In December of 2010, a 26-year-old Tunisian man who struggled with poverty committed self-immolation in protest of police and government actions. This incident marked the starting point of the “Arab Spring,” during which various North Africa and Middle East countries reached democratic regimes.
However, after 5 years of revolution, Tunisia still faces distinct difficulties. Corruption, unemployment and violence against women are the most severe issues. Even though there have been advances to solve these complications, the following organizations help people in Tunisia developing several programs.
Transparency International
Corruption was one of the main problems that citizens attempted to solve in Arab Spring. Ironically, it is the principal concern that Tunisians have now. According to a study made by Transparency International, 61 percent of the people in the country believe that the level of corruption has increased in the last 12 months. Additionally, 30 percent of the people surveyed fear retaliation if they speak out about corruption.
Transparency International brings some strategies to attack this issue and help people in Tunisia. One of them is finishing with the impunity, which means that those public officials that break the law must be punished in order to end the corruption cycle. Empowering the citizens to monitor politicians and promote transparency allows citizens to know where taxes, credits or international aid are used in the public interest is another strategy.
Unfortunately, 15 percent of the Tunisians live in unemployment, an indicator that triggers poverty. In addition, some areas are more vulnerable than others: the most affected zone is the central area of the country, where poverty reaches 30 percent in some regions.
International Labor Organization
Unemployment gets worse in youth, since 33 percent of young Tunisian men and women between 15 and 29 suffers this problem. To help people in Tunisia, the International Labor Organization (ILO) works to transform this situation.
It has created local economic development by giving young people pilot projects. One such project is the construction of a marketplace that will give merchants a better place to sell their wares. In addition, it has helped local people to develop new and useful skills; for instance, about 100 Tunisians have been trained in agriculture, knowledge that will permit them growing, harvesting and selling products.
U.N. Women
In other areas, Tunisia is moving forward. In 2010 for instance, U.N. Women reported that nearly 50 percent of Tunisian women had experienced violence in their lifetime. However, last July, the Tunisian Congress passed the first national law to combat violence against women. This law primarily ensures the survivors access to essential services, such as legal and psychological assistance.
Mobile applications also prevent violence against women. With Eyewatch, for example, in just one click the app informs people what is happening at the moment. This technology was used by women in Dharavi, a locality in Mumbai, India. The application has helped women to track cases of violence, the Guardian reported.
How to help people in Tunisia has become an important question that organizations are addressing. Donating to these organizations and calling your legislators to support bills that help nations like Tunisia are surefire ways to help truly make a difference.
– Dario Ledesma
Photo: Flickr
Common Diseases in Cyprus
Cyprus, an island in the Mediterranean Sea, gained its independence from Great Britain almost sixty years ago. Today, Cyprus is home to just over 1.2 million people, the vast majority of whom are Greek. These people are governed by the Republic of Cyprus, which is a presidential democracy. As is the case across the world, there are a plethora of common diseases in Cyprus that damage the Middle Eastern nation.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) only recommends that most people who are planning to visit Cyprus receive one vaccination: Hepatitis A. The vaccine is both safe and effective in preventing people from contracting the viral liver illness and mild to severe sickness that results. Contaminated food and water can potentially spread the disease, according to the WHO.
Depending on what one is planning to do in Cyprus, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention also recommends the vaccination for Hepatitis B. The activities that put one at risk for Hepatitis B in Cyprus include sexual activity, tattoos or piercings or medical procedures. One of the particularly important similarities between Hepatitis A and B is that vaccinations can prevent both.
Rare diseases are not quite as rare in Cyprus is their name suggests. In fact, it is estimated that over 60,000 people suffer from rare diseases. What are rare diseases? According to Cyprus Mail, “Most rare diseases are genetic and include congenital abnormalities…” Part of what makes combating rare diseases such a challenge is that there are many different types of them that require highly-valuable resources to alleviate.
One action being taken to help the many affected by rare diseases in Cyprus is the opening of a new health center in Nicosia, the nation’s capital, which will provide information and support to people with rare diseases. “This is very helpful because we are under one umbrella,” a woman who was present at the opening said to Cyprus Mail. She went on to say that in the past those who suffered from a rare disease often felt isolated and that they had nowhere to turn.
Hepatitis A and B are two common diseases in Cyprus that people need to take precautions against. Additionally, when grouped together, individual rare diseases are a major problem, but it seems as though steps are being taken to improve the situation.
