South Sudan is the youngest country in the world and with this has come significant growing pains. Despite the ongoing civil war, the alleviation of disease in South Sudan is quickly becoming one of its positive developments. The most recent example was the announcement of the eradication of the guinea worm within the country’s borders.
What is the Guinea Worm and Who Does it Affect?
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), guinea worm disease only affects the poorest 10 percent of the world’s population. Specifically, it occurs in people who do not have access to clean water or health care.
The disease takes hold when the worms swim around stagnant ponds and find their way into people who drink water from contaminated ponds. The disease takes a year to manifest, and once it shows, patients have severe flu-like symptoms and blisters that cause intense pain and disability. The most efficient way for subjects to relieve the pain is to dunk the affected area, almost always the foot or leg, into water. In the water, the worms spawn thousands of larvae, thus restarting the cycle.
Eradication of the Disease in South Sudan
Dr. Riek Gai Kok, South Sudan’s health minister, announced the end of the guinea worm disease in South Sudan at the Carter Center in Atlanta at the end of March. The Carter Center, a philanthropic organization started by former president Jimmy Carter, has provided much assistance to the world’s youngest nation.
In efforts to help eradicate guinea worm, the Carter Center has distributed a pesticide to one volunteer in each Sudanese village affected by the parasitic worm. The volunteer then pours the pesticide into all the ponds in and around their town.
It has been 15 months since the last case of guinea worm disease in South Sudan, longer than the incubation period for the worm, but still short of the three year period required by the World Health Organization to officially declare the guinea worm extinct in the area. Still, Dr. Kok thanked the organization and the thousands of volunteers it trained.
This year will be an important one to identify the benefits of eliminating the disease in South Sudan. Most cases appear in July, which is a crucial time for the agrarian population in the country, and the worm can cripple entire villages.
Why Eradication is Important
Even though guinea worm disease seldom ends in death, the disease is still debilitating. It handicaps its victims on average for around two months, but sometimes the incapacitation is permanent. More than 90 percent of South Sudanese citizens depend on labor occupations like fishing, herding or farming for sustenance and employment. So, when disability removes the victim from the workforce, there are devastating results.
To compound this, a workforce shortage resulting from the mass exodus during the civil war forced children into the fields. According to the CDC’s statistics, in villages where guinea worm disease is most prevalent, over 60 percent of children miss school.
This is the main reason why eliminating guinea worm disease in South Sudan is so important. The connection between the disease and poverty is circular. While the illness is a result of living in destitute conditions, it also is a significant cause of poverty when it keeps its victims and their families from completing their jobs or from going to school.
As a result, government officials are pleased about eradicating the disease in South Sudan because it is a boon to their public health system and long-term economy. Furthermore, in one of the most food insecure countries, the ability to have an entire harvesting season unabated by a preventable disease could be a major step toward ending famine and alleviating poverty in South Sudan.
– David Jaques
Photo: Flickr
Top 10 Croatian War Facts
Although the Croatian War has been over for more than twenty years, the aftermath is still present within the region. Lack of economic and political stability are current problems that Croatia faces. Professor Daliborka Uljarevic, a leader in the Centre for Citizens’ Education, says “political rhetoric and lack of profound economic recovery keep people stuck in recent past, with poor view on better future.” Here are the top 10 Croatian war facts that provide a better understanding of what happened during the war and how Croatia remains affected.
Top 10 Croatian War Facts:
These 10 Croatian war facts do not demonstrate the full monstrosity that ensued during 1991-1995. Victims are still suffering to this day and many families still have not found their missing loved ones.
– Mary McCarthy
Photo: Flickr
What Are the Biggest Global Issues?
What are the biggest global issues that the world is facing right now? All around the world, countries are facing new issues every single day on their own, but despite its borders, the world is constantly facing issues as a whole. What are the biggest global issues that the world is facing together? There are many that affect everybody and require attention from not just one country, but every country.
One of the top global issues today is the continent of Africa. Africa needs support both economically and socially in order to develop and protect human rights, as well as build solid governments and better the lives of the people living there. African countries also need support to promote democratic institutions in order for there to be peace among the nations.
