Poor vision and blindness are problems that many people in developed countries take for granted. Most people know that they will be able to get contacts, glasses, laser eye surgery, or any number of other solutions to their vision problems. However, there are 246 million people around the world who are living with a visual impairment, and 39 million people are totally blind. This data may seem trivial compared to the more than 650 million people living in extreme poverty, but these issues are closely linked. Many living in extreme poverty or with a low income suffer from some form of visual impairment. Poor eyesight makes it very difficult for people to escape the cycle of poverty, so improving eyesight in developing countries would help address many other poverty-related issues, including education and equal rights for women.
At first, it seems like vision is unrelated to the issue of poverty. Though vision is rarely discussed compared to other issues such as malnutrition, violence and healthcare, eyesight is an overlooked problem in many areas of poverty. Nine out of ten blind people live in developing countries, and most of them are in poverty.
When ignored and untreated, poor eyesight can cause or worsen conditions of poverty, and the conditions of poverty can also cause poor eyesight or blindness. Without access to proper healthcare and treatment, many people living in poverty contract eye diseases that could have been easily treated, but instead they are blinded. This makes their already difficult situation even more desperate, because they are unable to better educate themselves or get a job to support themselves. Poor eyesight and blindness compound the issues of poverty, so addressing and improving eyesight in developing countries is an important part of addressing the cycle of poverty.
Most of the 246 million people with a visual impairment just need corrective lenses to fix their vision. There are a variety of programs that can recycle old eyeglasses to give to those who need it. These programs keep thousands of glasses out of landfills and give them to someone who can use them.
Blindness may seem like a much more difficult problem to address, but about 80 percent of the world’s blindness is treatable or preventable. Over half of the world’s blindness is caused by cataracts, and a simple 15-minute operation would cure these people. These solutions seem relatively straightforward, yet poor eyesight is often an unknown factor when many people address poverty.
The solution is simple: provide proper eye care and corrective lenses to address these problems. However, implementing this is more difficult. In many areas where people have poor eyesight, there are dozens of other difficulties as well. For example, Africa has only ten percent of the world’s population, yet it has 19 percent of the world’s blindness. The rate of poor eyesight in Africa is the result of a variety of causes, but the main factor is poor healthcare.
Many diseases such as HIV/AIDS and others that cause or worsen poor eyesight go untreated due to the sparse and insufficient healthcare systems. The number of eye care personnel is in many areas even lower than the number of healthcare providers. For example, in South Africa, there is only about one optometrist for 17,600 people. With disproportionate numbers like this, it’s no mystery why eye care is practically nonexistent in many areas.
Tackling the vision problems in developing countries is an enormous task. Most organizations begin by treating trachoma, refractive errors, cataracts, and childhood ocular conditions. By treating these four causes of blindness and poor vision, millions of lives can be turned around. People are given the power of sight, and with it, they are better able to get an education or a job.
However, preventing the larger causes of poverty is the key to preventing blindness. Improving eyesight in developing countries helps end poverty, but it is a two-way relationship. Since so many preventable and treatable eyesight problems are caused by poverty, ending poverty will also prevent many of the eyesight problems that deepen the existing conditions of poverty. Promoting health and education leads to better eyesight, and better eyesight in turn leads to better overall health, better economic standing, and more independence. Instead of a downward cycle in poverty, improving eyesight can lead to an upward spiral where conditions get better and better for those whose vision is treated.
– Rachael Lind
Photo: Flickr
Causes of Poverty in Guinea-Bissau
Political instability is the root of most evils in Guinea-Bissau. There is unrest because there is lack of successful governance. No prime minister has lasted more than a few consecutive months, which shows the uncommitted approach that that has led to a country unable to develop out of dreary conditions. Guinea-Bissau has experienced two coups and a civil war, both of which have affected the political atmosphere in extreme ways. The political atmosphere, in turn, affects the economy. Citizens are not given adequate services or wages, and there is very little regulation of the economy and agricultural practices. In this way, the main causes of poverty in Guinea-Bissau stem from political instability. When a country does not have a functioning government, its economy cannot function either.
