Off the tip of southern Malaysia lies the small city-state Singapore. This sovereign island exists as a successful global finance, commerce and trade hub despite its lack of natural resources. A tropical nation, Singapore boasts one of the highest life expectancies and a generally efficient health system. Nevertheless, there are several widespread diseases in Singapore that need to be further addressed. Here are some common diseases in Singapore.
Although Singapore is highly developed and technologically advanced, its citizens often face significant health issues because of the nation’s proximity to Malaysia and Indonesia, two countries that produce an immense amount of air pollution. Singapore is the third-most densely populated country in the world, so communicable diseases like the flu and the common cold often run rampant due to close quarters.
Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease (HFMD)
HFMD, which presents with blisters and rashes on hands, feet and face, spreads quickly through small communities, transmitted through bodily fluids. Because it spreads through touch, it is especially prevalent among children.
In the first three weeks of 2017, there were 1,700 reported cases of HFMD, a significant increase from the 1,500 reported in 2016. Singaporeans have focused efforts to improve hygiene in low-income areas in order to prevent spread. There has been an incredible flow of information from the Ministry of Health to citizens to equip them, especially those with children, with the necessary tools to break HFMD’s chain of transmission. For example, there are lists provided with schools that have over 10 cases of HMFD within a short period of time so that parents can know to take their children away from school. Singapore has been more diligent with closing schools when there are several cases in the area to prevent rapid transmission.
Cardiovascular Diseases
Singapore, unlike many of its Southeast Asian neighbors, generally suffers from the same health concerns as Europe and North America. Cardiovascular diseases are a leading cause of death globally. In Singapore, they place the highest burden on life by a large margin due to the high rate of mortality. Ischemic heart disease, which involves narrowing arteries, is particularly devastating as it prevents sufficient levels of oxygen and blood from reaching the heart. Cardiovascular diseases led to almost a third of all deaths in the country, accounting for about 15 deaths per day in 2014.
Many Singaporeans suffer from cardiovascular diseases as a result of an unbalanced lifestyle combined with poor diet. Singapore, as a highly advanced nation, is prone to Westernization, which often involves an increased amount of fast food. Much of the threat of these diseases are preventable through lifestyle changes. More exercise and better nutrition are key to avoiding these common diseases in Singapore.
Diabetes
Another noncommunicable disease that severely affects Singapore is diabetes. This illness prevents the body from properly reacting to or creating insulin, which balances blood sugar levels. According the World Health Organization , the number of adults who have diabetes has quadrupled over the last 35 years due to “‘the way people eat, move and live.’” Around the world, particularly in developed nations, people have been indulging in high-calorie foods while leading more sedentary lifestyles, leading to widespread Type 2 Diabetes and other illnesses associated with an unhealthy lifestyle.
According to the International Diabetes Federation, Singapore currently has the second-highest proportion of diabetics among developed nations, with 10.53 percent of Singaporeans between 20 and 79 having diabetes. The number of Singaporeans with diabetes has been increasing with time. Only 4.7 percent had diabetes in 1984. The number rose to nine percent by 2004.
While lifestyle does play a significant role in diabetes, genetics must be considered as well. The vice president of the Diabetic Society of Singapore said that “we actually have a much higher percentage of body fat as compared with our Western counterparts.” Obesity can lead to insulin-resistance and causes diabetes, and these increased levels of body fat can also increase the likelihood of cardiovascular diseases.
In April 2016, Singapore’s Minister of Health Gan Kim Yong vowed to battle diabetes. Furthermore, as a result of this increase of illnesses associated with unhealthy lifestyles, like diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, Singaporeans, especially younger generations, have begun to alter their lifestyles by increasing exercise and controlling their diets to prevent common diseases in Singapore.
– Akhil Reddy
Photo: Flickr
Lifestyles Affect Common Diseases in Singapore
Although Singapore is highly developed and technologically advanced, its citizens often face significant health issues because of the nation’s proximity to Malaysia and Indonesia, two countries that produce an immense amount of air pollution. Singapore is the third-most densely populated country in the world, so communicable diseases like the flu and the common cold often run rampant due to close quarters.
Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease (HFMD)
HFMD, which presents with blisters and rashes on hands, feet and face, spreads quickly through small communities, transmitted through bodily fluids. Because it spreads through touch, it is especially prevalent among children.
