Citizens of the Republic of Burundi are plagued by malnutrition, unclean water, unsanitary conditions, poor hygiene, low quality education, food scarcity, overpopulation, sexual and gender based violence and child labor. And the question is: why is this crisis prevalent and how can everyday people help? The long-term solution to helping people in Burundi is to fix how monetary resources are allocated by its government.
Seeing as that task is daunting for the layman, the following paragraphs provide information on how to help people in Burundi.
Helping people in Burundi is frankly, difficult. This is because the European Union, Belgium, United States and other western countries have decided to suspend all bilateral aid (when one country’s government gives financial aid to another’s country’s government) to Burundi’s government because of human rights violations and an unwillingness to engage in sincere negotiations for peace.
Prior to the freeze, bilateral aid accounted for about half of Burundi’s overall budget. Lack of bilateral aid will only further hurt the country’s economy, and Burundi’s economy was already one of the least developed in the world.
While bilateral aid has been suspended, humanitarian aid has not. Here are three humanitarian organizations you can donate to in order to help people in Burundi:
1. World Food Programme
People in Burundi need food. The World Food Programme (WFP), the leading humanitarian organization fighting hunger worldwide to help them get that food, needs donations. In Burundi, only 28 percent of the population are food-secure and as many as 58 percent are chronically malnourished. WFP provides hot meals to primary school aged children in food insecure areas to encourage school attendance. Two hundred thousand children currently receive assistance from this program.
WFP also offers food assistance to 70,000 pregnant and nursing women who are underweight 6 months before birth and for up to 3 months after birthing. In addition, WFP provides food to refugees and people living with HIV and AIDS. Finally, WFP teaches locals in Burundi how to be more efficient in agriculture through its Food-for-Training/Food for Assets program.
Three hundred and fifty thousand people are being taught infrastructure development, how to rehabilitate deforested areas, agro-forestry and micro-economic training.
2. BeyGOOD
People in Burundi need access to clean water. Donate to Beyonce’s organization, BeyGOOD. BeyGOOD is working with UNICEF to supply safe water to people in Burundi. A statement on Beyonce’s website states: “With your help, nearly half a million people will gain access to safe water, as BEYGOOD4BURUNDI and UNICEF will support building water supply systems for healthcare facilities and schools, and the drilling of boreholes, wells and springs to bring safe water to districts.”
Donation gifts range from $3.11 for a collapsible 68-ounce water container for one person to $1,430.06 for a water tank kit for 1,000 people.
3. The Burundi Education Fund
People in Burundi need better quality education. Poverty and hunger have made it difficult for students to obtain an education. After the 6th grade, the Burundi Educational System simply does not have the room or resources to place children in schools. This results in students having to compete to be selected for the next grade by taking difficult placement tests. In some cases even if the student passes the test, he or she cannot move further in education due to the inability to afford tuition fees or school supplies.
The Burundi Education Fund, Inc. is a charitable Christian organization formed to provide materials and financial support to students and schools in extreme poverty in Burundi, Africa.
Specific successes of the organization that have helped students obtain their education include building a 26-bed dormitory safe house for the girls of Muramba High School, a running water fountain that provides clean drinking water to more than 1,900 students in the Mubimbi district and supporting a transfer student program.
The highly selective transfer program offers high school students a chance to continue their education in the U.S.
These are the most vital examples on how to help people in Burundi. The organizations above are addressing key needs of Burundian people’s lives that help them to obtain their basic human rights. While helping the people of Burundi may seem daunting, to be a responsible global citizen one must not turn a blind eye to tactics that can help others improve their quality of life.
Take action today and help one of the world’s poorest and hungriest nations become food and wealth secure.
– Jeanine Thomas
Photo: Flickr
Countries Most Affected By Hurricanes
Top 3 Countries Most Affected By Hurricanes
China
China is a country that suffers from hurricanes because its typhoon season lasts all year. The strongest recorded hurricane in China was named Typhoon Rammasun. It made landfall in Southern China and had winds of 160 mph when it hit the country in 2014. Since 1970, there have been over 127 hurricanes that have reached the mainland of China. They have caused significant damage to the country’s developing economy.
