55 percent of the GDP. The remaining part of this number is divided between the services sector (33 percent), manufacturing, construction, water and electricity production (8 percent) and agriculture (4 percent).
Iraq’s Economic Growth
Oil prices and restored security, then, have been the main factors for Iraq’s solid economic growth in 2016, which amounted to 10 percent. However, fiscal responsibility and curbing corruption should go hand-in-hand with such economic development in Iraq.
To maintain a steady trend in economic growth and the road of improvement, the Iraqi government should take a serious look at how tax revenue as a percentage of GDP is barely detectable because of quite high levels of evasion and poor enforcement. Moreover, in terms of public spending, the government has been spending an amount close to to 42.7 percent of the (GDP) over the past three years, and budget deficits have averaged 8.6 percent of GDP. Public debt, as a consequence, is equivalent to 63.7 percent of GDP.
Poverty Eradication
Actions, however, have been taken towards the greater goal of poverty eradication in Iraq. In terms of analysis and planning, the government has, in fact, determined an official poverty line based on the 2006/07 IHSES (Household socio-economic survey), which also formed the basis for Iraq’s National Strategy for Poverty Reduction 2009.
Assessment reports measuring causes of poverty paired with high frequency, advanced impute expenditure surveys are top methods used to estimate poverty.
Road to Improvement
The Iraqian economy is largely state-run and oil extraction represents some 90 percent of government revenues. Meanwhile, 3.9 percent of people in Iraq are living in extreme poverty (2012). In fact, 18.9 percent live below the national poverty line (2012), with greater rural poverty than urban poverty; 11.6 percent of people in Iraq are multidimensionally poor (2011).
In recent years, economic improvement has been proven effective due to major social internal accomplishments — liberating ISIS territory is certainly on top of the list. Government and state presence can certainly encourage investments and economic development in Iraq, as they have done sporadically in previous occasions. However, it would be quite beneficial towards goals of poverty reduction if a larger portion of the economy could be left to the private sector.
– Luca Di Fabio
Photo: Flickr
Steps Towards Equality: Girls’ Education in Argentina
Argentina is a nation known for its efforts towards gender equality. As a nation that has made progressive strides towards equal opportunity with the election of its first female president, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner in 2007, the nation stands as a model for the rest of the world for allowing more women to obtain positions of power.
The journey for any woman to obtain a position in the field of their choice starts when they’re a child. However, girls’ education in Argentina, and the process for women to have successful careers presents a complicated path.
Even though Argentina has a high literacy rate among its citizens and has many highly-educated women, cultural norms still subject women and girls to second-class status, and threaten their opportunity to obtain jobs in the field of their choice.
Education Equality: A Class Matter
Access to a quality primary education for girls in Argentina isn’t as much subjected to gender as much as it’s subjected to class. According to the Women News Network, Argentinian girls who come from the two poorest sectors of Argentinian society are more vulnerable to dropping out of school at an earlier age (due to limited resources).
The National Institute of Statistics and Census of Argentina, also known as INDEC, states that “society must have an equal distribution of educational opportunities among both genders on all levels.” As far as secondary education, women have been shown consecutively to be more highly educated.
The World Bank, as of the year 2016, posited that more women from middle- and higher-income households achieved a secondary education, compared to their male counterparts. However, more men from lower-income households had a secondary education compared to women.
Education Doesn’t Guarantee Equal Opportunity for Women
A cultural conflict that threatens the effectiveness of girls’ education in Argentina is Machisimo — a societal ideal that favors the dominance of men in Argentinean society. Due to the country’s traditional values, women are largely subjected to discrimination and even abuse when it comes to defending their educational rights.
The workforce is a sector of Argentinian society that still awaits progression to grant women as equal an opportunity for the job of their choice. According to the World Bank, as of the year 2016, men over the age of 15 had a 73 percent participation rate in the labor force, compared to 47 percent of women.
The Inter Press Service (IPS) states that even when Argentinian women do gain employment, often times it is in “informal and low productivity sectors.”