Most of the country’s agricultural sector is focused on the production and exportation of cashew nuts. The cashew nut industry provides 85 percent of all jobs, so when this production slows so do a number of jobs available. The number of exports has declined because of competing countries that export the same commodity and the overall underdevelopment of the industry. Production could triple with the implementation of new infrastructure and technology and still be behind international competitors.
The lack of exportation in the cashew nut industry causes economic difficulties on many scales. On a small scale, families are not given as many work opportunities, making it difficult to generate enough funds to live. On a larger scale, funds from the exportation of commodities, such as cashew nuts, are lacking. Unable to generate sustainable revenue, Guinea-Bissau’s economy is underdeveloped.
The main causes of poverty in Guinea-Bissau are most closely associated with political unrest and an insufficient economy. Guinea-Bissau is unable to be economically successful, relying mainly on foreign aid. Agricultural practices can be improved with the implementation of modern infrastructure that speeds up the process and develops the industry. It is important for the U.N. and international financial institutions to coordinate in the absence of a functioning government in order for Guinea-Bissau to further develop.
– Lucy Voegeli
Photo: Flickr
Armenia Poverty Rate Falls After Six-Year Rise
Although Armenia has been experiencing a decline in its poverty rate in recent years, this decline comes after a six-year period of high poverty rates. In fact, in 2008 Armenia’s poverty rate was reported at 17.4 percent and had virtually doubled to 32.4 percent at the end of 2012.
This increase comes directly from the sharp economic decline in 2009 coupled with extremely low salaries that did not compensate for the cost of living in Armenia, despite it already being 54 percent lower than the United States.
However, the country quickly found a solution at the end of 2013 that gradually decreased the poverty rate and increased salaries and pensions.
ARKA News Agency noted that in 2014, 900,000 people were poor, with 310,000 very poor and 60,000 extremely poor. These accounted for 19.4 percent of the population as poor, 8.4 percent as very poor and 2 percent as extremely poor. But by 2015, Armenia had returned to a 29.8 percent poverty rate, just 12.4 percent more than the poverty rate in 2008.
Despite a still inflated poverty rate, the country continues to see improvements in its poverty rates. In 2015, Armenia ranked second to its neighbors in poverty rates at 29.8 percent, but now in 2017, at the same rate, it is ranked fourth.
With the poverty rats continuing to fall, the GDP has reflected the trend by increasing. Last year, the GDP climbed to $10.547 billion, a $0.018 billion increase from 2015.
As the country continues its substantial improvement, Armenia’s poverty rate will sustain its reduction while its GDP and salaries increase.
– Amira Wynn
Photo: Flickr
Four Potential Solutions to the Youth Unemployment Crisis
The youth unemployment crisis impacts low-income countries the most because even employed citizens are at risk of poverty. In 2016 the ILO estimated that about 156 million employed youths in these countries lived in poverty. This makes up a substantial 38 percent of youths in developing nations.
For the sake of the world’s economy as well as these youths, here are four potential solutions to the youth unemployment crisis:
Resolving the youth unemployment crisis is critical for not only the well-being of youths worldwide, but also for the global economy. Mass youth unemployment slows progress and thereby it is essential to take steps toward ending it.
– Haley Hurtt
Photo: Flickr
Five Areas of Human Rights in Benin
Despite the various protections afforded under the law, there are still some challenges regarding human rights in Benin.
The Takeaway
Active steps are being taken, especially in the form of legislation, to protect human rights in Benin. However, a major theme that can be seen in the country is the failure to effectively implement many of these laws, leading to impunity in the face of violations. Proper implementation and follow-through of appropriate punishments for violations will be a major step to protecting human rights in Benin.
