The U.S. Government employs a variety of strategies to combat global poverty. Over the past decade, U.S. foreign assistance has reformed to include less traditional measures to reduce poverty such as the funding of educational and cultural nonprofits.
In 1946, President Truman established the Office of International Information and Cultural Affairs (OIC), which is the first U.S. sanctioned effort to reduce poverty in a non-traditional way.
In 1979, reducing poverty in a non-traditional way became the responsibility of the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA). The ECA now funds a variety of international cultural, educational and athletic interactions to accomplish the objectives of the 1961 Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchange Act.
The 1961 mandate stipulates that the U.S. government will fund public diplomatic efforts “to build friendly, peaceful relations between the people of the United States and the people of other countries through academic, cultural, sports and professional exchanges, as well as public-private partnerships.”
Notable ECA efforts to reducing poverty in a non-traditional way include the Critical Language Scholarship, which provides study abroad scholarships to students who are interested in learning languages deemed critical by the Department of State — Swahili, Urdu, Persian and Bangla.
Applicants are required to demonstrate their plan to apply the language in an impactful way — translating for a nonprofit, working with the local community, or researching for developmental programs.
U.S. efforts to reduce poverty in a non-traditional way also include the Future Leaders Exchange, which selects an exemplary high school to serve as a cultural ambassador around the world. The program includes intensive community service efforts in which the American student-ambassador lives.
The Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs also oversees inbound and outbound inter-cultural exchanges to promote cultural understanding, which is one of the strongest measures to countering the attractiveness of joining a violent extremist movement in impoverished areas.
Youth For Understanding (YFU) is at the forefront of this laudable public diplomacy. YFU is an international nonprofit consisting of over 50 international partners to provide a variety of inter-cultural immersions to students of all ages.
In 1951, the nonprofit was started by Rachel Andresen with the mission to repair the disjointed global community after the devastating consequences of World War II. YFU has since become a global leader in the fight to reduce poverty in non-traditional ways.
Poverty reduction efforts of YFU are best embodied by their six approaches to intercultural exchanges: caring: personal and people-oriented, learning for life, valuing diversity: inclusive and fair, volunteering: engaged and dedicated, cooperating in international solidarity, and promoting quality, transparency and sustainability.
YFU is just the beginning of innovative approaches to reduce poverty in non-traditional ways. To truly end global poverty, however, the U.S. must continue to encourage the private and public sector to tackle public diplomacy in unique ways, along with increasing foreign assistance to the countries who need it most.
– Adam George
Photo: Flickr
Argentina’s Poverty Status After Three-Year Gap
In 2013, Argentina’s President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner came under intense scrutiny when she announced that the country’s poverty rate was 4.7%. However, a recent report by the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) closed the three-year gap revealing that close to a third of the population is living below the poverty line.
Argentina’s Poverty Status Based on Statistics
With a vibrant Spanish culture and colossal landscape, Argentina’s population sits just shy of 44 million. However, this nation is faced with severe poverty rates and economic inflation. During the reveal of the 2016 second quarter statistics; 32.2% of the population is currently experiencing household poverty at 23.1%, 4.8% below the household poverty line. Unemployment within the population also remains a threat with the open unemployment rate reaching 9.3% meanwhile the underemployment rate was 11.2%.
Homelessness a Possible Threat
With the population being plagued with Argentina’s poverty status, homelessness becomes a threat to the nation’s indigent. The total urban population of Argentina is 27.2 million and consists of 8.7 million households. Statistics of the second quarter reveal that 2 million households, including 8.7 million people are below the poverty line. Within the group, 45,000 households are living in poverty inclusive of 1.7 million homeless individuals.
Reaching Zero Poverty
There will be difficulty in reaching President Mauricio Macri’s zero poverty goal. The inflation rate in Argentina has risen to 40.5% since April 2016 following the three-year non-disclosure. The government intends to transfer the control of economic factors to the private sector from the public sector. Policies are aiming for a laissez-faire approach that allows for transactions between private parties devoid of government intervention.
