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Harvesting Rainwater in Zimbabwe Amid Drought


Over the last few years, Zimbabwe has been in a major drought due to climate change. According to NewsDay, the residents of this African country have experienced “suffocating dry spells with uncertainties on when exactly the rains [will pay them] the long-awaited visit.”

The uncertainty of rain has led many Zimbabweans, especially children, to become undernourished and thirsty at all times. With 90% of agriculture being rain-fed, most of the food sources are also being destroyed.

This is where the international NGO Practical Action steps in. These expert problem solvers have developed a way to contain the little rain that does fall and allow it to be used for everyday water needs by harvesting rainwater in Zimbabwe.

Practical Action states that one key source of clean water is through “harvesting rainwater as it falls and retaining it in the soil or in tanks below ground.” There are a couple of methods it has come up with to help store rainwater, for both irrigation and drinking purposes.

First, by constructing divots into the earth, people can trap the rainwater instead of letting it run off the land. This better sustains crops, which improves nutrition.

A second way to capture and store rainwater is with tanks. Practical Action gives many examples of how to do this, including water falling off of roofs, flowing out of dams or gathering up in puddles. Underground or above ground, tanks are useful for collecting rainwater and storing it for an indefinite amount of time until it is needed.

There are many benefits to this innovation. Harvesting rainwater in Zimbabwe can be done whether there is a little sprinkle or a storm. The Zimbabwe National Water Authority said: “The claim that rainwater harvesting is only possible when the rains are heavy is, unfortunately, one of the biggest misconceptions that have scuttled rainwater harvesting efforts in the past.”

People can harvest rainwater year-round, so Zimbabwean families can see more impactful results.

Zimbabwe local and Rainwater Harvesting Chairman Tias Sibanda has noticed a change in his life due to his use of this system. He remarked: “Thanks to the water harvesting techniques shown to us by Practical Action… and with the contour field structures, we are now more ‘food secure’ and have no worries about soil loss.”

Harvesting rainwater in Zimbabwe could be a hugely beneficial technique to keep families healthy and happy for the duration of the drought.

– Sydney Missigman

Photo: Flickr

Equatorial Guinea’s Poverty Rate Staggering Despite Country’s Wealth

Equatorial Guinea's Poverty Rate
Despite being one of Africa’s fastest-growing economies and a major producer of oil, Equatorial Guinea’s poverty rate is high due to institutional weaknesses and corruption that restrict the country’s ability to provide basic services to its people.

With a population of approximately one million people, Equatorial Guinea ranks 138 out of 188 countries in the Human Development Index for social and economic development, despite a per capita gross national income of $21,056 in 2014, the highest in Africa.

Oil has been a source of economic growth in Equatorial Guinea for the past five years, but due to corruption under President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, who uses oil revenues to fund the lifestyles of the elite, poverty persists. The government invests an imbalanced ratio between infrastructure and health and education.

While the African Union’s development model prioritizes spending on health and education, the government spends around $80 out of every $100 on infrastructure and only $2 to $3 each on health and education.

The African Union does not prioritize Equatorial Guinea in its efforts to eradicate poverty because of its oil wealth. However, nearly half of the country’s population lacks access to clean water. In 2011, 26% of children were malnourished, and one in four children did not receive vaccinations. In 2016, 42% of children were not registered in primary schools. Only half of children finish primary school, and less than 25% begin middle school.

In a recent Human Rights Watch interview, researcher Sarah Saadoun described the mismanagement and high-level corruption in Equatorial Guinea. Saadoun explained that the display of wealth by the president’s family and other officials next to such poverty shows a contrasting picture of a country’s poverty despite its obvious wealth.

“What we found—unequivocally—is that the government has violated its obligation to realize people’s right to health and education…and it is hampering the government’s ability to deliver education, health and clean water to Equatorial Guineans,” Saadoun stated.