The United States
The United States has a hurricane season that lasts from June 1st to November 30th. The strongest hurricane that the U.S. has dealt with hit in 1935 and was called the Labor Day Hurricane. The storm had winds that reached about 185 mph and made landfall in the Florida Keys and the Florida Everglades. Since 1970, there have been 63 hurricane landfalls in the U.S. However, due to the United States’ strong economy and government support, there has been no lasting damage to the nation.
Cuba
Cuba has a hurricane season that also extends between June 1st and November 30th. The strongest hurricane that hit the country took place in 1924 and was called the Cuba Hurricane. The hurricane had minds over 165 mph and mostly hit Western Cuba as it traveled up north towards the U.S. Cuba has had 79 recorded hurricane landfalls since 1970 and continues to deal with them to this day.
Working to Prevent Further Damage
As time and technology have progressed, there has been much progress in predicting hurricanes in the countries most affected by hurricanes. Meteorologists can now predict weather patterns before they occur, allowing governments the time to evacuate regions about to be hit by an intense storm.
On top of this ability to predict weather patterns, meteorologists now have figured out when recurring hurricanes are expected to hit regions of the world. This prediction allows more people to evacuate before the storm hits.
As technologies improve and weather can be predicted further in advance, the countries most affected by hurricanes now have the tools to deal with these intense storms. Although the weather cannot get changed with the current technology available, the countries most affected by hurricanes can now foresee when they are going to get struck by a storm. This ability to predict the future has the potential to save numerous lives.
– Nick Beauchamp
Photo: Flickr
Why Is Armenia Poor?
Armenia is in an endless battle to defeat poverty due to five main facts. These include the global economic crisis, larger households, female-run homes, lack of education and high unemployment rates. The country has been working with the World Bank to identify key challenges and opportunities associated with reducing Armenia’s poverty rates. Participation from this organization provides hope for sustainable growth, shared prosperity and poverty reduction in Armenia.
– Emilee Wessel
Photo: Pixabay
Protein Created Out of Electricity to End World Hunger
The protein was created as a Food from Electricity Project with the Lappeenranta University of Technology and the Technical Research Centre of Finland. The protein is a single-cell protein large enough for a dinner meal. The protein includes electricity, water, carbon dioxide and microbes. The ingredients go through a system powered by renewable energy and then researchers enhance an electric shock into the ingredients, creating a result of 50 percent protein, 25 percent carbohydrates and 25 percent fat and nucleic acid. This concept has introduced a new, cheaper way to address and end world hunger.
About 800 million people suffer from malnourishment and about 20 million people are undergoing famine in their countries. So far, the concept has allowed the creation of one gram of protein in about two weeks with the nutrition of basic food. Researchers predict that there will be a full effect of the electric protein in about a decade, which allows for a wider use of the protein. For now, researchers are introducing this hopeful initiative, and will continue developing the concept.
Electric food has life-changing potential. This process could not only provide a protein to resolve the hunger crisis, but it could also develop nutritious food that furthers solving and ending world hunger.
– Brandi Gomez
Photo: Flickr
Uncovering the Truth: Five Poverty Myths vs Facts
1. Myth: Low-income countries just don’t have natural resources.
Fact: Actually, most of the world’s developing countries have an abundant reserve of natural resources.
It was for that reason that the European nations who colonized in Africa and Latin America grew so wealthy from trading raw goods, such as tobacco or mined silver. The exploitation of these natural resources, which continues to happen to some degree today within the global economy, is why low-income countries have yet to benefit.
Even today, around 400 billion dollars in natural resources leaves the African continent each year.
2. Myth: There isn’t enough food to feed everyone.
Fact: It’s almost worse to think about, but we have enough food to feed everyone on the planet one and a half times over. Food just isn’t distributed fairly and efficiently. Rising food prices, national disasters and conflict all contribute to global hunger.