One Forbes magazine contributor presents President Macri’s revelation of Argentina’s poverty statistics as heroic and the basis for the return of neoliberalism. “What we are starting to have in Argentina are real statistics. What we had until a few months ago was a fiction with no reality. It was a manipulation,” said Macri.
Progress in Process
Ban Ki-moon, the U.N. secretary-general, commended the Argentine Government Council for their support in international affairs and their commitment to sustainable development. The country has made great strides in tackling gender inequality as well as maintaining its commitment to the Paris Agreement.
President Macri acknowledges the present conditions of the country and moves in hopes that he would be appraised on his efforts to reduce the current figures. “This is our reality and I want to be evaluated on whether or not I was able to reduce poverty from now on,” said Macri.
– Shanique Wright
Photo: Flickr
A Non-Traditional Way to Reduce Poverty
The U.S. Government employs a variety of strategies to combat global poverty. Over the past decade, U.S. foreign assistance has reformed to include less traditional measures to reduce poverty such as the funding of educational and cultural nonprofits.
In 1946, President Truman established the Office of International Information and Cultural Affairs (OIC), which is the first U.S. sanctioned effort to reduce poverty in a non-traditional way.
In 1979, reducing poverty in a non-traditional way became the responsibility of the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA). The ECA now funds a variety of international cultural, educational and athletic interactions to accomplish the objectives of the 1961 Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchange Act.
The 1961 mandate stipulates that the U.S. government will fund public diplomatic efforts “to build friendly, peaceful relations between the people of the United States and the people of other countries through academic, cultural, sports and professional exchanges, as well as public-private partnerships.”
Notable ECA efforts to reducing poverty in a non-traditional way include the Critical Language Scholarship, which provides study abroad scholarships to students who are interested in learning languages deemed critical by the Department of State — Swahili, Urdu, Persian and Bangla.
Applicants are required to demonstrate their plan to apply the language in an impactful way — translating for a nonprofit, working with the local community, or researching for developmental programs.
U.S. efforts to reduce poverty in a non-traditional way also include the Future Leaders Exchange, which selects an exemplary high school to serve as a cultural ambassador around the world. The program includes intensive community service efforts in which the American student-ambassador lives.
The Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs also oversees inbound and outbound inter-cultural exchanges to promote cultural understanding, which is one of the strongest measures to countering the attractiveness of joining a violent extremist movement in impoverished areas.
Youth For Understanding (YFU) is at the forefront of this laudable public diplomacy. YFU is an international nonprofit consisting of over 50 international partners to provide a variety of inter-cultural immersions to students of all ages.
In 1951, the nonprofit was started by Rachel Andresen with the mission to repair the disjointed global community after the devastating consequences of World War II. YFU has since become a global leader in the fight to reduce poverty in non-traditional ways.
Poverty reduction efforts of YFU are best embodied by their six approaches to intercultural exchanges: caring: personal and people-oriented, learning for life, valuing diversity: inclusive and fair, volunteering: engaged and dedicated, cooperating in international solidarity, and promoting quality, transparency and sustainability.
YFU is just the beginning of innovative approaches to reduce poverty in non-traditional ways. To truly end global poverty, however, the U.S. must continue to encourage the private and public sector to tackle public diplomacy in unique ways, along with increasing foreign assistance to the countries who need it most.
– Adam George
Photo: Flickr
Mother’s Delivery Kits Provide Affordable Birthing Supplies
After a close friend died during childbirth, Adepeju Jaiyeoba founded the Brown Button Foundation, an organization in Nigeria that trains birthing attendants in 2011.
Training the birthing attendants led Jaiyeoba to another realization: the supplies being used to deliver babies often were not sterile and posed hazards to the health of both the mother and baby. In response, Jaiyeoba started the Mother’s Delivery Kits in 2013, a for-profit company that provides affordable birthing kits with safe and sterile equipment.
Jaiyeoba intended for her kits to be used as a safe alternative. However, it is not uncommon for dangerous practices to be used when health care practitioners and families lack access to safe and sterile birthing tools.
This is especially common in rural Nigeria. For example, traditional birth attendants may cut the baby’s umbilical cord with a rusty blade or suck mucus out from the baby’s nostrils to prevent them from asphyxiating. Both practices can lead to infection. In contrast, the Mother’s Delivery Kit provides sterilized scalpel blades and a mucus extractor along with another 13 to 15 sterilized delivery tools.