In the first three weeks of 2017, there were 1,700 reported cases of HFMD, a significant increase from the 1,500 reported in 2016. Singaporeans have focused efforts to improve hygiene in low-income areas in order to prevent spread. There has been an incredible flow of information from the Ministry of Health to citizens to equip them, especially those with children, with the necessary tools to break HFMD’s chain of transmission. For example, there are lists provided with schools that have over 10 cases of HMFD within a short period of time so that parents can know to take their children away from school. Singapore has been more diligent with closing schools when there are several cases in the area to prevent rapid transmission.
Cardiovascular Diseases
Singapore, unlike many of its Southeast Asian neighbors, generally suffers from the same health concerns as Europe and North America. Cardiovascular diseases are a leading cause of death globally. In Singapore, they place the highest burden on life by a large margin due to the high rate of mortality. Ischemic heart disease, which involves narrowing arteries, is particularly devastating as it prevents sufficient levels of oxygen and blood from reaching the heart. Cardiovascular diseases led to almost a third of all deaths in the country, accounting for about 15 deaths per day in 2014.
Many Singaporeans suffer from cardiovascular diseases as a result of an unbalanced lifestyle combined with poor diet. Singapore, as a highly advanced nation, is prone to Westernization, which often involves an increased amount of fast food. Much of the threat of these diseases are preventable through lifestyle changes. More exercise and better nutrition are key to avoiding these common diseases in Singapore.
Diabetes
Another noncommunicable disease that severely affects Singapore is diabetes. This illness prevents the body from properly reacting to or creating insulin, which balances blood sugar levels. According the World Health Organization , the number of adults who have diabetes has quadrupled over the last 35 years due to “‘the way people eat, move and live.’” Around the world, particularly in developed nations, people have been indulging in high-calorie foods while leading more sedentary lifestyles, leading to widespread Type 2 Diabetes and other illnesses associated with an unhealthy lifestyle.
According to the International Diabetes Federation, Singapore currently has the second-highest proportion of diabetics among developed nations, with 10.53 percent of Singaporeans between 20 and 79 having diabetes. The number of Singaporeans with diabetes has been increasing with time. Only 4.7 percent had diabetes in 1984. The number rose to nine percent by 2004.
While lifestyle does play a significant role in diabetes, genetics must be considered as well. The vice president of the Diabetic Society of Singapore said that “we actually have a much higher percentage of body fat as compared with our Western counterparts.” Obesity can lead to insulin-resistance and causes diabetes, and these increased levels of body fat can also increase the likelihood of cardiovascular diseases.
In April 2016, Singapore’s Minister of Health Gan Kim Yong vowed to battle diabetes. Furthermore, as a result of this increase of illnesses associated with unhealthy lifestyles, like diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, Singaporeans, especially younger generations, have begun to alter their lifestyles by increasing exercise and controlling their diets to prevent common diseases in Singapore.
– Akhil Reddy
Photo: Flickr
Moving Toward Better Human Rights in Gabon
Human rights in Gabon, a country in Central Africa, are not as good as they should be. Even though Gabon is wealthier than many other African countries, human rights violations and poverty are issues the country still deals with.
The U.S. Department of State reports that prison conditions are the primary violation of human rights in Gabon. Overcrowding, substandard sanitation and ventilation, as well as poor food and healthcare quality, are all problems in Gabon prisons. Some people in holding were not allowed contact with lawyers or family for several days, even if he or she had not been charged, which violates Gabonese law.
The 2016 election led to several violations of human rights in Gabon. Many non-warranted arrests were made as a result of the controversial election. Labor unions, politicians and opinion leaders were arrested, and disappearances took place shortly before election day in August. Abusive behavior by prison guards toward detainees was commonly reported after the election, and somewhere between 20 and 50 civilians and protesters were killed by government workers.
Free speech and assembly took hits as well. Some publications in Gabon closed and were threatened by the Ministry of Communications for criticizing the government. Measures such as tear gas were used against activists during protests also.
Women work freely and are able to seek the position of their choosing, but must have their husbands’ consent before traveling. Rape often goes unreported due to unfortunate social stigmas, which may also hinder the LGBT community.