3. Myth: Impoverished people just need to have less kids.
Fact: The reason why people in low-income countries tend to have more kids is because they live in poverty. Prevention methods are often either culturally unacceptable or just unavailable. Studies have proven that educated, wealthier women have less kids— meaning that solving poverty could help with overpopulation.
4. Myth: Globalization is helping everyone. When the world economy booms, poverty will solve itself.
Fact: It’s a nice thought, but realistically most developing countries lag behind in economic growth. The recent improvements in global poverty reduction can mainly be attributed to China or India, who have experienced the most growth in recent years. However, for over half a billion people living in extreme poverty in unstable countries, the improvements have yet to manifest themselves— that number will grow without additional aid.
5. Myth: High-income nations are doing a lot to help low-income countries.
Fact: In regard to global poverty, this may be one of the most difficult realities for people to swallow. The average American believes that 25 percent of the budget goes to foreign aid, when in reality it’s less than one percent. Very few developed nations even meet their own standards for minimum foreign aid donations, much less give in full capacity.
Though these poverty myths vs facts may present a more sobering reality about the nature of global poverty, there is the hope that greater understanding is the key to developing greater solutions. As the final fact suggests, there is so much potential to do more and make an even bigger impact on those living in poverty today.
– Kailey Dubinsky
Photo: Pixabay
Five Common Diseases in Spain
Cardiovascular disease is responsible for 33 percent of deaths in Spain. Risk factors include smoking, obesity, lack of exercise, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes. In Spain, about 23.9 percent of adults and 21.7 percent of youth smoke. About 26.6 percent of Spaniards are obese.
Following world trends, the number of cancer cases in Spain increased 15 percent between 2012 and 2015. The most common types of cancer in Spain are bowel cancer, prostate cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer and bladder cancer. Respectively, every year there are 41,000, 33,000, 28,000, 27,000 and 21,000 new cases. It is estimated that about one-third of these cases can be prevented through improved lifestyle choices such as reducing alcohol and tobacco consumption, increasing cancer screenings and decreasing obesity rates.
Chronic respiratory diseases most common in Spain include asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and lung cancer. About 80,000 adults aged 20 to 44 are diagnosed with asthma every year. Eighty percent of these cases do not result from allergies and instead result from lung disorders developed from chewing and smoking tobacco, obesity, air pollution, respiratory infections suffered during childhood, genetics and high risk occupations. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) causes 18,000 deaths per year in Spain or about 50 deaths per day. There are about two million people in the country with COPD but the majority go undiagnosed. A main cause of COPD is smoking. About one-third of Spaniards smoke, and 40 to 55 percent continue to smoke following COPD diagnosis. COPD can lead to emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
Mental illnesses are the second most common cause of temporary and permanent leave from work in Spain. Depression is the most prevalent. About five to 10 percent of Spaniards suffer at least one depressive episode in their lives. Depression and other mental health illnesses have high social impacts because of missed work, costs, morbidity and care.
In Spain, more than 800,000 people live with Alzheimer’s disease, the most common type of dementia. Risk factors include age, genetics, mild cognitive impairment and traumatic brain injury. Studies also suggest that education may be linked to Alzheimer’s as well as cardiovascular disease. Between 2005 and 2015, the death rate due to Alzheimer’s increased by 11.9 percent.
Certain cases of the above diseases in Spain can be prevented. For example, smoking is a prevalent cause of non-communicable diseases such as asthma, COPD, cardiovascular disease and lung cancer. Because of this, improving health education in Spain is one way to reduce and prevent these unnecessary medical costs, illnesses and deaths.
– Francesca Montalto
Photo: Pixabay
How to Become a Politician: 4 Crucial Steps to Success
To anyone who is interested in becoming a politician- whether local or federal government- be ready for some tough days and long nights in the office. Before you are guaranteed the coveted seat of a politician, though, it takes a bit of preparation. Here are a few tips on how to become a politician.
Becoming a Politician
1. Become Educated: Although it is not required that certain politicians hold a college degree – one in 20 members of Congress doesn’t – it is a good idea to get as much schooling as possible.