Development of the Mother’s Delivery Kit has been so influential that Jaiyeoba was recognized by President Barack Obama during the Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders Presidential Summit in 2014 for her ventures.
Mother’s Delivery Kits provides birthing kits for health centers, hospitals, university teaching hospitals, maternal and child health organizations and Traditional Birth Attendants. They have about 205 attendants and institutions that have registered for a consistent supply. Over 7,500 kits were sold in the first year alone. Such use has yielded a 100 percent safe delivery record.
As of 2015, 11,000 kits have been delivered. This life-saving company hopes to continue expansion through Nigeria and franchise their model to other organizations in countries with similar problems of high maternal and infant mortality rates during childbirth.
– Laura Isaza
Photo: Flickr
President Obama and the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA)
On Nov. 4, President Obama signed an executive order advancing the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA), which the administration started in 2014. As a result, the United States will now prioritize the GHSA on a presidential level.
As part of the GHSA, the United States has joined with 55 different countries, nonprofit organizations and for-profit companies. The GHSA’s top goals include the improvement of research accountability and outbreak detection, and 22 countries have already begun to evaluate outbreak responses and identify areas to improve upon.
Philippe Douste-Blazy, the under-secretary general of the United Nations, suggests that the WHO needs to focus on outbreak response as one of its five main priorities in order to ensure that the global health goals will be met by 2030.
According to USAID, the “GHSA promotes global health security as a national priority through targeted capacity building activities, such as improving laboratory systems, strengthening disease surveillance, improving biosafety and biosecurity, expanding workforce development, and improving emergency management.”
USAID also proposes to support the GHSA initiative by addressing animal health, human health and the environment. USAID’s Bureau for Global Health Assistant Administrator, Dr. Ariel Pablos Mendez, says that USAID’s attention to animal health is particularly important: 70 percent of new infectious disease outbreaks begin in animals.
WaterAid also celebrates the GHSA’s anticipated role in improving the safety of drinking water, sanitation and hygiene. WaterAid explains that the spread of infectious diseases such as cholera could end with access to safe water.
The GHSA’s intent to combat antimicrobial resistance relates directly to water quality. Access to safe water could prevent up to 60 percent of diarrhea cases. These cases require treatment with antibiotics, and increased use of antibiotics can lead to antibiotic resistance among bacteria.
People and diseases travel rapidly due to the spread of globalization. The CDC summarizes, “A disease threat anywhere can mean a threat everywhere.” The GHSA is designed to detect and prevent this spread of disease. “No single nation can be prepared,” the order declares, “if other nations remain unprepared to counter biological threats.”
– Madeline Reding
Photo: Flickr
Countries Pledge $2.1 Billion in Foreign Aid to Iraq
On July 20, representatives from 24 countries pledged more than $2.1 billion in foreign aid to Iraq at a Washington, D.C. conference co-hosted by the U.S., Canada, Japan, Kuwait, Germany and the Netherlands. The U.S. had hoped to raise around $2 billion in foreign aid to Iraq. State Department Spokesperson John Kirby said that the results of the meeting exceeded expectations, with $2.1 billion in confirmed pledges and more pending approval.
Coverage of the pledging conference indicates that countries recognize the need to help Iraq achieve long-term stability in addition to carrying out military operations against the Islamic State. Public Finance International reported that the donor meeting aimed specifically to deal with the fallout of an expected assault on the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, which is likely to be the largest yet.
According to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, the U.N. estimates the humanitarian assistance needed after the attack at $284 million and reconstruction costs at $1.8 billion. In total, the country needs $4.5 billion.
Canada was among the first to come forward with a pledge. Foreign Affairs Minister Stéphane Dion announced $158 million CAD, or $121 million, in foreign aid to Iraq at the meeting, with $150 million CAD going towards humanitarian needs and $8 million CAD reserved for de-mining and helping refugees.
The conflict has seen 3.3 million Iraqis displaced. In addition to addressing the country’s current crisis, Canada is also donating $200 million CAD to the World Bank, which will be available to the Iraq government as a loan to assist with economic reforms.