Yet, steps are being taken to improve the condition of human rights in Gabon, including expanding internet access. Since the election, Ali Bongo, the current president, took action toward reducing the government corruption that largely accumulated during the 42-year reign of his father Omar Bongo.
According to Freedom House, Bongo “eliminated ghost workers from the public payroll” and “formed the National Commission against Illegal Enrichment to combat corruption”. He also created a task force to address the millions of missing dollars from previous projects and to donate his portion of his father’s estate to the children of Gabon.
However, additional action will need to be taken to improve human rights in Gabon. It is currently ranked 99 out of 168 countries for government corruption. If Ali Bongo makes the improvement of human rights a priority, Gabon can rise above its current state.
– Emma Tennyson
Photo: Flickr
Toward a Better Life: Improving Water Quality in Cabo Verde
The Republic of Cabo Verde is a country comprised of 10 islands off the coast of West Africa. In 2012, the government planned to drastically increase its desalination system in order to improve water capacity and consumption and to meet the demands of the country’s rising tourism industry. Since this plan to improve water sanitation and availability of this country’s precious resource, water quality in Cabo Verde has improved in 2017, through government cooperation and local partnership.
Though Santiago, one of Cabo Verde’s islands, already had a desalination plant implemented, the government suggested at least eight more plants be installed in order to satisfy the resident and growing tourist populations. At the time of the government’s 2012 plan to invest in major water quality improvement, reports showed that with the island’s 500,000 citizens and the high volume of tourists, sources of water were already limited. Cabo Verde is a dry country and doesn’t receive much rain, so the country’s ministry of environment made it a goal to build a desalination plant for every island, as part of the National Directive Plan for Water.
The ministry hoped that over the next five years, 400 million euros, paired with a $66.2 million grant from the U.S. foreign aid agency, plus additional funding from the EU and the U.N., would significantly contribute to the country’s goal to have 50% of its energy supplied by renewable sources by the year 2020.
In March 2017, just five years since the start of the desalination and sanitation system implementation, Cabo Verde’s driest islands are seeing major victories, and some of the country’s most vulnerable populations are seeing the biggest difference. Santa Maria, a high-traffic tourist and travel location in Sal on Cape Verde, saw the inauguration of a 2010 Wastewater Treatment Plant. With the help of new management and a working operating system that connects to local sewage networks, the plant is now fully functioning.
The new system for delivering clean, available and affordable water will make lives on Cabo Verde a little easier. Most poor families can’t afford to access water through the island’s utility networks, and some are miles apart, making clean water retrieval hard on locals. Poor women spend the most time collecting water for each household, but some more rural areas of the country have very little access — a mere 16% of the country ever sees this water.
Because of improved water quality in Cabo Verde, residents are feeling confident about running their households, thanks to government funding and water treatment plants throughout the country. Some locals say having sanitary and accessible water is most important in keeping their families healthy.
Cabo Verde’s tourism economy is also expected to improve with efforts to keep sanitized water flowing. As the industry provides jobs for more than one-third of the population, it is vital that the Cabo Verde government keep water sanitation at its highest priority, so that cleaner beaches bring tourists back again and again.
The government plans to designate a water improvement sector fund specifically for the water treatment facilities, upon its success. With further plans like this, water quality in Cabo Verde will continue to show signs of improvement.
– Olivia Cyr
Photo: Flickr
Nine Important Facts to Know About Belarusian Refugees
World War I was a massive turning point in the history of Belarus. Affecting the local economy, the war caused massive migration and displacement. Throughout the almost-century since then, the collapse of the Russian Empire, revolutions, various occupations and wars, Belarus has struggled to establish itself as an independent state. Belarus’s independence has been recognized globally since 1991.
Today, the country’s population is 84% Belarusian, 8.3% Russian, 3% Polish and 1.7% Ukrainian. Other ethnic groups in Belarus include Tatars, Jews and Roma. Over three million Belarusians live outside the country, most of them in Russia, Ukraine, Canada and the United States.
Here are 9 facts about Belarusian refugees:
Belarusian refugees are resettling in the EU, the U.S., Australia, Canada and Russia. The latest wave of refugees consists mostly of professionals – software and other engineers, scientists, students and athletes.