Voices of Change: Girls’ Education in Argentina
The plights women have endured in Argentinian society has created resistance from women and men ready to make their voices heard. The non-profit organization, Ni Una Menos (Not One Less), developed after citizens started collaborating to protest against Machisimo. The organization has since taken its message to the forefront of Argentinian society to advocate for women’s rights and protection against violence.
As Argentinian women continue to advocate for change in their societies, it remains a possibility that as more laws are implemented to protect women’s rights, a more promising future for the younger generations can be ensured. This future would guarantee that girls education in Argentina isn’t futile.
– Lois Charm
Photo: Flickr
How to Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger
Poverty is like a cancer for society — it is debilitating and does not have a cure-all solution. People in extreme poverty live on less than $1.90 a day and face poverty traps due to factors such as geographic location, malnutrition, effort required to meet daily needs, lack of education and poor governance. With so many ways for people to become poor, it’s not surprising that different regions need to focus on different issues when determining how to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger.
Poverty Eradication Across the Globe
According to the 2017 World Bank Annual Report, Europe and Central Asia focused 41 percent of the $5.3 billion they borrowed from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development as well as the International Development Association on energy and extractives but only two percent on education.
In contrast, South Asia concentrated 14 percent of the $6.1 billion they borrowed on energy and extractives, and 12 percent on education. Despite such disparities between these two countries’ prioritization of their energy and education sectors, both areas took action to build resilience to climate change, invest in human capital and improve infrastructure.
Benefits of Migration
For poor households trapped by low-productivity and in oftentimes remote, rural locations, migration could be a viable solution to increasing their standard of living. Such families may not be willing to migrate because it would put their sources of subsistence at risk. However, there are large potential gains from migrating to a highly productive country like the U.S.
According to a study by Clemens, Montenegro and Pritchett in 2016, the annual gain from working in a high-productivity environment is more than four times the total lifetime value of the most successful anti-poverty program.
Cash Transfer Solutions
On the policy side, well-targeted and structured cash transfers have been an increasingly popular tool for alleviating poverty in low-income countries. Cash transfers not only provide safety nets by raising the incomes of the poor, but they also help them escape from ‘psychological poverty traps.’
Contrary to the common concern that welfare programs can discourage work, a study done by Banerjee et al. in 2016 found no systematic evidence that cash transfer programs affect the overall number of hours worked nor the propensity to work among the men and women in the seven programs carried out in the Honduras, Indonesia, Morocco, Mexico (which had two programs), Nicaragua and the Philippines.
There are also solutions that require the consideration of measuring poverty based on other factors besides income and consumption. One example would be the offshoring of low-skilled jobs. While these jobs do provide a steady source of income, they are often also unpleasant, risky and may lead to adverse health effects. So, although these jobs can provide a short-term safety net, they are not a long-term solution to poverty.
Small Changes, Big Outcomes
Specific strategy government programs that have lasting effects countering poverty involve multifaceted household-level interventions. In one study by Banerjee et al., implementation of an anti-poverty program at the household level in India, Ethiopia and Pakistan (as well as both the village and household level in Ghana, Honduras and Peru) led to at least a year’s worth of lasting impact after the short-term intervention of the program.
Statistically significant impacts were made in the areas of consumption, food security, productive and household assets, financial inclusion, time use, income and revenues, physical health, mental health, political involvement and women’s empowerment. The intervention consisted of six elements: a productive asset grant, temporary cash consumption support, technical skills training, high frequency home visits, a savings program and health education and services.
Pros and Cons of Policy Change
On the other hand, governments also need to be careful when deciding on policies that involve low-income countries. Bill Clinton admitted in 2010 that his policy to dump American tariff-free rice in Haiti was a mistake. By forcing Haiti to drop tariffs on imported subsidized U.S. rice, the damage done to rice farming severely hindered Haiti’s ability to be self-sufficient.
In response to the incident, Oxfam recommended that food aid should be bought in local markets inside the country receiving aid.