– Erik Beck
Photo: Flickr
Defeating Human Trafficking in Guatemala
Guatemala’s pervasive culture of gender inequality – coupled with extensive sexual abuse in the home – promotes trafficking. Often, human trafficking affects families that have already experienced domestic and sexual violence by fathers and stepfathers. The violence they experience prompts boys and girls to run away from home, leaving them prey to sexual exploitation by traffickers. Mothers who sell their children into the sex trade are often victims of trafficking or domestic abuse themselves.
In Guatemala, very few sex trafficking cases are actually detected each year – about 3 percent. Although Guatemala has adopted numerous programs and laws to tackle human trafficking, only two prosecutors work on sex trafficking cases across the country. Therefore, the number of trafficking convictions in Guatemala remains low, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). In 2014, the Guatemalan authorities convicted only 20 human traffickers, according to the 2015 U.S. Department of State report on human trafficking.
Education is a key factor in eliminating human trafficking; in Guatemala it occurs largely due to the absence of family education. Illiterate or uneducated children and adults are more vulnerable to abuse. Traffickers target poor, uneducated and unemployed women and girls, luring them with promises of earning money as a waitress or model. Girls as young as 12 work in brothels and are forced to have sex with up to 30 customers a day.
Just as it plays a large role in preventing human trafficking, education also plays a critical role in helping survivors of human trafficking to escape the trauma they experience after victimization. Instruction and counseling are immense steps toward rehabilitating the survivors and reintegrating them into society. When survivors are provided with education, they gain an opportunity to “reprogram” their lives by increasing their knowledge.
All members of society in Guatemala being more educated and knowledgeable on human trafficking is essential for the defeat of traffickers. Every avenue must be explored on how to raise awareness about the nature of the crime, its causes and the damage human trafficking inflicts on its victims.
– Heather Hopkins
Photo: Flickr
Preventing the Spread of HIV in El Salvador
HIV, which stands for human immunodeficiency virus, is a virus that attacks the human immune system. When it breaks the immune system down enough, a person displays a set of symptoms called acquired immune deficiency syndrome, or AIDS. A common misconception is that AIDS is a virus in and of itself, but it is merely a name for a set of varied symptoms.
There is not a high rate of HIV in El Salvador. However, the threat of a renewed epidemic remains, as only 36.5 percent of youth (age 15-24) in El Salvador know how to prevent it. The number of new HIV infections in this age group has been increasing since 2011. This highlights a major gap in sexual education offered in El Salvador, something UNAIDS Regional Goodwill Ambassador for Latin America and the Caribbean Alejandra Oraa seeks to correct.
While mother-to-child transmission of HIV is down to 0.5 percent of cases, the same cannot be said for the amount of cases contracted through sexual transmission. The limited access to sexual education in El Salvador stands in the way of halting the HIV epidemic.
The UNAIDS Country Director of El Salvador, Celina Miranda, said, “To end the AIDS epidemic by 2030, we cannot fail our young people and we cannot leave any of them behind. It is urgent to remove all barriers that limit their access to sexual and reproductive health and HIV services.”
Between August 9 and August 11, Oraa met with youth leaders and young people, and conducted a survey to analyze youth knowledge of HIV in El Salvador and how to prevent it. Currently, the National Network of Positive Youth, UNAIDS, the United Nations Population Fund, and the National Youth Institute all coordinate to provide outreach and awareness in public places. Between Friends (Entre Amigos) takes the face-to-face approach and offers combination prevention options.
The next step will be for the United Nations Children’s Fund and UNAIDS to use the findings of the survey to inform strategies and public policies to better prevent and reduce HIV infections among youth.
– Ellen Ray
Photo: Flickr
Improving Eyesight in Developing Countries to Fight Poverty
At first, it seems like vision is unrelated to the issue of poverty. Though vision is rarely discussed compared to other issues such as malnutrition, violence and healthcare, eyesight is an overlooked problem in many areas of poverty. Nine out of ten blind people live in developing countries, and most of them are in poverty.