– Adam Braunstein
Photo: Flickr
Aagahi Promotes Adult Female Literacy in Pakistan
This dedication is also evidenced by hiring an all-female staff of 12,000 teachers, making TCF the largest private employer of women in the country. Furthermore, the foundation also prioritizes adult literacy within surrounding communities through its online platform, Aagahi.
The Aagahi Adult Literacy Program was launched in 2005 to facilitate written communication between teachers and parents of students in TCF’s core schools. TCF recognized the important role educated parents play in providing a holistic approach to their children’s’ learning. With female literacy in Pakistan already so low, the foundation created Aagahi specifically with mothers in mind.
The program quickly gained traction, however, and soon TCF began opening learning centers in public spaces to reach more women. Since the start of the program, Aagahi has brought literacy, numeracy and basic life skills to over 59,000 women across 68 of Pakistan’s poorest villages.
In September 2017, TCF was awarded the Confucius Prize for Literacy by UNESCO to celebrate the success of Aagahi. The award is given to adult literacy programs in rural areas. This is the first year Pakistan has ever been the recipient of the award, making it a significant accomplishment.
Aagahi’s online platform is opening new possibilities for women who may have never set foot in a classroom. It is paving the way for a new standard of prioritizing female literacy in Pakistan. The self-confidence gained by the women benefiting from Aagahi can be witnessed in their testimonies. Student Kaneez Fatima said of the program, “Aagahi for me is not merely an activity to pass time; it has given me a new life! I am self-reliant, confident and hopeful towards life.”
The inspiring work being done by The Citizen’s Foundation will continue to expand, empowering women and children across Pakistan.
– Micaela Fischer
Photo: Flickr
Migration and Poverty: An Overview
The history of human migration and poverty starts at the very dawn of humankind, when our ancestors have still lived in Africa. Back then, early humans did not have the technologies that we have today, such as a writing system or mathematics.
Why is this important? It’s important because back then, human tribes already knew (at some primitive level at least) that in order to find a location with better resources, they needed to move to somewhere else. Consequently, humans have spread (and adapted) to all corners of the planet.
Even today, people generally migrate in order to have better access to resources, be they food or work opportunities. For people living in poverty, such as migrants from Ireland during the potato crisis, it was food. For people who are not direly poor, such as academic migrants, they migrate in order to find academic or employment resources.
But then, one can ask: does migration benefit everyone? Surely, once all the land has been populated and with the academic job market being ferocious, there should be no migration? Well, unfortunately, the topic is infinitely more complex than that.
Thousands of years ago, the only useful resource was food. Nowadays, “wealth” is a complex term that encapsulates a variety of resources: food, money, familial relationships, job prospects, culture and so on.
Some people leave countries because they don’t like their culture, (Switzerland was once described as a prison) because of familial relationships, (U.S. Americans moving across the country to be with family) or for job prospects (Poles moving to the U.K.). Because these migrations have been going on for literally thousands of years, we now live in a world where everyone has traces of multiple ethnicities.
Immigration and emigration has provided individuals with the ability to gain important skills and responsibilities in different communities. Additionally, population movement can help thousands find safer homes. Consequently, mindlessly stopping migration from happening can prevent these individuals from not only rising up in life, but also from achieving basic safety and survival. In fact, MarketWatch recently posted an article explaining why the U.S. still needs immigrants.
This is why migration and poverty are connected closely to one another. Foreign policy should definitely consider this relationship when discussing poverty reduction. The problem of migration cannot be halted by scribbling a few laws in place. However, with the alleviation of poverty, fewer people will find the need to emigrate for reasons of survival and resource necessity.
– Michal Burgunder
Photo: Flickr
How To Help People In Fiji Affected By Major Cyclones
Before the devastation of the double cyclones, there was a good deal of work being done in Fiji to help impoverished communities on the islands. One of the most prominent groups doing this work was HELP International. Projects HELP committed to included anti-drug activism, financial responsibility courses and a multitude of physical education classes for children, especially those with disabilities. However, while only 40 percent of the population was directly affected by Winston and Zena, the most pressing issues remain the assistance and rehabilitation of the islands most dramatically impacted by the tropical storms.
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations is one of the most prominent groups working on how to help people in Fiji. In terms of immediate response, the FAO distributed 90,000 packets of seeds and more than 500,000 fresh planting materials in order to combat food insecurity.