The United Kingdom’s Department for International Development pledged $66 million. The European Commission (EC), the European Union’s executive body, gave $215.5 million, and Kuwait also contributed $176 million. Neven Mimica, the European commissioner for International Cooperation and Development, told Public Finance International that the EU hopes to provide humanitarian assistance as well as improve public spending on infrastructure in the country.
Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier of Germany, which pledged $1.3 million at the conference and is the largest donor of foreign aid to Iraq, emphasized the importance of continued assistance. “We cannot lose the momentum of our efforts to stabilize Iraq now,” he said.
The $2.1 billion raised at the July 20 conference went above and beyond the $861 million the U.N. had appealed for Iraq. It is encouraging to see that countries in the coalition against the Islamic State, including the U.S., start to focus their efforts on humanitarian aid and long-term development.
– Philip Katz
Photo: Flickr
Paraguay’s Political Future
Recently, thousands of Paraguay’s working class, or Campesinos, marched on Asuncion in protest of President Horacio Cartes. Many in Paraguay believe his presidential policy has become too similar to the dictatorships of the past. Campesinos cite an inability to provide debt relief to the small farmers of Paraguay as a fundamental cause of the protest.
Extreme inequality in land ownership has long been a central issue for Campesinos with only two percent of the population owning 80 percent of the land. This almost-monopoly over land has created a powerful and influential agricultural group.
The Campesinos demand a more liberal approach to the issue and elected former President Fernando Lugo for just that reason. Following Lugo’s election, a now notorious massacre occurred, when 60 Campesinos occupying land in Curuguaty encountered a violent struggle with the local police. This incident resulted in the deaths of 11 Campesinos as well as six police officers.
Shortly after, in June 2012, the course of Paraguay’s political future was changed when Congress suddenly impeached former President Fernando Lugo during what many believe was a planned coup d’état. The other members of both Mercosur and UNASUR skeptically considered suspending Paraguay’s membership as a result.
Lugo was replaced by his vice president, Federico Franco, who almost immediately began dialing back many of Lugo’s efforts at aiding the Campesinos in favor of big agriculture. Many believe the massacre at Curuguaty gave parliament the opportunity to scapegoat Lugo as the cause of the conflict. Shortly after Lugo’s impeachment, new President Franco closed all investigation of the massacre at Curuguaty, raising the suspicion of many across Paraguay.
Now Cartes will be expected to answer the plight of the Campesinos in light of several land evictions to occur merely weeks before the march on Asuncion. Despite many bold promises including job creation, new roads and mass transits, the former businessman has not been able to deliver politically. Many countries around the world took note of the transparency laws Cartes introduced, up until they revealed extreme corruption on public payrolls that incited more protests.
While some, like the Campesinos, question Cartes for his policy and odd behavior, it is worth noting that he was able to push through two key changes upon entering the office. The first was a law focused on fiscal responsibility that limited the national debt to 1.5 percent GDP, while the second effort focused on improving Paraguay’s failing infrastructure through a public-private partnership program.
Paraguay’s political future is undergoing rapid and expansive change with each passing year and 2016 is looking to keep things moving forward. Currently, the World Bank predicts the Paraguayan economy to grow three percent this year, making it the second fastest growing nation in South America.
Even with such unrest, Paraguay’s political future is on a path towards entering the rightful hands of the people. Now, maybe more than ever, groups in Paraguay like the Campesinos are making their voices heard loud and clear.
– Aaron Walsh
Photo: Flickr
Jordan Examines Plan to Increase its Water Supply
According to a recent report in Petra, the news agency of Jordan, a considerably large incursion of Syrian refugees has intensified Jordan’s already distressed water supply.
During a panel discussion between the U.N. and the World Bank on developing and managing water resources and improving water and sanitation related services, the Jordanian minister of Planning and International Cooperation, Imad Fakhoury, said the Kingdom’s demand for water has risen 25 percent in the last five years. He further stated that due to the massive influx of Syrian refugees, the country now hosts more than 1.3 million or 19 percent of the population.