When ignored and untreated, poor eyesight can cause or worsen conditions of poverty, and the conditions of poverty can also cause poor eyesight or blindness. Without access to proper healthcare and treatment, many people living in poverty contract eye diseases that could have been easily treated, but instead they are blinded. This makes their already difficult situation even more desperate, because they are unable to better educate themselves or get a job to support themselves. Poor eyesight and blindness compound the issues of poverty, so addressing and improving eyesight in developing countries is an important part of addressing the cycle of poverty.
Most of the 246 million people with a visual impairment just need corrective lenses to fix their vision. There are a variety of programs that can recycle old eyeglasses to give to those who need it. These programs keep thousands of glasses out of landfills and give them to someone who can use them.
Blindness may seem like a much more difficult problem to address, but about 80 percent of the world’s blindness is treatable or preventable. Over half of the world’s blindness is caused by cataracts, and a simple 15-minute operation would cure these people. These solutions seem relatively straightforward, yet poor eyesight is often an unknown factor when many people address poverty.
The solution is simple: provide proper eye care and corrective lenses to address these problems. However, implementing this is more difficult. In many areas where people have poor eyesight, there are dozens of other difficulties as well. For example, Africa has only ten percent of the world’s population, yet it has 19 percent of the world’s blindness. The rate of poor eyesight in Africa is the result of a variety of causes, but the main factor is poor healthcare.
Many diseases such as HIV/AIDS and others that cause or worsen poor eyesight go untreated due to the sparse and insufficient healthcare systems. The number of eye care personnel is in many areas even lower than the number of healthcare providers. For example, in South Africa, there is only about one optometrist for 17,600 people. With disproportionate numbers like this, it’s no mystery why eye care is practically nonexistent in many areas.
Tackling the vision problems in developing countries is an enormous task. Most organizations begin by treating trachoma, refractive errors, cataracts, and childhood ocular conditions. By treating these four causes of blindness and poor vision, millions of lives can be turned around. People are given the power of sight, and with it, they are better able to get an education or a job.
However, preventing the larger causes of poverty is the key to preventing blindness. Improving eyesight in developing countries helps end poverty, but it is a two-way relationship. Since so many preventable and treatable eyesight problems are caused by poverty, ending poverty will also prevent many of the eyesight problems that deepen the existing conditions of poverty. Promoting health and education leads to better eyesight, and better eyesight in turn leads to better overall health, better economic standing, and more independence. Instead of a downward cycle in poverty, improving eyesight can lead to an upward spiral where conditions get better and better for those whose vision is treated.
– Rachael Lind
Photo: Flickr
Education Access for Children With Disabilities in Ghana
With one in three children who are not in school being withheld simply because of a disability, this problem is affecting Ghana’s children significantly. Children with disabilities such as cerebral palsy are often hidden in their communities, unable to or not allowed to go to school. Parents of children with these mild to moderate disabilities often recognize their child’s intelligence, but lack local schools with the support required to care for their needs.
This is changing, however, with the help of initiatives from UNICEF and the Campaign for Learning Disabilities (CLED).
UNICEF, in partnership with USAID, has led this mission by creating and supporting inclusive schools where children with disabilities are welcomed and can get assistance. The goal of creating inclusive schools was pursued by a community outreach program where parents were encouraged to hear about how all children, regardless of ability, were entitled to an education.
From UNICEF’s initiative, more than 450 teachers have been trained in inclusive education, and children with mild to moderate disabilities have access to over 83 basic schools that provide an inclusive learning environment.
CLED has also improved education access for children with disabilities in Ghana. CLED is a non-profit organization that helps communities by equipping teachers and parents with the tools needed to best support children with disabilities, as well as by providing specialized tutoring for children with disabilities. CLED has also acted as an advocate for this issue in Ghana by leading monthly radio talk shows on inclusive education. So far, CLED has donated 2850 school supplies, provides tutoring programs in 30 schools, and has trained 2292 teachers.