Despite these encouraging signs, there is still much to be done a year after the cyclones devastated the islands. If you are trying to find out how to help people in Fiji, the Fijian government has established a plan to work the islands back to functionality, but foreign aid and investment will be needed.
A program called “Adopt a School” has been started by the Fijian government, with the express purpose of allowing concerned groups to establish and rebuild damaged schools. The “Help for Homes” initiative is a program partially funded by the government in an attempt to subsidize the rebuilding of homes for those who lost them in Winston and Zena.
However, the government is short roughly $97 million, and is relying on donors to fill the gap. The sugar industry, devastated by the storms, is facing similar rebuilding problems and requires similar levels of assistance. Though we cannot forget those affected here in the United States by Irma and Harvey, aid to those whose lives were destroyed by other storms in other countries should not be kept from all who need it.
– Connor S. Keowen
Photo: Flickr
How to Help People in Tunisia
However, after 5 years of revolution, Tunisia still faces distinct difficulties. Corruption, unemployment and violence against women are the most severe issues. Even though there have been advances to solve these complications, the following organizations help people in Tunisia developing several programs.
Transparency International
Corruption was one of the main problems that citizens attempted to solve in Arab Spring. Ironically, it is the principal concern that Tunisians have now. According to a study made by Transparency International, 61 percent of the people in the country believe that the level of corruption has increased in the last 12 months. Additionally, 30 percent of the people surveyed fear retaliation if they speak out about corruption.
Transparency International brings some strategies to attack this issue and help people in Tunisia. One of them is finishing with the impunity, which means that those public officials that break the law must be punished in order to end the corruption cycle. Empowering the citizens to monitor politicians and promote transparency allows citizens to know where taxes, credits or international aid are used in the public interest is another strategy.
Unfortunately, 15 percent of the Tunisians live in unemployment, an indicator that triggers poverty. In addition, some areas are more vulnerable than others: the most affected zone is the central area of the country, where poverty reaches 30 percent in some regions.
International Labor Organization
Unemployment gets worse in youth, since 33 percent of young Tunisian men and women between 15 and 29 suffers this problem. To help people in Tunisia, the International Labor Organization (ILO) works to transform this situation.
It has created local economic development by giving young people pilot projects. One such project is the construction of a marketplace that will give merchants a better place to sell their wares. In addition, it has helped local people to develop new and useful skills; for instance, about 100 Tunisians have been trained in agriculture, knowledge that will permit them growing, harvesting and selling products.
U.N. Women
In other areas, Tunisia is moving forward. In 2010 for instance, U.N. Women reported that nearly 50 percent of Tunisian women had experienced violence in their lifetime. However, last July, the Tunisian Congress passed the first national law to combat violence against women. This law primarily ensures the survivors access to essential services, such as legal and psychological assistance.
Mobile applications also prevent violence against women. With Eyewatch, for example, in just one click the app informs people what is happening at the moment. This technology was used by women in Dharavi, a locality in Mumbai, India. The application has helped women to track cases of violence, the Guardian reported.
How to help people in Tunisia has become an important question that organizations are addressing. Donating to these organizations and calling your legislators to support bills that help nations like Tunisia are surefire ways to help truly make a difference.
– Dario Ledesma
Photo: Flickr
Why is Nauru Poor?
In fact, the country was not always poor. In 1980 Nauru became the wealthiest nation globally, per capita. The country’s natural resource endowments were recognized for this feat. Large deposits of phosphate were discovered in the late 19th century across the island, and once Nauru gained independence in 1968, intensive mining boosted the country’s income.
After this, Nauru seemed to experience what is called the “resource curse.” While the country’s specialization in phosphate mining originally provided wealth, Nauru experienced a drastic economic collapse when phosphate ran out in the early 1980s.
The country was then left with was a series of long-term problems. Today, 50 percent of households in Nauru live on an average of only $9000 a year. As phosphate mining had such a destructive toll on the environment, 80 percent of the island has been labeled wasteland and threatens the remaining resources. Because the phosphate specialization drove away other business previously developed in the country, it now obtains limited revenue, and the unemployment rate in 2011 rested at 23 percent.
To spark growth in Nauru’s economy, the government agreed to open the Australian Regional Processing Center for asylum seekers in 2012. Australia’s offshoring tactics pay Nauru $312 million annually to run detention centers on the island.