– Yana Emets
Photo: Flickr
Eight Important Facts About Micronesian Refugees
The Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) consists of 607 islands spread over one million square miles in the Pacific Ocean. Here are eight facts about Micronesian refugees you should know:
It is important to keep these eight facts about Micronesian refugees in mind in the face of an administration that has so far proven itself unsympathetic to the plights of refugees from Mexico and Syria. Micronesian refugees have not received as much media attention as those of refugees from the aforementioned countries, but aid is still needed for those who flee Micronesia.
– Caroline Meyers
Photo: Flickr
Decreasing the Poverty Rate in Hong Kong
In 2014, Hong Kong’s chief executive, Leung Chun-ying, proposed the Low-Income Working Family Allowance program. If a family’s income is at or below 50 percent of Hong Kong’s median income, and the family has at least one employed person, the family can receive up to $130 monthly or more, depending on the number of hours worked. The program is intended to reach 710,000 impoverished residents.
Since 2015, Hong Kong’s government implemented a second poverty alleviation plan. The plan provides Hong Kong’s government with a better understanding of the region’s impoverished areas and their specific situations. Hong Kong’s most impoverished groups and key strategies that could alleviate the poverty rate in Hong Kong are also being studied.
Hong Kong’s government also plans to enhance education and training opportunities, specifically jobs that facilitate mobility for the region’s youth. More financial, and other, assistance will be provided to Hong Kong’s poor families. The educational expenses for children within those families will also be considered.
The Old Age Living Allowance (OALA) is another program intended to alleviate poverty–specifically among Hong Kong’s elderly and impoverished communities. The OALA alleviated more than 43 million elderly Hong Kong residents in poverty in August 2016. Seeing this result has given Hong Kong’s government the goal to make similar programs that could help reduce the poverty rate in Hong Kong.
Groups and individuals outside of the government have also been doing their part to reduce the poverty rate in Hong Kong. Ho Hei-wah is a social activist who spent decades helping Hong Kong’s poor and continues to do so. Presently the director of the nonprofit Society for Community Organization (SCO), Hei-wah provides services to Hong Kong’s poor and other neglected communities. To Hong Kong’s people, Hei-wah is considered a champion and he plans to tackle future challenges facing the region’s poor.
In 2016, Habitat for Humanity found that many impoverished Hong Kong residents are forced to live in hazardous industrial homes, typically called “urban slums.” The organization is urging the government, charities and the public to work together in tackling Hong Kong’s housing problems. Habitat for Humanity plans for 15 million Hong Kong residents to have safe housing by 2020.
Decreasing the poverty rate in Hong Kong has become a main goal for many people. While some plans are still in progress, the mission to better the lives of Hong Kong’s impoverished communities remains an important priority. For now, Hong Kong’s poor are given hope that a better quality of life is soon to come.
– Rhondjé Singh Tanwar
Closing the Gap in Global Education
Indeed, education can eliminate bigger problems such as poverty, inequality, insecurity and disease. Equal access to a quality education, including access to content and means of delivering instruction and following a set curriculum, remains an unrealized dream and a struggle for many.
The last two centuries have seen an exponential increase in the number of children attending primary school globally, from 2.3 million to 700 million today. What is troubling is that children in the poorest households of developing nations, those arguably most in need of educational opportunities, are four times as likely to be out of school as those in the wealthiest households.
It is going to take another 100 years for children in developing countries to reach the education level of their counterparts in developed countries.
Access to a quality education remains a basic building block to success. Current approaches to educational equity necessitate a fundamental rethinking in that they must take into account that many children are unable to go to school because schools simply do not exist in parts of developing countries.
If schools do exist, teachers may lack proper training and simply be incapable of handling the demands of a classroom setting. Furthermore, barriers inherent in certain areas, such as societal demands and expectations, can hamper learning outside the classroom.
Technological tools and resources ignite curiosity and promote more efficient, up-to-date learning. A huge growth in social media platforms can certainly be aligned with classroom activity and curriculum, establishing more innovative ways for students and teachers to learn about global issues.
Though technology makes learning opportunities more widely accessible by decreasing the significance of geographical boundaries, a lack of technological infrastructure means that many children are deprived of the digital educational resources taken for granted in developed nations. For these students, the difficulty of closing the gap in global education comes with an additional cost: loss of productivity.