Fakhoury also stated that water is a significant and unrelenting concern for Jordan because of the country’s critical water shortage. In terms of water supply, Jordan is considered one of the world’s most vulnerable. The World Health Organization (WHO), has asserted that water scarcity in Jordan will grow more daunting in the next two decades as its population of 6 million doubles and the effects of climate change produce increased precipitation uncertainty.
Currently, Jordan has one of the lowest concentrations of available water supply per capita. The minister emphasized the importance of “partnership between governments, the private sector, civil society, institutions and the U.N.” as pivotal to establishing a sustainable water and sanitation policies.
EcoMena, a consulting and environmental awareness raising organization, has said the Jordanian government seeks to begin a water supply management program that would impose regulation on water extracted from groundwater aquifers. Lack of rigorous legislation has led to illegal well-drilling and irresponsible use of water and untenable water extraction from aquifers. The natural water replacement procedure is being thwarted due to the aquifers being used at twice the allowable recharge rate.
The government is also discussing plans to renew old and rusted water pipes allocated to private homes. According to EcoMena, water leaks in the U.S. alone account for 1 trillion gallons of water wastage each year. Wastewater treatment plants that allow for the use of wastewater are also an important element in the government’s supply management program as it allows for supporting water supplies in addition to reducing dependence on natural water supplies which will give aquifers adequate time to recharge.
Fakhoury emphasized the importance of the international community’s support to assist Jordan with any financial variance brought on by the large inflow of Syrian refugees.
– Heidi Grossman
Photo: Flickr
SunSaluter: Energy, Water and Jobs Rolled Into One
There are upwards of 780 million people in the world who do not have access to clean water. On top of this, an estimated 1.2 billion people lack access to electricity — that is nearly 17 percent of the world’s population. Individuals living under such circumstances suffer chronic exposure to waterborne illnesses, and hundreds of millions more must walk hours each day to collect potable water.
SunSaluter, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to improving energy and water access in the developing world, aims to remedy these issues in a simple and affordable way.
The goal of SunSaluter is to make energy and water more accessible through one simple device. The SunSaluter device itself uses gravity and water, rotating a solar panel throughout the day. The device generates 30 percent more electricity, is 30 times cheaper and is far more durable than motorized solar trackers.
The SunSaluter has been deployed in 16 countries and has impacted nearly 8,000 people worldwide. By boosting solar panel efficiency by 30 percent, fewer solar panels are needed and the overall system costs are reduced by 10-20 percent. This lowering of cost alone has helped the impoverished families eliminate the use of kerosene gas.
How does it work? The SunSaluter enables solar panels to produce energy more consistently through the day, beginning earlier in the morning and lasting later at night. This is critical for rural families who often wake early in the day. It helps decrease the need for batteries to store energy that is usually produced mostly around high noon.
The SunSaluter also contains a water purifier within its system. Each day the device is capable of producing four liters of clean drinking water. By combining both energy and water collection into one simple device, the SunSaluter kills two birds with one stone. It improves consistent usage of the purifier as well, which tends to be the biggest hurdle to overcome for clean water programs.
Consequently, SunSaluter is not just working to help with the lack of energy and water in the developing world. “Our goal is to provide entrepreneurial opportunities for individuals in underdeveloped countries,” Eden Full told Business Insider in a recent interview. “We give them guidance, mentorship, and some funding, and the idea is to spread this technology.”
Currently, the company’s core manufacturing operations are in India. It is looking to move into Malawi as well. SunSaluter and its impact on the developing world have only just begun!
– Keaton McCalla
Photo: Flickr
STAND for Ukraine
Back in 1991, the Ukrainian Parliament declared independence from the U.S.S.R. A level of tension has existed between Russia and Ukraine fueling a variety of conflicts in time since.
February 2014 marks one of the most violent months in the past 70 years, with 88 killed in Kiev during a protest. The next month President Obama urged Russia to withdraw, making the conflict truly a global affair after Crimea annexed to Russia.