While this has improved the incomes of families in Nauru, the country has faced much backlash due to the living conditions of the refugees sent to the country. Consequently, a new deal is being formulated to move these vulnerable groups to other areas including Cambodia and the United States. This will leave Nauru, again, without the revenues necessary to keep its people from poverty.
Reverand James Aingimea, a minister of the Nauru Congregational Church confessed to the New York Times, “I wish we’d never discovered that phosphate…When I was a boy, it was so beautiful… Now I see what has happened here, and I want to cry.” This pain can be felt across the island where the residents bear witness to the question, “why is Nauru poor?” The exploitation of Nauru without environmental protection or diversification in the economy has led the nation to a state of dependency.
– Tess Hinteregger
Photo: Google
Illuminating the Humanitarian Side of Priyanka Chopra
Brought to fame by winning the Miss World title, Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra has been making waves globally. Not only has she starred in the ABC primetime show Quantico, but also she has acted in the Hollywood movie Baywatch. The humanitarian side of Priyanka Chopra, however, is one that her fans are often not aware of.
Chopra is a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador and has sponsored the education and medical costs of seventy children in India. Furthermore, 10 percent of her income goes toward running her nonprofit, the Priyanka Chopra Foundation of Health and Education.
Chopra was introduced to social work at the young age of nine. According to the New York Times, her parents would take her on trips to the underdeveloped regions of India to provide medical assistance. There, she witnessed the blatant discrimination between girls and boys. “Parents believed that their sons were better than their daughters,” Chopra recalls.
Her experiences as a child are reflected in her choice of working with young children, especially young girls. Recently, Chopra spent two days in Jordan to visit Syrian children. She told UNICEF that “an entire generation of children are being shaped by violence and displacement.” Furthermore, she explains that this catastrophe does not only encompass Syrian citizens but the entire world–it is a humanitarian crisis.
The Za’atari refugee camp harbors the highest number of Syrians in Jordan. Chopra spent time meeting with girls there at the school sponsored by UNICEF. While chatting and playing with the children, she faced the harsh reality of child marriage and the dearth of educational resources. There were “too many girls younger than 18 with kids,” she explained to UNICEF.
Although they are eager to learn and often hope for professional careers, there are not enough resources for these children to get a competitive education. Many doors of opportunity close to these children when they become part of the job market in the future. The Washington Post reports that over half a million Syrian refugees of school age are not enrolled in school.
Chopra, however, should not be underestimated in her mission to make sure that “no child is denied a dream.” Although she cannot eradicate poverty, she surely will do her best to encourage and support many children globally, as she has already done in her native country, India.
Other than her collaboration with UNICEF, as a producer, she has also encouraged underprivileged artists. By producing movies in Indian regional languages, she gives artists an opportunity that would have otherwise been ignored. Her latest movie, Pahuna, highlights the conditions of refugees in the Indian state of Sikkim.
Forming personal relationships with the children and posting her experiences on social media, Chopra is using her platform and reach to expose the world to the reality of many troubled countries. The humanitarian side of Priyanka Chopra is slowly coming into the view of the world.
Chopra once told the New York Times that “these young people have the potential to transform society if we invest in them.” Since then, she has proven on multiple occasions her commitment to the youth of the world.
– Tanvi Wattal
Photo: Flickr
Why Is Suriname Poor?
Suriname, one of the smallest countries in South America, is also one of the poorest. Nearly one out of every two people in Suriname are impoverished. Tucked between Brazil and Guyana and endowed with oil reserves, one may wonder: why is Suriname poor?
The most important answer to this question lies in Suriname’s exports. Economically, Suriname is heavily dependant on exporting commodities, namely oil and gold, for revenue. As market prices fluctuate, so too does Suriname’s economy.
Mining for said commodities is the main source of employment in the nation. Stagnant markets cause production to slow and unemployment to jump. From 2014 to 2015, Suriname’s unemployment rate climbed from 6.9 to 8.9 percent.
The country’s GDP decreased two percent in 2015 and 10 percent in 2016—more than eight full quarters of economic contraction. A country is considered to be in a recession after just two.
Oil Dependence
After the crude oil price spikes during the global recession, crude supply increased as North America, and Russia exploited domestic supplies.