Oxfam also said the Haitian government should decentralise services away from the capital, make sure farmers have credit access and improve their land tenure system where farmers could be cheated by judges able to transfer land into the hands of ‘whoever offers the biggest bribe.’
Eradicating Extreme Poverty and Hunger
The same goes for humanitarian organizations in deciding what kinds of resources and assistance to provide. To answer the question of how to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, these organizations need to first determine what consequences their intervention would lead to. By looking for methods to complement local capacities to combat poverty, humanitarians can prevent their efforts from displacing local businesses.
A great example is The Hunger Project — a global nonprofit organization dedicated to ending world hunger. With programs throughout Africa, South Asia and Latin America, this organization empowers women and men in rural villages to sustainably overcome hunger and poverty. Members of the community accomplish this feat by mobilizing and fostering effective partnerships to engage local government.
In conclusion, there are many factors to consider in different parts of the world when looking at how to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger. Auspicious solutions to poverty traps include migration, conditional cash transfers and multifaceted household-level programs. On the side of humanitarian organizations and the government, much deliberation is essential to providing goods, services and policies that complement and protect rather than displace local needs and markets.
– Connie Loo
Photo: Flickr
Zimbabwe’s Tobacco Secret: Confronting Child Labor in Zimbabwe
The nation of Zimbabwe is working towards more economic stability with its multiple industries, but has recently made headlines for its harmful farming practices, such as child labor.
Zimbabwe has been in the news for its tobacco farming practices, as farm workers have complained about health complications from working on tobacco farms, as well as the poor regulations on farms that fail to ensure that workers’ rights are being respected. What has been more alarming is the discovery of child workers, who have prompted humanitarian organizations to investigate child labor in Zimbabwe as practiced on the nation’s tobacco farms.
Zimbabwe’s Economy
Zimbabwe had a GDP of $17.11 billion and a per capita income of $2,300 as of 2017. The nation’s economy is largely dependent on agriculture and relies heavily on tobacco production for economic sustainability.
The nation is the sixth-largest producer of tobacco in the world, and the tobacco plant is the nation’s most valuable export commodity. The industry alone brought the nation an estimated $933 million in 2016.
Health Risks of Tobacco Farming
As the world’s demand for tobacco persists, growing concerns over child labor in Zimbabwe have surfaced as child workers have come forward to report the poor conditions they have faced while working on tobacco plantations.
According to UNICEF, one in four children in developing countries are engaged in child labor. Furthermore, in an extensive report published by Human Rights Watch, it was discovered that child laborers who harvested tobacco were exposed to nicotine and pesticides. This led to many experiencing symptoms consistent with nicotine poisoning, including nausea, headaches and dizziness. Heath researchers have also suspected that exposure to nicotine can affect brain development in children.
It was also discovered that farm workers who worked on larger farms worked long hours and did not receive any compensation for working overtime.
Human Rights Watch also noted that labor laws in Zimbabwe state that no child under the age of 16 is permitted to work and that children under the age of 18 are not permitted to work in a hazardous environment. However, several children under the age of 16 have reported working on Zimbabwe’s tobacco farms.
Solutions to Child Labor in Zimbabwe
The persistence of child labor in Zimbabwe is mainly attributed to the weak economy. With a national per capita income of roughly $2,300, families have resorted to using their children as laborers to help them survive.
Human Rights Watch child rights researcher Margaret Wurth stated that one solution to ending child labor in Zimbabwe is to make sure that companies who source tobacco from Zimbabwe do not purchase a crop produced by child workers, many of whom are forced to sacrifice their education and health to support their families.
The nation has about 120 labor inspectors, which is insufficient to monitor labor practices in every business, and it would be in the government’s best interest to recruit more inspectors to better monitor how business owners treat their employees.
The nation has shown signs of improvement; Human Rights Watch stated that the government has been working with trade unions and other groups “to develop occupational safety and health regulations for agriculture”.
Although child labor in Zimbabwe has become a crisis for the nation, it is likely that the nation’s government, under the authority of President Emmerson Mnangagwa, will be able to reverse its human rights abuses and further grow the economy, ensuring that children do not have to risk their health and education in order to help support their families.