Equatorial Guinea’s poverty rate cannot improve if the country does not tackle corruption from within and invest in its companies and resources and receive foreign investments. Unless new reserves are found, the country’s oil will run out by 2035. Equatorial Guinea can become prosperous through poverty reduction if it makes smart moves before an economic crisis ensues.

– Sarah Dunlap

Photo: Flickr

The Surprisingly Low Cost of Living in Costa Rica


With a small cost of living and a luxurious lifestyle to offer, Costa Rica is an ideal location for retirement, particularly for Americans. Not only is the scenery breathtaking, but the cost of living in Costa Rica is even more alluring.

Surprisingly enough, day-to-day living costs are much more affordable in Costa Rica than in both the U.S. and the U.K. At the end of 2016, the minimum monthly required income for a single person in Costa Rica was $1,500 to $2,000. A majority of retired couples succeed on as little as $2,000 to $3,000 per month.

Medicare costs in Costa Rica are very affordable. Most consider the medical care to be of exceptionally good quality, yet it comes at a low monthly cost that includes free services.

The monthly cost to rent a lavish condo in Costa Rica is a mere $500 to $900 dollars. In many other countries as well as most of the U.S., this amount will hardly cover a basic, low-quality apartment.

As far as services go, the cost of electricity is around $200 per month, high-speed internet lands at a small amount of $25 per month and there is a $200 monthly fee for hiring a full-time maid if a resident desires to have one.

Food costs are astoundingly low as well, with a dozen bananas costing a mere $0.42. Fresh bread loaves cost about $1.25, and a pound of tomatoes is only $0.35. For Americans, this amounts to a 45% savings for the average amount of purchased groceries.

The low cost of living in Costa Rica combined with the beautiful landscapes and relaxing beaches is enough to make it the perfect place to live or retire. In fact, Costa Rica often gets mentioned on lists of best places to retire for this very reason. Those who are looking to move and have no ties to their place of origin will find Costa Rica to be a very affordable and appealing option.

– Noel Mcdavid

Photo: Flickr

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Water Quality in Qatar


The water quality in Qatar is improving, and experts say that both the tap and bottled water is usually safe to drink. However, those who live in the country should be cautious with imported water.

According to the Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute, or QEERI, tap and bottled water in Qatar is “very safe to drink.” The organization conducted a study looking at 113 samples of tap water and 62 samples of bottled water with favorable.

Based on QEERI’s findings, the water quality in Qatar complies with guidelines set by both the World Health Organization and the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

QEERI confirmed that the water did not contain dangerous levels of contaminants, such as lead and arsenic, which can affect the taste and smell of the water in addition to causing health problems.

Nora Kuiper, a leading researcher for the project, said that the quality of water in Qatar is superior, contrary to any preconceived notions that residents might have.

“The quality of Qatar’s drinking water is very high, higher than many local consumers think,” Kuiper said.

Candace Rowell, another researcher for this project, said that the most important outcome of the study was finding that tap and bottled water are comparably safe.

“The real takeaway message is that tap water in the country is just as safe as bottled water, either locally produced or imported brands,” Rowell said.

The main concern that the study addressed was that imported water was not always up to standards. According to QEERI, some samples of imported water showed higher concentrations of contaminants, such as arsenic.

According to Doha News, researchers have expressed concerns regarding the mineral content and how this affects the water quality in Qatar. The study found that while water is typically free from harmful chemicals and bacteria, it can lack vital minerals. According to this article, at least 50 percent of Qatar’s water supply requires extensive salt removal due to the country’s limited access to freshwater.

Jerome Nriagu, a professor emeritus at the School of Public Health and Research and the Center for Human Growth and Development at the University of Michigan said that this “synthetic” water lacks essential minerals.

“By constantly drinking water with low potassium and magnesium, you increase the risk of getting obesity and hypertension, and [certain] metabolic disorders,” Nriagu said.

Nriagu said that it would be beneficial for officials to add essential minerals to better the water quality in Qatar.

“We’re not getting enough from our foods to start with, and now drinking [this type of] water compounds the problem,” Nriagu said.