AIDS is another top global issue in the world today. Although new HIV infections have decreased significantly, the global response to HIV/AIDS has to continue to be powerful in order to wipe out the epidemic completely.
The rights of children are another top global issue throughout many different countries. Millions of children do not have access to education, health or protection. Every country should be expanding the opportunities for children and allowing them to exercise the rights that all humans should be allowed.
Climate change is a significant issue that shifts weather patterns. This causes a threat to food production, rising sea levels and many more negative impacts on nature. Climate change is a global issue that directly affects not only humans throughout the world, but animals and the ecosystem itself.
Food insecurity is one of the biggest global issues the world is facing right now. About 795 million people in the world were malnourished between 2014 and 2016. Hunger is known to be the number one risk to human health worldwide, even greater than disease.
Another global issue is inadequate access to clean water and the lack of sanitation and hygiene that goes along with it. This is typically due to bad economics and infrastructure, and often leads to deaths, especially in children, caused by diseases that are spread by unsanitary water.
There are many more problems that the world is facing today, but these are the biggest global issues that the world needs to address now. Some of the issues listed affect not only the human race but animals and nature as well. From diseases to government, the world is facing global issues together every day.
– Chloe Turner
Photo: Flickr
The State of Technology Out of India
India’s reputation for outsourcing has grown over the last 30 years. However, India’s market has dropped due to the recent change in the U.S. political climate and the development of artificial intelligence and automation systems. While things look uncertain now, there is still a strong case for the technology out of India.
Opportunity for Growth
India has been called the “new China” for many companies looking to expand consumer bases. Corporations like Google, Facebook and Twitter have largely been banned from China’s market, which is why India provides an important opportunity. The technology out of India would have been unheard of ten years ago, but now with the ballooning smartphone users (hitting 168 million Indian users in 2015) and internet users (around 277 million Indian users as of 2017), an environment for phone applications, mobile payments, social media sites and more are growing.
The big corporations have moved in despite challenges. One such hurdle was the Indian government requesting more than any other country that Facebook remove information (10,792 times in 2014). This change in technological circumstances has opened channels for local Indian companies to develop as well. A 2016 National Association of Software and Services Companies reported India ranked 3rd largest for startups. While there is still some gender inequality with less than 10 percent of Indian entrepreneurs and engineers being women, there is an awareness of the inequality, thus creating an opportunity for change.
Replacing IT Jobs
The IT sector brings in almost 10 percent of India’s gross domestic product (GDP) and all trajectories showed growth, but recent layoffs in the industry have caused some question of India’s ability to create a job market and grow. The wave of recent layoffs, estimated to be around 56,000 over the last year, is assumed to be due to automation in a lot of the industry along with U.S. President Trump’s campaign of focussing jobs in the U.S. and cutting back H-1B visas.
Around 60 to 70 percent of jobs in the IT and call center industry are expected to be replaced by automation systems. The layoffs are expected to hit a high of 480,000 by 2021. This makes it difficult as 12 million Indians enter the workforce every year, but only about 135,000 jobs were created by India’s eight biggest sectors, including IT, in 2015. Pankaj Bansal, a chief executive with People Strong, believes the IT sector will hit a net of zero hires in the future unless something changes.
Returning Home
Even with layoffs, many Indian engineers and entrepreneurs are leaving the U.S. to return home and pursue careers in India. Experts estimate the migration home to be in the tens of thousands. Indians are returning home to pursue opportunities closer to family and where their salaries will go farther than in the U.S. The migration back to India shows the job market is still open and available for more technology out of India. Although India’s average GDP has slowed recently, it has still grown tremendously in the past compared to other countries, like the U.S. India’s GDP grew 7.3 percent from 2010 to 2014 while the U.S. GDP only saw a 2.2 percent increase.
Electronic Payment
A particular segment of the IT sector worth noting is electronic payments. The use of electronic payment is growing in Asia as a whole and many are trying to bring India to a place of acceptance for mobile payment applications. Paytm (an Indian mobile payment technology out of India) in particular plans to invest $1.9 billion over the next two years to make this the electronic payment method the future of India. Only about one-third of citizens have access to the internet, and of those who do, only about 14 percent are making an average of one electronic payment a week. Plus, there is a trust issue from reports of hackers stealing money from Paytm accounts.