– Lois Charm
Photo: Flickr
Three Debunked Myths About Overpopulation and Poverty
There has been a longstanding notion that overpopulation and poverty are related. The belief is that overpopulation causes poverty. While it is true that many of the poor nations around the world are overpopulated, research has shown that overpopulation is not the prime reason for poverty.
Experts believe that blaming overpopulation for the financial struggle of a nation could be an oversimplification of the problem. Here are the three main myths when it comes to overpopulation and poverty.
Three Myths About OverPopulation and Poverty
These myths about overpopulation and poverty have persisted for years and still continue to stand in the way of poverty eradication. If the world is to move toward a brighter, healthier, more equal future for all, these myths must be eradicated as well.
– Himja Sethi
Photo: Flickr
Top 10 Facts About Poverty in Jakarta
While Jakarta has one of the lowest poverty rates in Indonesia, the nation as a whole has had fairly stagnant poverty levels for a few years now. The nation has seen much economic growth lately; however, this growth has not aided all citizens equally. These 10 facts about poverty in Jakarta illustrate the differences and similarities between the nation and its capital city.
Facts About Poverty in Jakarta
These are the top 10 facts about poverty in Jakarta. Ultimately, there is still a lot of room for improvement in Jakarta and Indonesia as a whole. Poverty levels have been stagnant and action needs to be taken to move more people and families above the poverty line. However, the government seems to be putting in place far-reaching programs and setting goals for poverty reduction in the nation, which are very important steps. If these efforts continue and improve, Indonesia may well be on its way to eradicating poverty.
– Liyanga de Silva
Photo: Flickr
Jim Yong Kim and the World Bank’s Goal to End Poverty
Since 2012 (and now in his second term), physician and anthropologist Jim Yong Kim has served as the president of the World Bank Group. After assuming leadership of the World Bank, he took up two goals: “to end extreme poverty by 2030; and to boost shared prosperity, focusing on the bottom 40 percent of the population in developing countries.” His career has revolved around health, education and improving the lives of the poor.
Milken Institute and Global Poverty
On May 19, Jim Yong Kim spoke at the Milken Institute Global Conference which focuses on “advancing collaborative solutions that widen access to capital, create jobs and improve health.”
The Milken Institute hosts its Global Conference from April 29 to May 2 in Los Angeles, California, and possesses various centers focused on topics such as the Center for Financial Markets, Center for the Future of Aging, and Center for Jobs and Human Capital. One of the organization’s foci is children — 150 million children around the world are affected by poor nutrition, undersized growth, and cognitive impairment, and live primarily in South Asia and African countries.
According to VOA, if leaders don’t focus on investing in their people, then “many, many, many people will find themselves undereducated and without the skills to be able to compete in the economy of the future and so many countries are going to go down the path of fragility, conflict, violence, and then of course, extremism and migration.”
Business, Health and Development
In the talk, Jim Yong Kim stated there should be a business-like mindset when talking about health and development of individual; in fact, Kim has made it his mission to make this world a better place by working towards a common goal of reducing poverty.
According to Forbes, Kim wants to “reduce extreme poverty levels to below 3 percent of global people, and grow the incomes of the bottom 40 percent of each country.” His organization also lends out cash — almost $59 billion a year.
Before Kim assumed his position as president of the World Bank, he was president at Dartmouth College and “from 2003 to 2005, as director of the World Health Organization’s HIV/AIDS department, he led the “3 by 5” initiative, the first-ever global goal for AIDS treatment, which greatly to expand access to antiretroviral medication in developing countries.”
From A Ted Talk to Today
In a Ted Talk in April of 2017, Kim spoke about going to Haiti when everyone told him that the best thing to do was to focus on vaccination and possibly a feeding program. Since Kim’s parents had emigrated from Korea to flee the Korean war, though, Kim had a different perspective — what he saw in Haiti was what he saw in parents: to give their children the opportunity that they didn’t have.