The sharp increase in supply, coupled with the plateauing of China’s demand for crude, depressed the global price. This led to a decrease in Suriname’s exports and public revenues. Couple that with the announcement that Alcoa, a major U.S. aluminum company, was ending its operations in Suriname after 100 years of activity—Suriname’s economy entered free fall.
In 2016, Suriname’s GDP plummeted to 2008 levels. In the same period, the U.S. added $4 trillion to its GDP, an average increase of 1.4 percent.
Currency Issues
In response to the recession, Suriname experimented with a number of monetary and fiscal policies. The Suriname dollar was devalued by 20 percent amid the drop in oil prices, was unpegged from the U.S. dollar and, by the end of 2016, had lost more than 46 percent of its total value.
Suriname also implemented austerity policies in last two years to reign in spending and raise revenue. As a result, the Suriname dollar inflated over 50 percent in 2016.
In regards to the question “why is Suriname poor?”, there are a few big takeaways:
The short and mid-term economic forecasts for Suriname are bleak, according to economists. Economic contractions are expected to continue throughout 2017. However, the discovery of another offshore oil deposit has given the nation hope. With foreign investment and revenues from another oil project, Suriname might stabilize its economy, which will allow it to restructure to rely less on exports.
– Thomas James Anania
Photo: Flickr
Are Intelligence and Poverty Related?
In a 2013 scientific study, scientists took two groups of people, from rural India, and “from shoppers” in New Jersey. The results demonstrated a 13 point IQ difference between the two groups. As useful as this measure may sound, it fails to capture the wider context of differences between these two groups.
Firstly, the authors of this paper do not take any age into account, which, if poverty affected children and adults differently, would nullify the research. Of course, poverty does affect children and adults differently, but we do not know the exact effects it does have.
Another problem with the research is that the paper takes two groups of people from different cultures and attempts to compare them on the basis of an IQ test. This is not scientifically sound because measuring IQ in itself depends on one’s history and culture.
What this basically means is that the results of the test depend on how a certain person grew up, as well as how intelligent they truly are. In other words, the article is at best inaccurate. At worst, its conclusion is entirely false.
However, a new study by researchers in Bangladesh claims that children are much more heavily affected by the effects of poverty, by ways of malnutrition, sanitation and others. But one interesting thing to note is that people of all IQs fall into poverty, which accelerates cognitive aging and damages their brains permanently. This means that even people who are highly intelligent who fall into poverty are as much affected by the ravages of this struggle as people who don’t score highly on IQ and are educated.
Thus, there is a relationship between intelligence and poverty. A big part has to do with children growing up in poverty, while a smaller one has to with adults ending up poor. Although the topic sounds dreadful, it is extremely beneficial to know that intelligence and poverty has been studied, and it has been confirmed that we are all equals in the eyes of cognitive recession. Racism, genetic disorders and cultural clashes may divide the human race. Intelligence, however, will not.
– Michal Burgunder
Photo: Flickr
Poverty Reduction and Data Collection
In the last few decades, the world has experienced a significant decline in the portion of the global population that may be considered extremely poor. But how do we know this? Data collection is extremely important in determining a baseline for poverty as well as measuring successes in measures to eradicate it.
Data collection has taken several forms throughout the years, becoming more accurate and streamlined. However, there is still room for improvement in streamlining efforts, which takes human power, technology investments and funding. In short: without data collection, ambitious efforts toward ending global poverty may drag on or stall altogether.
Surveys are a primary means of data collection. Statistical groups see this as the best measure of current lifestyle conditions of those living in poverty. These types of surveys can measure levels of income, familial distribution, education, employment, gender ratios, birth rates and death rates across a large representative portion of any country’s population.
The coverage and frequency of these surveys has increased over time, making measurements that much more precise. However, this data still remains largely incomplete in many areas due to migration, refugee situations, and minimal access simply due to the level of danger.
Innovations in technology are helping to close inherent gaps in survey systems when it comes to data collection on poverty. Automating surveys make the collection even more accurate and organized as well as can become more widespread, reaching the once-unreachable. Cell phones and computers with Internet capabilities have carved out a new path for data collection, as they are accessible to most extremely poor countries. These technologies are also more fiscally responsible for the distributors in the long run.
Data collection is extremely important in continuing the battle against extreme poverty, to help better understand the problem at hand: what may be working, what is not, and what corrections will potentially make a huge impact.
– Casey Hess
Photo: Flickr