Two years ago India was all over the news for being the next China, but many have decreased their expectations and predictions after recently reduced job opportunities. While India is currently facing challenges, if it can find growth prospects, particularly locally, there should be no reason to be unable to turn layoffs into job possibilities.
– Natasha Komen
Photo: Flickr
Bettering Credit Access in Niger
In today’s economy, credit access is a necessity. Credit access in Niger, however, has been a struggle in recent years. Individuals and businesses need it to sustain themselves and use registered credit to increase buying power. Without it, people are often exposed to predatory lenders who will abuse the power of the loans. For low-income communities, credit access can provide hope in the economy by providing citizens the opportunity to build a credit history for themselves.
Niger doesn’t offer sufficient credit access for its communities, forcing them to use personal savings to sustain businesses. This often means their only savings go back to the production of more profit to be used for maintaining their business, not to sustain their household. The cycle of earning just the minimum to sustain the small business forms and doesn’t allow for the businesses to grow. Additionally, the smaller the business, the less likely it is to apply for and receive a loan.
One of the biggest struggles for credit access in Niger is geography. The country’s population is low in density and there are large distances between communities, which hinders access to microfinance institutions. The distance and cost of transportation make it impossible for some individuals to gain credit access. Some can not even afford a viable way to get to the institution without spending a sufficient amount of their household income. The need for multiple visits doesn’t help the situation.
The correlation between distance and access to credit institutions in Niger can not go unnoticed. Of adults living in rural areas, only seven percent have access to a bank account. Less than two percent of Nigerians had taken out a loan as of 2014.
Niger’s rural areas, business types and economy also factor into its underdeveloped classification as a country. Credit access in Niger has been very timid for agriculture and other industries on the rise, such as technology and media. However, there have been recent initiatives to help the lack of credit access in Niger.
BAGRI, a public agricultural bank in Niger, and SOS Faim have been trying to implement certain experiments and programs to address the ongoing problem of credit access in Niger. SOS Faim led an experiment in 2015 where it analyzed four cases in Niamey. The experiment aimed to better understand credit management strategies of farmers, identify support requirements and come up with possible solutions. What is needed now is more research and economic evidence to start and find a real solution to a problem that has been affecting Niger’s economy on a higher level.
– Elisa Martinez Cancino
Photo: Flickr
Disease in South Sudan: Ending Guinea Worm
South Sudan is the youngest country in the world and with this has come significant growing pains. Despite the ongoing civil war, the alleviation of disease in South Sudan is quickly becoming one of its positive developments. The most recent example was the announcement of the eradication of the guinea worm within the country’s borders.
What is the Guinea Worm and Who Does it Affect?
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), guinea worm disease only affects the poorest 10 percent of the world’s population. Specifically, it occurs in people who do not have access to clean water or health care.
The disease takes hold when the worms swim around stagnant ponds and find their way into people who drink water from contaminated ponds. The disease takes a year to manifest, and once it shows, patients have severe flu-like symptoms and blisters that cause intense pain and disability. The most efficient way for subjects to relieve the pain is to dunk the affected area, almost always the foot or leg, into water. In the water, the worms spawn thousands of larvae, thus restarting the cycle.
Eradication of the Disease in South Sudan
Dr. Riek Gai Kok, South Sudan’s health minister, announced the end of the guinea worm disease in South Sudan at the Carter Center in Atlanta at the end of March. The Carter Center, a philanthropic organization started by former president Jimmy Carter, has provided much assistance to the world’s youngest nation.
In efforts to help eradicate guinea worm, the Carter Center has distributed a pesticide to one volunteer in each Sudanese village affected by the parasitic worm. The volunteer then pours the pesticide into all the ponds in and around their town.
It has been 15 months since the last case of guinea worm disease in South Sudan, longer than the incubation period for the worm, but still short of the three year period required by the World Health Organization to officially declare the guinea worm extinct in the area. Still, Dr. Kok thanked the organization and the thousands of volunteers it trained.