– Leah Potter

Photo: Flickr

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10 Facts About Hunger in Serbia

The hunger and deprivation that plagued refugee camps during the Kosovo War inspired Clint Borgen to found The Borgen Project, and one of the countries that saw the largest influx of suffering refugees during that time was Serbia. Though conditions today are far better than they were in 1999, hunger in Serbia is still a problem. Here are 10 facts about the past and present conditions.

  1. In 1999, the U.N. World Food Program distributed 145,000 tons of food to Serbia, feeding approximately 890,000 undernourished people. At that time, the WFP compared conditions in Serbia, where 10 percent of the population faced a humanitarian crisis, to those in North Korea.
  2. In 2008, the Global Hunger Index (GHI) was 7.8 in Serbia and has since dropped to 7.1 in 2016. The GHI uses undernourishment, child wasting, child stunting and child mortality in their formula for determining hunger levels.
  3. The proportion of people experiencing hunger in Serbia, meaning they have insufficient caloric intake, was 6.9 percent in 2016, an improvement from 7.4 percent in 2008.
  4. The prevalence of wasting in children younger than five, which means their weight is low relative to their height, was 3.9 percent, down from four percent in 2008. Wasting is a measure of acute malnutrition.
  5. The prevalence of stunting in children younger than five, which means their height is low for their age, was six percent, down from 7.4 percent in 2008. Stunting is representative of chronic malnutrition.
  6. The mortality rate for children under the age of five is .7 percent, a small improvement from .8 percent in 2008.
  7. Of 113 index countries, the Global Food Security Index ranks Serbia 47th in affordability, 65th in availability and 52nd in quality and safety. Their overall rank for food security is 59.4, making them 52nd overall of the 113 countries.
  8. The Global Food Security Index also reports that hunger in Serbia leaves the average intensity of food deprivation at eight kilocalories per person per day. Each day, Serbia’s population lacks a total of 336,00,000 kilocalories.
  9. Because the nation has been a member of the U.N. since 2000, hunger in Serbia is a major factor in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The agenda is comprised of 17 goals, the second of which is “zero hunger.”
  10. Because it is far cheaper, it was reported that Serbians ate three times more bread than the average EU citizen in 2014 (89 kilograms/year), and close to a third of the amount of meat, at 35 kilograms per year, compared to 90 in Germany, 91 in Italy and 102 in France.

Conditions have been steadily improving to help eliminate hunger in Serbia. Where the country faced a humanitarian crisis at the beginning of the century, it is now working with the U.N. to meet a goal of zero hunger by 2030. The statistics concerning Global Hunger and Global Food Security clearly illustrate the successes of aid programs and domestic growth in the country, while the presence of malnutrition and child mortality reiterates that until there is no hunger, there is always more to be done.

– Brooke Clayton

Photo: Flickr

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Common Diseases in Nicaragua

The most common diseases in Nicaragua include bacterial diarrhea, Hepatitis A, typhoid fever, dengue fever and malaria. Recently, countries in this region of the world have also seen a rise in Zika transmission. Common diseases in Nicaragua are food and waterborne diseases and vector-borne diseases.

The food and waterborne diseases seen in Nicaragua are bacterial diarrhea, Hepatitis A, and Typhoid fever. These can be contracted by ingesting contaminated food or water. Hepatitis A attacks the liver, resulting in fever, jaundice and diarrhea. About 15 percent of infected individuals will have these symptoms for more than six months. Typhoid fever leads to extremely high fevers, and when left untreated it has a mortality rate of 20 percent.

Dengue fever and malaria are spread by vectors, just like the Zika virus. Dengue fever is transferred through mosquito bites and has a death rate of 5 percent caused by shock or hemorrhage. Malaria is also spread through mosquitoes.

The CDC is most concerned with the prevalence of the Zika virus, because of the lasting effects it has on a population. Although the virus does not usually lead to death, it is an issue for pregnant women, who transfer the disease to their unborn children. When infected, these children will suffer from a lack of development in their skulls, which will cause major problems throughout their lives.