In the Ted Talk, he goes on to say, “the Haitians wanted a hospital. They wanted schools. They wanted to provide their children with the opportunities that they’d been hearing about from others, relatives, for example, who had gone to the United States. They wanted the same kinds of opportunities as my parents did.”
In conclusion, Jim Yong Kim is a accredited president of the World Bank Group, and a charitable person who traveled to Haiti to help build hospitals and schools, and give children increased opportunities. All in all, if more people follow Kim’s example, the world will be a stronger and more sustainable place.
– Valeria Flores
Photo: Flickr
Promoting Self-Reliance with the Empower Mali Foundation
Mali Presidential Candidate Niankoro Yeah Samake is promoting self-reliance through his Empower Mali Foundation. Samake spoke at a forum on the Brigham Young University-Idaho campus on May 17, discussing how consistent small actions focused on others can bring about great change.
To begin the change for his home village of Ouelessebougou, Samake ran for mayor when he noticed that the government wasn’t utilizing the taxpayers’ money effectively and was becoming more corrupt. Samake won the election by 86 percent and his first order of business was to get the community to trust the government again.
Members of the community started to pay their taxes and Samake showed them exactly where the money was going, where it was coming from and how much they had, unlike previous government rule. Those in Ouelessebougou were able to build a hospital, high school, have running water, electricity and solar panels. Within two years, Samake was able to move Ouelessebougou from the bottom five of Mali’s 704 districts to the top ten.
“The citizens were able to see the power of integrity,” Samake said. “They could see what could be achieved when leaders and citizens work together in an honest and productive way.”
Samake said that Mali needs a leader that would put them first, and he is running in Mali’s next presidential election.
Creating the Empower Mali Foundation
While he was a mayor, Samake created the Empower Mali Foundation to address the growing need in the areas of education, healthcare and access to basic necessities in the rural communities of Mali. The foundation’s goal is to have the issues of individual communities resolved by the community members themselves.
This foundation wants each community within Mali to become self-reliant. The communities initiate the demand for projects and also contribute through cost, land or labor. By being involved, community members are more likely to maintain their project and become self-sustainable.
Empower Mali Foundation works in five main sections:
Education
At 31 percent, Mali has one of the lowest literacy rates in the world. Many Malian villages don’t have the adequate funding for schools or training for teachers. The foundation focuses on resources in school construction and repair, school supplies, adult literacy, job skills training and technology skills.
Healthcare
The average life expectancy for a citizen of Mali is 52 years. This can be due to many different diseases in the area, and the fact that there isn’t adequate training for doctors in more rural parts of Mali.
The Empower Mali Foundation focuses on providing additional health care training, arranging and implementing healthcare expeditions and supplying hygiene kits to communities in need.
Clean Energy
Less than one percent of Mali has access to electricity. The majority of Mali citizens rely on wood and charcoal burning fires to supply energy to their village. The Empower Mali Foundation focuses its resources on the installation of solar panels.
Clean Water
The second leading cause of death in low-income countries is diarrheal diseases. This is because of poor sanitation and no access to clean water. More than one-third of Mali does not have access to clean water. To address this, the Empower Mali Foundation is focusing its resources to install water tanks and water pumps, dig wells and cover current water sources.
Leadership Training
Many people locate in rural Mali don’t have enough information on what local governments do for them. Along with little communication, the poor level of skills and capacities of the duty-holders restrict the full involvement of the people.
The Empower Mali Foundation wants to focus its resources on training local leaders for success by arranging governance summits between local leaders in Mali and other countries. The foundation also wants to implement local participation in order to teach youth to better understand and engage in the local governance process.
The Empower Mali Foundation has completed many projects such as the donation of school kits, hygiene and dental kits and the successful installation of the first electricity-generating playground in Ferekoroba.
The Empower Mali Foundation’s projects take steps to make communities in Mali more self-reliant and sustainable. It is continuing to pursue its goal to raise Mali out of poverty, one community at a time.
– Victoria Fowler
Photo: Flickr