This year will be an important one to identify the benefits of eliminating the disease in South Sudan. Most cases appear in July, which is a crucial time for the agrarian population in the country, and the worm can cripple entire villages.
Why Eradication is Important
Even though guinea worm disease seldom ends in death, the disease is still debilitating. It handicaps its victims on average for around two months, but sometimes the incapacitation is permanent. More than 90 percent of South Sudanese citizens depend on labor occupations like fishing, herding or farming for sustenance and employment. So, when disability removes the victim from the workforce, there are devastating results.
To compound this, a workforce shortage resulting from the mass exodus during the civil war forced children into the fields. According to the CDC’s statistics, in villages where guinea worm disease is most prevalent, over 60 percent of children miss school.
This is the main reason why eliminating guinea worm disease in South Sudan is so important. The connection between the disease and poverty is circular. While the illness is a result of living in destitute conditions, it also is a significant cause of poverty when it keeps its victims and their families from completing their jobs or from going to school.
As a result, government officials are pleased about eradicating the disease in South Sudan because it is a boon to their public health system and long-term economy. Furthermore, in one of the most food insecure countries, the ability to have an entire harvesting season unabated by a preventable disease could be a major step toward ending famine and alleviating poverty in South Sudan.
– David Jaques
Photo: Flickr
9 Facts About Humanitarian Aid That Everyone Should Know
Throughout the twentieth and twenty-first century, the global community has made a concentrated effort toward ending world poverty. Very often, Americans hear of the term “humanitarian aid” without a transparent knowledge of what that aid does or who and where it goes to. Below are nine interesting facts about humanitarian aid, including some of the origins of organized aid, countries and organizations that provide aid and the countries that benefit from humanitarian aid provisions.
Humanitarian Aid Facts
Based on these facts about humanitarian aid, it is clear that global aid is vital to creating a global community of countries that care about one another. The global aid network creates a myriad of positive outcomes in global health, development and politics, truly saving the lives of many.
– Daniel Levy
Photo: Pixabay
10 Poverty Charities That Are Currently Changing the World
Give Well is a nonprofit charity evaluator with the aim of providing donors a list of the best charities to donate to. It evaluates based on how much good is done per dollar. With its criteria in mind, here are 10 poverty charities that are worth donating to.
The first of the 10 poverty charities is the Against Malaria Foundation. According to its website, 100 percent of donations go toward long-lasting insecticidal nets, which are used to fight malaria. So far, it has raised money for 69,720,219 nets. This charity has a Malaria Advisory Group made up of malaria experts who work to ensure that the money is spent on the most cost-effective solutions to combat malaria. Additionally, the team confirms that the nets are being properly distributed.
Malaria Consortium focuses on preventing, controlling and treating malaria, among other diseases, in 12 low-income countries in Africa and Southeast Asia. Its methods for fighting these diseases are backed by extensive research and then shared with the countries in an effort to improve health practice and policy development.
Schistosomiasis Control Initiative concentrates on eliminating neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), which affect over 200 million people across the world. According to its website, its goal is “to reduce the global disease burden of NTDs in sub-Saharan Africa by 2030 in accordance with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.”
The END Fund also strives to fight NTDs, including intestinal worms, schistosomiasis, lymphatic filariasis, trachoma and river blindness, which collectively create 2.95 billion people in need of treatment. The organization focuses on providing effective solutions at a small cost. According to its website, it has “raised more than $118 million, treated more than 140 million people with 330 million treatments at a value of more than $620 million.”
According to WHO, 836 million children across the world are at risk of parasitic worm infections. This is what Deworm the World Initiative is combating. The principles listed on Evidence Action’s website include using effective solutions that are backed by research and building operational models. As stated on its website, its goal is to “design a process to bridge the gap between proven interventions that work and scaling them up to produce measurable impact for millions of people.”
Evidence Action also runs No Lean Season, a charity to reduce the effects of seasonality in agricultural areas. The charity provides $20 to families so they can send a family member to a nearby city to find a job in the time between planting and harvesting crops. With this money, the family is able to afford 500 more meals during this period.