Not only will constituents like to see a degree on a candidate’s resume, but the things learned in school can actually be helpful for planning a legislative and governmental future. The other aspect of “becoming educated” is studying up on legislature, government policies and voter patterns.
Politics takes a dedicated person willing to devote their whole being to their campaign. Learning the ropes of government is a bit more involved than merely knowing how to recite the Pledge of Allegiance.
2. Acquire Funding: Running for a position in politics is also a money game. Printing campaign posters, hosting charitable events, paying your campaign staff and a laundry list of other costs add up to a hefty bill just to run for a position, let alone hold one.
It is also important to have a steady job before running for office. This allows you to then have some money in the bank and establish resources or even potential voters. U.S. news stated that, “Running for office is a job in itself that no one will pay you for.”
Having friends and business connections is another important part of running for office. Connections with prominent people will allow your campaign to rise in popularity.
Be cautious of how much you spend on your campaign – you want to be able to survive afterward if you don’t end up winning.
3. Be Friendly: When they step in the polling booth, most voters do not actually know exactly which candidate stands for what issues. However, they will remember a candidate’s behavior and whether or not he or she was rude during an interview.
Cordiality and humbleness are a couple of key characteristics that attract voters. Making connections with voters so that they remember you and what you stand for could be the deciding factor between you and a competent running mate.
4. Don’t Let Your Feelings Get Hurt: Politics can be a harsh field that few thrive in. There will be hard times throughout your campaign, but knowing that you could help the lives of thousands of people is a great reward to the hardships you endure as a hopeful politician.
These may sound like some harsh pieces of advice on how to become a politician, but it is only because the politician’s role is a very important one in the United States. These people make, enforce and interpret the laws.
No matter the obstacles, if becoming a politician is your life’s goal then do not let these words, or others, deter you from becoming the next President of the United States (or a Superintendent of Schools, if that is what you so desire). Instead, use them as warnings to avoid road blocks on your journey to political change.
– Sydney Missigman
Photo: Flickr
Off Grid: Affordable Energy in Sub-Saharan Africa
More than 600 million people in sub-Saharan Africa do not have access to electricity, with estimates suggesting that even by 2040, that figure is expected to remain at more than half a billion. The energy infrastructure across the region is chronically underdeveloped, meaning that even those who do have access to power are unable to rely on it. For instance, in 2013, Tanzanian business owners were suggested to lose 15 percent of their business as a result of the frequent power outages. Issues such as this have led many to believe that the electrification of Africa may be the largest development challenge facing our world.
Despite this, numerous suggestions have been made as to how to tackle the problem. While it has limited natural resources in many areas, sub-Saharan Africa has great potential for renewable energy. The most commonly suggested method of taking advantage of this is through solar power, something that has become more and more appealing as the associated costs have decreased in recent years. This being the case, a number of companies have entered the market, offering solar power as a solution to the energy crisis facing the region.
Off Grid Electric is one of these companies, with operations in Tanzania and Rwanda and soon in the Ivory Coast. At the moment, it powers 125,000 homes, gaining an estimated 10,000 new customers per month, and employs around 1,000 people. Although packages may differ, customers generally receive a solar panel, which will be installed on their roof, and a battery-pack that allows them electricity to power lights and small electronics. For customers it is affordable, with basic packages costing near the same per month as a supply of kerosene would, but with more utility and without the health risks.
Access to this type of energy source can completely change the lives of those who use it. In schools, the power sources offer the possibility of getting computers to assist with learning, while lighting at home allows children to study after dark. Farmers are able to receive accurate weather warnings, allowing them to protect for their livestock and crops. Business owners can earn more, whether through being able to stay open longer or being able to communicate with customers by being able to charge their phones. The opportunities that electricity offers for development appear to be almost limitless.
Due to its low costs and easy installation, solar power would seem to be the way forward in providing affordable energy in sub-Saharan Africa. Off Grid Electric, and similar companies, may not be able to solve the problem on their own; however, the initial progress made is promising. With future active investment from the developed world, electrification of the continent seems more a reality than a dream.