In 2015, the United Nations heavily promoted the Millennium Development Goals to achieve free universal primary education for all children by the year’s end.
Although it was unfortunate that the pace of improvement by countries could not keep up with the desire to have universal primary education, the primary school net enrollment rate did reach over 90 percent, and the number of out-of-school children fell from 100 million in 2000 to 57 million in 2015 . Movement toward closing the gap in global education is signified by the fact that not a single country in the world today is completely without a schooling system.
Today’s economy is knowledge-based and highly competitive. Schools in developed nations are entrusted with students who lack neither skills nor talents, but educational opportunities.
Some factors are beyond students’ control, such as where they were born and what their financial means are. But with the recent advancements in educational models, global education disparity can meaningfully be addressed and mitigated.
– Mohammed Khalid
Photo: Flickr
Blockchain Technology and Poverty Disruption
The inner mechanisms and mathematical coding of blockchain are highly complex. The principle is simple. It is a public ledger, stored and spread across multiple networks in countries around the world, making an impermeable information network. The decentralized nature of the data stored on blockchain allows for its application across all sectors without risk of disruption.
Significant to alleviating poverty, blockchain technology’s secure nature allows for it to be used as a financial services platform. In both urban and rural areas of developing countries, banks can be hard to come by, expensive to set up an account in and somewhat unreliable.
Cryptocurrency services can be scaled up and down to be incorporated into everything from the most basic phones to the world’s most sophisticated smartphones. This cryptographic technology would allow its users to send money directly to other individuals without a middleman or “trusted third parties” which take a percentage as a fee for its services and can be largely inaccessible.
Estimates suggest that by 2020 over 70 percent of the world will have access to smartphones. With financial technologies such as blockchain services, there is a real chance for those in rural or economically unstable countries to secure themselves without huge risk. Blockchain technology and poverty could have a progressive and important relationship.
By using cryptocurrencies or internet-money, individuals in financially insecure nations can take steps to avoid financial vulnerabilities, such as fraud or hyperinflation. M-PESA, a mobile money-transfer and micro-loan financing company, operates all across Africa and in parts of central Asia. Numbers from early 2017 suggest that M-PESA’s user base allowed approximately 186,000 families, two percent of Kenyan households, move from poverty into sustainable working conditions.
Blockchain’s financial services allow for mass participation in the most remote parts of the world. A wide range of business owners can build financial credibility. Currently, Chinese pharmaceutical companies receive assistance from Yijan, a blockchain created by IBM and Hejia, a Chinese supply management company.
Significant and notable players on the international landscape are quickly getting involved in blockchain techniques. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s Level One Project aims to use digital financial services to bring the impoverished into the formal economic ecosystem, providing them with the tools necessary for financial mobility.
In early 2017, the United Nation’s World Food Programme (WFP) incorporated blockchain technology and cash-based transfers into its humanitarian aid outreach in Pakistan. By using mobile-transfers, the WFP ensured that those in need were receiving financial aid without the risk of the disruption possible with cash-based aid. The technology-based transfers also allowed for the WFP to streamline its tracking system. Since the success in Pakistan, the WFP has chosen to expand blockchain to other humanitarian efforts.
These are a few of blockchain’s many applications. Its reach and potential as a tool for poverty alleviation are great, especially if utilized jointly by governments and NGOs. Although it may be no panacea, the incorporation of blockchain technology may be a significant macro approach in solving the systematic issue of poverty. Blockchain technology and poverty disruption may be one of the most exciting aspects of the new digital age.
– Sydney Nam
Reducing Poverty with Mobile Phones in Sub-Saharan Africa
For these people, a cell phone can mean a world of difference, and it doesn’t end with just agriculture. From education to banking to health, mobile phones opened up to a whole new realm of possibilities for the citizens of developing countries.
The GMSA Mobile Economy 2017 report predicts that mobile phones in Sub-Saharan Africa will reach half a billion users by 2020. This is more than double the number at the end of 2016, making it the fastest growing region in the world. The report attests the climb in numbers to the increased affordability of mobile devices and the improved market for used devices. In addition to the accessibility of information generated by mobile, the economy benefited as well, supplementing 3.5 million jobs in 2016. Tech start-ups are thriving in a mobile Africa as well. According to GMSA, “some 77 tech start-ups across the region raised just over $366.8 million in funding in 2016, growth of 33 percent compared to the previous year.” The opportunities that mobile platforms allow are attracting both talent and investment, according to GMSA.