Sightsavers’ mission is to stop avoidable blindness and protect the rights of those who are disabled. Its strategy is to influence policies regarding global health, education and NTDs.
The Helen Keller International organization aims to improve sight and fight malnutrition. According to its website, “we build the capacity of local government, non-profit and private sector systems and infrastructure, and promote the development of sustained, large scale programs that deliver effective solutions to preventable blindness and malnutrition.”
Give Directly is an organization that allows donors to donate money to families in extremely poor communities. The process contains four steps: locating the poorest communities around the world, auditing to ensure that recipients did not cheat, transferring around $1000 for the year and monitoring to ensure the households received the payment.
The Borgen Project fights to eradicate global poverty. Its strategy is to mobilize citizens to call their representatives. Through this, it has change U.S. foreign aid policies. Some bills that it has helped to pass include the Electrify Africa Act, the Global Food Security Act and the Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act.
These 10 poverty charities operate with transparency to donors and cost-effective solutions to issues that plague developing nations. These attributes make these the top 10 poverty charities one should consider getting involved with.
– Olivia Booth
Photo: Flickr
What Is Famine?
The only time many of us think of food is when we are hungry. Unfortunately, many countries like Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia, Uganda, and Yemen are not afforded that opportunity due to many catastrophes that affect the growth of crops and other food sources. Thanks to the supergroup called United Support of Artists (USA) for Africa, circa 1985, famine became a global concern. Artists such as Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, and Quincy Jones contributed to the charitable, Billboard-charting single We Are the World. Fast forward to over 30 years later, the following question is still a valid one: what is famine?
What is Famine?
Famine is not just food shortage. Chris Hufstader from OXFAM America states that it’s also a widespread food scarcity where poverty leads to malnutrition and death. Food scarcity is determined under a set of criteria and ranking called the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC). The IPC is a tracking system that monitors the availability of food in various countries for governments to foresee and become proactive to avoid a food crisis. The IPC is set up into five phases:
Origins of Famine
To know what is famine is to see the origin. Just like many things in life like war, slavery, and any form of injustice there is a cause and effect. According to Joel Mokyr of the Britannica, famine originated in the 19th century in Ireland. The cause of hunger stemmed from a consecutive year of potato crop failure due to an infestation that targets the leaves and roots of these plants. It was later called the Great Famine. The Great Famine was so severe it was given three alternate names: Irish Potato Famine, Great Irish Famine, or Famine of 1845-1849.
Although crop failure is one of many reasons to why famines occur, there are several reasons why scarcity exists. For instance, Joe Hasell and Max Roser from Our World in Data states that the lack of serviceable food markets to support and ensure reliable transportation of goods to aid malnourished countries is an issue. Without efficient shipping from the marketplace, support cannot be released. Also, inflation on prices in food markets leads to marginalizing poverty-stricken countries to afford the food sold. According to Hasell and Roser’s source from the Markets and Famines novel, Martin Ravallion, increase in prices stems from floods that transpired throughout the famine which developed a supply and demand. Panic buying and price speculation, however, contributed to the actual cause of food shortage.
Solutions Exist
Understanding famine, the history, and the causes of this travesty leads to many solutions that can ensure that no one goes unfed. WeFarm CEO and Founder, Kenny Ewan, presents one such solution in providing farmers worldwide with the necessary communication for success. Programs like this begin to counteract every potential food scare and prohibit further damage to populations.
– Christopher Shipman
Photo: Flickr
The Causes of Uganda’s Recent Cholera Outbreak
Cholera, an acute infectious disease, is not new to the east African country of Uganda. For 47 years, epidemics of cholera have occurred frequently in the country, and cases of the disease in Ugandan communities are still reported annually. Uganda’s recent cholera outbreak was reported Feb. 22, 2018.
Refugee Overcrowding
The announcement came after 668 cholera cases had been identified in the refugee settlements in Hoima District. Hoima District is a Western Ugandan district home to thousands of Congolese refugees escaping ongoing violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s northeastern Ituri province.