– Gavin Callander
Photo: Flickr
Prioritizing and Improving Human Rights in Tuvalu
In November 2015, Prime Minister of Tuvalu, Enele Sopoaga, stated that climate change threatened the core principles of Tuvalu’s human rights. Sopoaga added that human rights are essential to developing Tuvalu’s climate change solutions, especially for Tuvaluans without access to food and water. Tuvalu plans to express this issue at international climate meetings.
Tuvalu’s 2016 human rights report revealed that some human rights were already in place for the country. There were no reports of government officials or agents committing unlawful killings. The report also stated that Tuvalu’s constitution prohibits cruel, inhumane or degrading treatments for crimes. No government officials were reported to have committed these crimes either.
Tuvalu’s 2016 human rights report also reveals no prison or detention center conditions that would raise human rights concerns. No deaths were reported in Tuvaluan prisons, and the government received no complaints of inhumane prison conditions. A “people’s lawyer” would take any complaints or concerns that prisoners had.
In July 2016, the Pacific Community worked with Tuvalu’s government to formulate the country’s first national action plan for improving human rights. The national action plan would focus on improving rights for women, children, disabled people and other Tuvaluan minority groups. The national action plan would also provide a timeframe for addressing these human rights issues.
Enele Sopoaga opened a consultation on the plan. Government ministers, permanent secretaries, judiciary members and other Tuvaluan officials attended Sopoaga’s meeting to discuss the country’s key human rights issues. The government’s leadership in making commitments was greatly appreciated as a way to improve human rights in Tuvalu.
In January 2017, the country’s government launched a national action plan on human rights in Tuvalu. Tuvalu’s government plans for donors, development partners and other entities to ensure that the action plan’s goals and objectives are fulfilled. The national action plan will especially help Tuvalu’s elderly, women, children and disabled residents.
Romulo Nayacalevu, the Pacific Community’s senior human rights advisor, added that Tuvalu is the first country in the Pacific to launch a human rights action plan. Nayacalevu added that human rights include not only civil and political rights but access to education, water and healthcare. This means that Tuvalu could have these opportunities as well.
Human rights in Tuvalu are expected to improve with the national action plan in place. Women, disabled residents, children and other minority groups in the country now have the potential to see positive outcomes from these changes, and Tuvalu’s people can hope for a positive future so long as Tuvalu’s government keeps its promise to improve human rights.
– Rhondjé Singh Tanwar
Photo: Flickr
The Five Main Causes of Poverty in Cuba
Top 5 Causes of Poverty in Cuba
1. U.S. Embargo
Following Fidel Castro’s assumption of power in 1961, the U.S. imposed an embargo that abruptly deprived Cuban exporters of the recipient of 95 percent of their exports. Since then, the embargo has strictly restricted Cubans’ access to American products, contributing to shortages of everything from food, to electronics and internet access. The legislation of the embargo even includes sanctions against other countries that do business with Cuba. In this way, the embargo significantly limits Cubans’ access to products, partners and the means to climb out of poverty.
2. Agriculture
Like many developing countries across the world, Cuba has historically depended on agriculture as its main industry. Agricultural dependence often limits countries’ abilities to develop infrastructure and establish economic stability. Until the 1990s, the primary economic driver in Cuba was sugar. Because of this historical reliance on a single crop, Cuba has been ill-prepared to deal with changes in the global economy and to diversify beyond its agricultural roots.
3. Allies
For more than thirty years, Cuba was allied with the former Soviet Union. This relationship created special trading conditions which benefited the Cuban economy. Cuba traded sugar to the USSR for much-needed goods and economic support; but when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, Cuba experienced a 35 percent contraction of its GDP. In a country of only 11 million people, this financial crash was more extreme than the American Great Depression. Cuba has yet to fully recover from this economic blow.
4. Dependence
Cuba’s troubles with the USSR are part of a larger pattern of centralization. For the majority of the country’s history, Cuba depended on a single trading partner for over 90 percent of its foreign trade. Cuba’s exclusive relationship with first the U.S. and then the USSR caused big problems when these partners suddenly disappeared. Cuba also traditionally focused industrially on sugar production; this centralization further limits Cuba’s ability to find sources of revenue to meet the country’s needs.