Fast-forward to April of this year and the STAND for Ukraine Act is introduced to deter Russian aggression and help Ukraine transition into a more democratic government process. STAND, is an acronym meaning Stability and Democracy for Ukraine Act and is sponsored by Rep. Eliot Engel, D-NY. STAND for Ukraine has now become law and now the United States is providing Ukraine with weapons to deter continued interference from Russia.
While Ukraine has activists on both sides at this point, the country is actively moving toward self-betterment and real independence. The goal now is to empower Ukraine into choosing its future that benefits the people living there instead of what benefits Russia.
Since 2014, Ukraine has made economic progress despite the circumstances, with the country’s GDP expected to grow 1.5 percent this year. Aid in the form of $25 billion has fueled what Natalie Jaresko, a Ukrainian investment banker, has called Ukraine’s “longest and most successful reform process.”
While many factors such as vested interests and populism present obstacles to progress, more donors are willing to back Ukraine and ensure a fair election process and optimized wellbeing. Current issues needing support include modernizing educational facilities and hospitals, upgrading technology used by governmental organizations, as well as general updating of all urban infrastructure.
As recently as 2009, Ukraine’s multitude of political and foreign policy issues also led to a sharp 15 percent decline in Ukraine’s GDP. This economic comeback is truly a triumph of foreign aid and STAND for Ukraine as well as those that supported its plan to assist Ukraine’s path further out of semi-periphery.
– Aaron Walsh
Photo: Flickr
Protecting Coffee Farmers Across the Globe
The exponential rise in demand for coffee has led to insuperable pressure on coffee farmers all over the world. The 22 percent decrease in global coffee exports has adversely impacted the supply of coffee as climate change patterns continue to debilitate.
The major cause of the decrease in supply lies in the rapidly rising global temperatures. This temperature spike has culminated in poor yields as the coffee plants thrive on more moist and cooler conditions for flowering and fruiting. If not, the crop becomes more vulnerable to the combined effects of pests and various diseases.
Consequently, a large proportion of coffee growers in developing economies in African countries, Brazil, Colombia and India are smallholder farmers. Protecting coffee farmers is especially essential because they do not have the means to support and adapt to the changes in the market, especially during the concurrent price volatility for coffee. There are around 120 million individuals who rely on this produce for their livelihoods.
A recent report consolidated by Australia’s Climate Change Institute highlighted that by the year 2050, 50 percent of the land dedicated to growing coffee would shrink. This will lead to negative impacts on yields.
Protecting the coffee farmers is vital to ensure continued production of coffee to meet the increasing demand. Using sustainable practices and approaches will be instrumental in achieving this goal, along with carefully monitoring supply chains. Many organizations have therefore recognized the need of addressing this key objective.
The 15-year collaborative effort that Conservation International has embarked on with Starbucks, with the establishment of the CAFE (Coffee and Farmer Equity) practices program, has been a pillar of strength to coffee growers. Moreover, the concept of Ethical Sourcing has brought about the inception of the components: Quality, Social Responsibility, Economic Accountability and Environmental leadership. These initiatives will ensure that coffee growers have an efficient way of sustaining their produce every year.
The Smart Coffee ID Card has also helped in protecting the coffee farmers in Colombia. Through this scheme, farmers get a chance to make payments effectively. Digitizing payments has been proved to stimulate more financial and social inclusion within communities to help combat poverty, as accentuated by the U.N. led coalition, Better Than Cash Alliance.
Fortunately, this channel is now also being used for the provision of government subsidies and incentives. From 2007- 2014 alone, a record 5.4 million payments were made.
Moreover, the Kagera Co-operative is also protecting coffee farmers. It has a widespread influence in Tanzania and reaches out to 60,000 smallholder farmers who aspire to sell their products on the fair trade market. Fair trade Coffee Cooperatives have a massive outreach with a renowned reputation for alleviating trading and price restrictions, along with granting workers considerable autonomy.
Overall, protecting coffee farmers effectively can be achieved by the concerted efforts of the coffee farmers, governments, local charities and international organizations so that coffee farmers continue to have an outlet for their produce and can earn high returns. Collaboration in this manner will pave the way for a sustainable future, where conservation, farming practices and livelihoods are all safeguarded.
– Shivani Ekkanath
Photo: Flickr