The good news is that the common diseases in Nicaragua are fairly easy to prevent with vaccination and proper hygiene. By avoiding contact with animals and bodily fluids, as well as preventing the spread of germs, the likelihood of contracting these diseases lessens greatly.

– Helen Barker

Photo: Flickr

Why is Venezuela Poor?

Venezuela is a country in South America with a population of over 31 million. With such a large population, it may come as a surprise that 82 percent of its citizens live in poverty. Why is Venezuela poor? There are many reasons, and following are a few of them.

  1. Economic crisis: Venezuela is in its third year of recession, which is the main answer to the question ‘why is Venezuela poor?’ Its economy is expected to contract by 10 percent this year according to the International Monetary Fund. Consequently, while the economy shrinks, the prices of goods are skyrocketing. This year, inflation is expected to rise 475 percent, and Venezuela’s currency has plummeted in value. Consider this: one dollar equaled 100 bolivars exactly two years ago. Today, one dollar is equivalent to 1,262 bolivars.
  2. Venezuela’s broken engine: Oil prices began to plunge in 2014. The oil prices contribute to Venezuela’s list of reasons for being poor. Venezuela has the world’s largest oil reserves, but the problem is that oil is the only game in town. It makes up more than 95 percent of Venezuela’s revenue from its exports. If it doesn’t sell oil, the country doesn’t have money to spend. Oil prices were over $100 per barrel in 2014. Today, they hover around $50 per barrel, after dropping as low as $26 earlier this year.
  3. Soaring food prices and broken hospitals. The food shortages became extremely severe this year, contributing to Venezuela’s poverty. Venezuelans went weeks, in some cases months, without basics like milk, eggs, flour, soap and toilet paper. Despite a crashing currency and dropping oil revenue, the government continued enforcing strict price controls on goods sold in the supermarkets. Only recently has the government stopped enforcing price controls, and food has returned to supermarket shelves. However, prices are so high that few Venezuelans can afford the food.

These points scratch the surface of the question ‘why is Venezuela poor?’ Venezuela is poor and running out of cash quickly. In the near future, it won’t have the money to pay its bills. Venezuela will owe $15 billion by the end of 2017, while the nation’s central bank only has $11.8 billion in reserves. The state-owned oil company is pumping less oil and risking default. Most of its reserves are in the form of gold. So, to make debt payments this year, Venezuela has shipped gold bars to Switzerland. China used to bail out Venezuela and loan it billions of dollars. However, even China has stopped giving its Latin American ally more cash.

– Paige Wilson

Photo: Google

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Assad Diverts Foreign Aid from Those in Need

The U.S has spent a total of $6 billion in Syria as of 2016. The need for this assistance is extensive. USAID estimated that there are 13.5 million people in need of humanitarian assistance in Syria. However, President Bashar al-Assad of Syria diverts foreign aid from those who need it. He uses it for political goals.

Every day, Russian aircraft drop tons of food in the government-controlled neighborhood of Deir Ezzor. This has saved the lives of countless Syrians in the city. However, in towns controlled by the opposition, countless Syrians starve. Through the use of systematic regulations, President Assad diverts foreign aid from those in need. He then uses foreign aid as a political tool to increase his authority. Syrian expert Joshua Landis said that the Syrian government needs to manipulate foreign aid because “food is loyalty.”

The U.N. admits that it can only work with a small number of partners approved by Assad. Assad’s wife and close friend run two of these partnerships. Other humanitarian relief contracts are awarded to individuals under sanction and members of the Syrian regime known for their brutality and oppression. This is because the Syrian relief effort is the most challenging and complex operation the U.N. has ever seen. This gives Assad more bargaining power. He diverts foreign aid only to areas he controls. He only allows the U.N. into the country without interference if they play by his rules.