5. Social Services
Cubans enjoy free health care and education, as well as subsidized housing and food rations. These social benefits form a safety net rare to the developing world and even many developed countries; but these social services come at a cost. Spending on social services can limit the amount of money available to the Cuban government and the Cuban people especially in times of economic crisis.
The causes of poverty in Cuba are similar to those in the rest of Latin America, but Cuba’s unique position also presents the country with some unique challenges. Still, thanks to Cuba’s vigorous social services, many Cubans can count themselves lucky compared to other impoverished nations.
– Bret Anne Serbin
Photo: Pixabay
How to Help People in Burundi: 3 of the Most Vital Programs
Seeing as that task is daunting for the layman, the following paragraphs provide information on how to help people in Burundi.
Helping people in Burundi is frankly, difficult. This is because the European Union, Belgium, United States and other western countries have decided to suspend all bilateral aid (when one country’s government gives financial aid to another’s country’s government) to Burundi’s government because of human rights violations and an unwillingness to engage in sincere negotiations for peace.
Prior to the freeze, bilateral aid accounted for about half of Burundi’s overall budget. Lack of bilateral aid will only further hurt the country’s economy, and Burundi’s economy was already one of the least developed in the world.
While bilateral aid has been suspended, humanitarian aid has not. Here are three humanitarian organizations you can donate to in order to help people in Burundi:
1. World Food Programme
People in Burundi need food. The World Food Programme (WFP), the leading humanitarian organization fighting hunger worldwide to help them get that food, needs donations. In Burundi, only 28 percent of the population are food-secure and as many as 58 percent are chronically malnourished. WFP provides hot meals to primary school aged children in food insecure areas to encourage school attendance. Two hundred thousand children currently receive assistance from this program.
WFP also offers food assistance to 70,000 pregnant and nursing women who are underweight 6 months before birth and for up to 3 months after birthing. In addition, WFP provides food to refugees and people living with HIV and AIDS. Finally, WFP teaches locals in Burundi how to be more efficient in agriculture through its Food-for-Training/Food for Assets program.
Three hundred and fifty thousand people are being taught infrastructure development, how to rehabilitate deforested areas, agro-forestry and micro-economic training.
2. BeyGOOD
People in Burundi need access to clean water. Donate to Beyonce’s organization, BeyGOOD. BeyGOOD is working with UNICEF to supply safe water to people in Burundi. A statement on Beyonce’s website states: “With your help, nearly half a million people will gain access to safe water, as BEYGOOD4BURUNDI and UNICEF will support building water supply systems for healthcare facilities and schools, and the drilling of boreholes, wells and springs to bring safe water to districts.”
Donation gifts range from $3.11 for a collapsible 68-ounce water container for one person to $1,430.06 for a water tank kit for 1,000 people.
3. The Burundi Education Fund
People in Burundi need better quality education. Poverty and hunger have made it difficult for students to obtain an education. After the 6th grade, the Burundi Educational System simply does not have the room or resources to place children in schools. This results in students having to compete to be selected for the next grade by taking difficult placement tests. In some cases even if the student passes the test, he or she cannot move further in education due to the inability to afford tuition fees or school supplies.
The Burundi Education Fund, Inc. is a charitable Christian organization formed to provide materials and financial support to students and schools in extreme poverty in Burundi, Africa.
Specific successes of the organization that have helped students obtain their education include building a 26-bed dormitory safe house for the girls of Muramba High School, a running water fountain that provides clean drinking water to more than 1,900 students in the Mubimbi district and supporting a transfer student program.
The highly selective transfer program offers high school students a chance to continue their education in the U.S.
These are the most vital examples on how to help people in Burundi. The organizations above are addressing key needs of Burundian people’s lives that help them to obtain their basic human rights. While helping the people of Burundi may seem daunting, to be a responsible global citizen one must not turn a blind eye to tactics that can help others improve their quality of life.
Take action today and help one of the world’s poorest and hungriest nations become food and wealth secure.
– Jeanine Thomas
Photo: Flickr