While many children with disabilities still lack access to proper education, the solution to this problem will require better understanding and support from communities. However, through these initiatives led by UNICEF and CLED, more and more disabled children are able to learn and express themselves in inclusive schools.
– Kelly Hayes
Common Diseases in Tajikistan
The most common cause of death in Tajikistan is heart disease, which accounted for 21.4 percent of deaths in 2012. Many in Tajikistan who suffer from heart disease also have diabetes, which can cause complications. Cardiovascular diseases and diabetes also act as the second highest cause of premature deaths.
Aside from cardiovascular diseases, perhaps the most concerning aspect surrounds health care for children and mothers. Children in Tajikistan are disproportionately subject to respiratory infections, which accounts for 8.4 percent of total deaths. Tajikistan’s children are affected because of a lack of accessibility in rural areas; distance is the culprit of these deaths. In Tajikistan, only 63 percent of children under 5 who showed symptoms of respiratory infection were taken to a healthcare clinic.
Waterborne diseases are also common among children in rural Tajikistan. With roughly half the population lacking access to safe drinking water, and the absence of adequate sanitation practices, waterborne diseases are a major concern. These diseases include bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A and typhoid fever, and account for over 3.7 percent of deaths.
Malnutrition, though not a disease itself, is a very prevalent health problem in Tajikistan, and causes problems like anemia, iodine deficiency disorders and other micronutrient deficiencies. The effect of malnutrition among children and women in Tajikistan is startling. Over 64 percent of children and 57 percent of women in Tajikistan are iodine deficient, and 20 percent of children have stunted growth from malnutrition.
Fortunately, humanitarian organizations such as UNICEF and WHO are intervening to improve the health of women and children in Tajikistan. Through vaccination programs, sanitation education, and improved access to medical clinics, there has been progress, with WHO reporting a four-year lifespan increase.
Although the common diseases in Tajikistan often disproportionately affect women and children, many of them remain preventable. Through improved access to medical facilities in rural areas, these diseases will begin to diminish, thanks to the help of humanitarian organizations such as UNICEF and WHO.
– Kelly Hayes
Photo: Flickr
How to Help People in Argentina
L.I.F.E. Argentina
This nonprofit works with youth living in extreme impoverished and marginalized communities within and in the surrounding suburbs of Buenos Aires. Partnering with local soup kitchens and community and education centers, L.I.F.E. Argentina aids school-age children by providing recreational and educational activities as well as supplying food, clothes and school supplies. Programs include Happy Birthday – a weekly celebration of birthdays at each community center, Play Time – a weekly recreational program that allows children to interact with games and crafts, as well as AIDS Awareness that informs youth about the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Their website offers examples on how to help people in Argentina, both by volunteering to work with youth in impoverished communities or by donating to help fund the continuation of their work.
Worldreader
According to UNESCO, there are 250 million children throughout the world who lack basic writing and reading skills. Worldreader strives to increase literacy among youth by providing e-readers – along with e-reader programs – to communities, promoting literary works by minority authors and conducting fieldwork to monitor the success of new digital publishing. Worldreader operates in 50 countries and 424 libraries and schools, and provides over 500,000 e-readers monthly. Individuals who are interested in helping can get involved in any of these three ways: making a single donation, sponsoring a school with monthly donations or becoming a corporate donor.
Medical Ambassadors International
The nonprofit Medical Ambassadors International works within impoverished communities to promote both spiritual and physical healing. The Christian medical organization focuses on providing medical resources for communities that lack basic access to health centers. This nonprofit also offers family and relationship counselling to help build stronger communities. For the past 35 years, Medical Ambassadors International has done work in 41 countries including Argentina. Making donations through their website allows funds to go toward geographic areas with the greatest need – one option for how to help impoverished people in Argentina.
Nonprofits such as these within Argentina are working to combat extreme poverty and the disadvantages it brings to marginalized communities. Spreading the word and getting people involved, either by donating or volunteering, is the first step to eradicating poverty and helping people in Argentina.
– Riley Bunch
Photo: Flickr