Moreover, a Russian airliner company, Abakan Air, carries out the aid transportation. Two Russian nationals, Nikolai Ustimenko and his son Patel, own the company. Both have previously been barred from doing business with the U.N. on account of bribery. It is unclear to what extent they play in Assad’s distribution of foreign aid.

It wasn’t always this way. Initially, the U.N. and Syrian Red Cross delivered aid impartially to the Syrian people. However, as the world turned its attention elsewhere, the Syrian government began blocking aid deliveries to rebel-controlled towns.

Advocates of the foreign aid program point to the amount of good aid have done in the region. Even through the aid only affects certain areas, civilians in need are still being fed. They say it would be unfair to punish those civilians in desperate need by withdrawing aid.

The USAID and UNICEF have done well to give aid. However, it is not good enough. The fact that Assad diverts foreign aid must be addressed. People are starving in Syria and aid needs to be distributed equally.

– Bruce Truax

Photo: Google

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Five Organizations Promoting Education in Haiti

In the United States, public education is frequently taken for granted. The plethora of education choices we are afforded often blinds those with privilege from how fortunate they are. In developing countries such as Haiti, these options are non-existent. The following nonprofits and other organizations are promoting education in Haiti.

Education for Haiti
With only about nine percent of Haitian children graduating from high school, Education for Haiti sees it as vital to ensure that children stay in school. The founder, Richard Ireland, spent time in the Peace Corps working in Haiti and saw firsthand the lack of access to education. After identifying six families living in extreme poverty, he decided to pay their children’s tuition. Altogether the six families had 33 children that he was able to send to school.

This legacy carries on today as the organization continues to provide tuition assistance to children of Haiti. While six families were helped last year, the organization hopes to grow to help even more.

Global Partnership for Education
Global Partnership for Education focuses on education all over the world. Through a series of grants, this organization is affecting change in Haiti. The first grant awarded to Haiti lasted from 2010 to 2015 and was utilized to increase access to education, boost student performance and increase governance in the school system.

The second grant to promote education in Haiti, which is $24.1 million, is set to last from 2014 to 2018. This grant is more targeted at enrollment. This reached 102,000 students the first year and an additional 35,444 the following year. This program is a tuition assistance initiative aimed at reaching children who otherwise would not be able to afford a non-public education.

UNESCO
As the educational and cultural arm of the United Nations, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is renowned for its contributions to discovery and innovation around the world. Haiti is one of 181 countries in which UNESCO has created schools that are part of the Associated Schools Project Network.

With two primary schools, six secondary schools and 13 colleges, the organization is making notable changes in Haiti. The establishment of these schools not only bolsters Haiti but also helps the United Nations to reach the Education for Sustainable Development plan. These schools bring new perspectives based on innovation and experience.

Hope for Haiti
Like many nonprofits, Hope for Haiti focuses on more than one problem in Haiti, but education remains a key issue. Rather than focusing on ground-relief, it uses donations to power the organization and promote education in Haiti.

The nonprofit requires only $5 to provide school supplies to a student, and $100 can support an entire education. The scholarships provided to students through donations are able to change lives. One student, Marie Francelene, was able to attend nursing school through the organization’s assistance. Without Hope for Haiti, she would have been like thousands of other unfortunate students and unable to continue her education.

Haiti Foundation Against Poverty
The Haiti Foundation Against Poverty has narrowed its view to a specific area of Haiti. The United Nations labeled the slum Cite Soleil one of the most dangerous places in the world, but this label only encouraged the Foundation. In 2008, Les Bours School was opened on the outskirts of the notorious slum.

Les Bours School was established to promote education among the most disadvantaged children in Haiti. These are children living in unimaginable conditions surrounded by violence and gangs. The school created hope for these children’s futures. To continue this program, each student at Les Bours School is matched with a sponsor in order to continue funding.

These organizations promoting education in Haiti have left a substantial impact on the small island country, with every bit of aid making a big difference.

– Sophie Casimes

Photo: Flickr