More than 4.4 million people have been forced out of their homes in Democratic Republic of Congo amid a surge in severe violence. The aggression stemmed from President Joseph Kabila’s refusal to step down at the end of his mandate in 2016. As a result of the humanitarian disaster, it is estimated that about 43,000 Congolese refugees have settled into Ugandan areas this year. This brings the total of Congolese refugees in Uganda to more than a quarter of a million.
Increased Violence
Although Uganda welcomes all those fleeing violence and seeking refuge into the country, government-funded health facilities have been overwhelmed by the sharp rise in the refugee population. Since the initial outbreak announcement in February, at least 1,747 people have become sick and at least 36 have died from the worsening situation. Most of the deaths were recent evacuees from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
In addition to plaguing the refugee resettlements in Hoima District, Uganda’s recent cholera outbreak has also now spread to two additional sub-counties. It is estimated that drinking unsafe water from Lake Albert, poor sanitation and a lack of handwashing facilities in the area have contributed to the dehydration, diarrhea, vomiting and fatality rates.
Response Efforts
Uganda’s recent cholera outbreak has proven an urgent demand for additional resources and funds to prevent the spread and deaths from the bacterial disease. However, some response efforts and services are currently in place. Thanks to a fast-acting response plan by the U.N. Refugee Agency and The Ministry of Health, health actors and community leaders are working to provide medical supplies, health personnel and other essential support. This includes demonstrations on proper food and hand hygiene and water safety to reduce transmission of the illness. Many technical teams are working to conduct medical screenings, provide treatments and produce water purification tablets near Western Uganda’s Lake Albert and Kyangwali refugee settlement.
Additionally, international agencies like the World Health Organization and UNICEF have provided two different cholera kits with vital supplies for cholera case management. Uganda Red Cross Society has actively supported social mobilization to prevent and regulate the outbreak.
Because of these life-saving efforts enforced by health workers and technical teams, there has been a significant decrease in the number of new cholera cases within the western Lake Albert region. As of Feb. 28, health care workers were detecting approximately 100 new cases of cholera a day. By March 12, the daily case number had decreased to 20. The medical assistance provided helped decrease the mortality rate by two percent. However, Uganda’s recent cholera outbreak is not over and the work in cholera-suffering hotspots is far from resolved.
– Natalie Shaw
Photo: Google
10 Facts About Poverty in Jordan
Jordan is a country of key interest to the United States, as both share mutual goals of bringing a comprehensive and lasting peace to the conflict-ridden Middle East. As proof of its investment in maintaining diplomatic relations, the United States has contributed vastly to Jordan’s growth and development over the past decade, providing billions in aid to improve the conditions of the military, economy and health care for citizens.
Much of this aid aims to address the overarching issue of poverty in Jordan, which affects an estimated 35% of the total population. Today, there are several factors that characterize poverty in Jordan, which is anticipated to increase over the next couple of years without critical state reform. These 10 facts about poverty in Jordan seek to break down major components of the issue and supply possible solutions going forward.
10 Facts About Poverty in Jordan
Despite having a naturally harsh desert landscape, the mean temperature of the country has exponentially increased over the past half-century, resulting in frequent and lasting droughts that have contributed to water scarcity. Low water availability forces residents to rely upon contaminated water sources, exacerbating the spread of vector-borne diseases. Water-scarce regions also suffer from low agricultural production, creating rifts in the local economy and leading to food insecurity. Such risks are anticipated to grow in size and scale without careful management. According to the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), 40% of Jordan’s groundwater basins are expected to be severely depleted by 2030.
The minimum wage in Jordan is currently set at USD 366.87 per month for 2023 and 2024. In comparison, the poverty line for a Jordanian household stands at USD 677.80 per month. This minimum wage amount has been largely acknowledged as insufficient to support approximately 500,000 Jordanians in the formal or informal labor force, and as encouraging high unemployment rates. It has also been denounced for not complying with the Jordanian labor rights law, which mandates raising the minimum wage concurrent with increases in the inflation rate and cost of living.