Sub-Saharan Africa had 140 mobile money services in 39 countries as of December 2016, giving more and more users easy access to paying their bills online and sending/receiving money between friends and businesses. Zazu is Africa’s first digital-only bank, providing users with a debit card, a point-and-pay feature that utilizes the phone to scan payments with participating merchants and a mobile app to access transactions.
The mobile community provides impoverished people the chance to access financial services to make investments, save money and manage expenses. M-Pesa, for example, is a widely-used money-transferring mobile platform that recently added a savings and credit feature. According to GMSA, the platform lifted 194,000 Kenyan households out of poverty since 2006.
The report notes that there are more than 1,000 mobile health services that target families in developing countries. Sub-Saharan Africa makes up 25 percent of the global “disease burdened” population but only accounts for three percent of health workers. Living Goods supports health needs in Sub-Saharan Africa via a mobile platform run by trained health professional agents, focusing on child deaths with simple and affordable solutions. The agents use the mobile platform to identify diseases such as malaria and send automatic SMS reminders to the patient ensuring that they complete the whole course of treatment. Pregnant women can sign up to receive weekly messages with advice on maternal health and nutrition according to where they are at in their pregnancy. Living Goods even sells its own brand of food with nutrients and vitamins, often too difficult for people in developing African countries to access.
Mobile technology also allows those in poverty to receive better educations. Eneza Education is a learning platform utilizing mobile phones in Sub-Saharan Africa, enabling users to communicate with teachers and lesson programs via SMS, the web and Android. Students of all levels can take courses in any subject and interact instantly with teachers via their tablet, computer, or mobile phone. They also offer small business courses and teacher refreshment courses (which is hugely important, considering only about one-quarter of pre-primary teachers are trained in Sub-Saharan Africa). Eneza already has over two million subscribers across Africa and over 300,000 questions have been answered by their live ask-a-teacher feature.
Kytabu, out of Nairobi, allows users to essentially lease required learning and teaching materials (such as textbooks) online through their mobile device. The application provides exams, educational videos, group-chat classrooms, audiobooks and learning games.
Although accessibility to mobile phones in Sub-Saharan Africa is relatively new, the innovations made so far are a great testament to the technology’s potential. Clearly, the simplest technologies have the power to improve developing countries and make strides towards the elimination of poverty. In a modern world where phones have become grouped with simple technology, they are becoming as much of a right as water filters and electricity.
The things which we take for granted every day hold so much power. Think of what a cell phone can do.
– Katherine Gallagher
Photo: Flickr
Cost of Living in Thailand
Public transportation
A bus fee ranges from approximately THB 8 to 30, depending on the type of the bus. Since one Thai Baht is worth about $0.03, public transportation can cost less than a dollar. Tuk-tuks, the three-wheeled taxis that are common in the country, normally cost THB 40 to 100 for a short ten-minute ride, which is also highly affordable. The base fare for metered taxis is THB 35.
Housing
Cheap rental and housing prices also contribute to the low cost of living in Thailand. Numbeo states that an expensive one-bedroom apartment inside the City Center in Bangkok costs around THB 14,317 (equivalent to approximately $430), which is much cheaper than the rent in major U.S. cities.
Food prices
The food prices in Thailand are also much less expensive than those in most developed countries. For example, the prices of most popular grocery items are as follows: a loaf of bread costs $1.12, which is only half of its average price in the United States, Additionally, a dozen eggs costs $1.65, compared to the average price of $2.23 in the United States.
The street foods are also known for their affordability. A simple meal consisting of rice, vegetables and meat on a single plate ranges from approximately THB 30 to 50, which equals to just more than one dollar. A fancier meal with a selection of dishes that may often include an entire fish would cost from THB 60 to 200 ($2 to $6).
The aforementioned factors are main contributors to the low cost of living in Thailand. However, the high possibility of continued economic growth would gradually increase the cost of living in Thailand.
– Minh Joo Yi
Photo: Flickr