Despite the country’s history of macroeconomic stability, Jordan is subject to frequent spikes in inflation. In 2023, the index for fuel and lighting increased by 6.76% compared to 2022, while that of dairy products and eggs increased by 5.95%. In February 2024, food prices in the country increased by 1.8%, characteristic of the recent trend of increasing food prices observed in 2023. Despite affecting the livelihood of all Jordanians, low-income residents have especially been impacted by the fluctuating inflation rate, and have experienced a greater eroding of their purchasing power. Many report an inability to purchase essential expenses as a result of attempting to cover their basic needs.
Today, poverty is highest in rural areas and is constantly amplified by chronic water shortages and a lack of critical infrastructure. Animal husbandry, the traditional economic pillar for many rural communities, has experienced a sharp increase in livestock feed costs in recent years, which has pressured households to sell their animals to offset their losses. Failed state projects to alleviate low agricultural production rates have exacerbated the marginalization of rural communities, inciting protests by impoverished workers and local youths demanding better economic opportunities since 2011.
In 2023, intended beneficiaries of an automated cash transfer program initially known as Takaful reported crippling failures to address poverty. Many households were incorrectly rejected from financial support because they did not fit the algorithm’s model of stereotypical poverty, depriving them of their right to social security. Programmed indicators intended to capture economic complexity were markedly insufficient and depended on inaccurate and unreliable data to form profiles. This program was also largely available to those with access to technology, which excluded residents unfamiliar with digital technology and rural communities, exacerbating existing disparities instead of resolving them.
In November 2023, Jordan recorded an all-time high national debt of $46 billion. This rate is anticipated to increase by $5.2 billion between 2024 and 2029 and has been attributed to costly infrastructure projects commissioned by China over the past decade. High rates of debt have devalued money for low-income residents and have discouraged savings and long-term investments, crippling citizens looking to escape poverty.
Economic growth in Jordan came to a standstill during the COVID-19 pandemic. National GDP was estimated to have decreased by 23%, and food systems experienced a reduction in output by nearly 40%. Employment losses were also estimated at over 20%, devastating the services sector and the agricultural sector. Following the pandemic, small businesses were still subject to a drop in revenues, resulting in financial burdens that saw many unable to afford costs of rent, energy and utilities. Although the state has attempted to resolve these labor market structural challenges by promoting tailored support to informal daily wage workers, numerous businesses still report financial burdens that reflect a long road to recovery.
Jordan hosts more than 643,000 Syrians as a result of the civil war in neighboring Syria.. Thousands of civilians have poured into the country in search of solace from the conflict. Over 85% live in rented facilities outside of refugee camps and are forced to resort to child labor and reduced food intake to offset unemployment and illnesses. Approximately 66% of Syrian refugees live below the poverty line and are expected to continue to suffer from harsh living conditions without access to social services, better health care and economic opportunities.
Repressive government measures in Jordan have resulted in increasingly violent protests in recent years. IMF-mandated austerity measures have led fuel prices to nearly double, inciting demonstrations throughout the country consisting of professional drivers, youths and shop owners. Many demonstrations have vandalized public property and blocked roads, and have been concentrated in the cities of central and southern Jordan. Despite the government’s acquiescence to lower fuel prices in December 2022, the recurring cycle of insufficient structural adjustment amid chronic socioeconomic crises will inevitably create another wave of unrest unless effective reform is implemented.
Poverty in Jordan is not without viable solutions. Further increasing foreign aid to the country in the form of monetary funds to assist in economic development can help the nation cope with prominent issues such as low water supply and food insecurity. New and continued partnerships with global humanitarian organizations can provide residents with vital resources and personnel to improve health conditions and support disadvantaged populations. One such agency, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), has helped facilitate a 40% reduction in infant mortality over the last twenty years, supported better access to education for Jordanians and refugees alike, increased the availability of safe drinking water and administered the Jordan-U.S. Free Trade Agreement. With the right support and resources, Jordan can have the leverage it needs to push back against current socioeconomic detriments and start on a road to recovery and success.
These 10 facts about poverty in Jordan have outlined several key political and socioeconomic problems in Jordan that have led to high rates of poverty, and have provided viable solutions to rectify these issues. It is vital that the United States continues its investment in allied countries in the region and prevents further political instability to secure a peaceful future for Jordan in the years to come.
– Shane Summers, Moon Jung Kim
Photo: Flickr