COVID-19 and the economic consequences of its spread have caused greater levels of poverty in Thailand since 2020. Reports determined that the COVID-19 pandemic plunged almost 800,000 people into poverty in 2020. The impact of COVID-19 on poverty in Thailand has primarily manifested as a spike in unemployment. By spring of 2021, Thailand’s job market had 710,000 fewer jobs compared to the previous year. The pandemic also adversely affected tourism flow to the nation, which accounts for about a fifth of GDP and 20% of employment. Thailand’s economy and poverty levels have not experienced such a negative impact since the Asian Financial Crisis of 1997.
Government Initiatives to Mitigate Poverty
The government’s initiative, however, in responding to this crisis has somewhat curbed the pandemic’s potential for further devastation. Authorities were quick to introduce quarantine measures that were effective in containing the virus during most of 2020. Though several waves of infections have exacerbated the impact of COVID-19 on poverty in Thailand, the policy packages were effective in creating fiscal stimulus.
The support ranged from financial assistance for debtors to health-related spending for affected households, including those outside the social security system. Simulations suggest that more than 780,000 additional people could have fallen into poverty in 2020 if the government had not bolstered social support.
Thailand’s Continued Alleviation of Poverty
Thailand’s efficient response to the pandemic is impressive, but not surprising. Since 1988, the country has reduced its poverty levels from 65.2% to 6.2% in 2019, according to the World Bank. Its most effective initiative was to scale up cash transfer programs such that it became one of the largest scale fiscal responses to COVID-19 in the world.
“The crisis in 2020 demonstrated Thailand’s ability to leverage its robust and universal digital ID, sophisticated and interoperable digital platform and a number of administrative databases to filter eligibility for new cash transfer programs,” said Francesca Lamanna, the Senior Economist at the World Bank.
The Current Status of Poverty Levels in Thailand
While the government has responded relatively well, the country continues to struggle as it enters the fourth wave of COVID-19. The official unemployment rate was 2% in the first quarter of 2021 due to COVID-19, with the loss of jobs most concentrated in the services sector. On the one hand, slow vaccination rollout and widespread doubt seem to be stalling recovery. On the other, some infected individuals living below the poverty line may go so far as to violate quarantine rules in order to continue earning much-needed income.
The impact of COVID-19 on poverty in Thailand and its economic dependence on contact-intensive sectors means the continuing waves of infection prolong unemployment, with financially vulnerable groups bearing a disproportionate burden of economic insecurity.
Volunteer Workers Spearhead Poverty Aid Missions
In response to these conditions, the number of volunteers in Thailand has also been surging. Bangkok Community Help is one such organization. It has grown to more than 400 participants since its founding early in the pandemic in 2020. Greg Lange and Friso Poldervaart are two restaurant owners that spearheaded the community initiative after neighbors approached them to inquire if they could use their empty restaurant kitchens to prepare hot meals.
While the scale has transformed considerably, Bangkok Community Help’s main objective remains to assist vulnerable sections of Bangkok through volunteer and donation initiatives. “After [last April and May], we decided to focus more on more long-term projects, like building houses for people, turning a garbage dump into a park, and teaching kids,” Lange and Poldervaart told TimeOut.
Donations vary in scale and source. Individuals may hand out meals they prepared themselves to hungry construction workers, while foreign aid initiatives fund larger-scale operations such as survival packages of preserved goods. Australian Aid paid for rice recently distributed outside of Bangkok’s main port facilities through the Australian Government Aid Program. The program provides small grants in support of local, non-governmental organizations in Thailand.
The New Zealand – Thai Chamber of Commerce, an organization dedicated to promoting commerce between Thailand and New Zealand, donated apples. These organizations have even employed volunteers to bring oxygen tanks to the homes of the infected when hospitals were overcrowded, in the hopes of keeping them alive until a hospital bed becomes available. Bangkok Community Help continues to inspire individual and government action through its aid, opening aid centers and converting unused schools and auditoriums into treatment centers.
Future Possibilities
Looking towards the future of COVID-19’s impact on poverty in Thailand, there are different projections. The devastation of the pandemic is a large-scale issue that called for radical measures, but the methods of mitigation employed may be useful in shifting political focus towards strengthening social support systems in the future. These circumstances have the potential to catalyze an economic reform in Thailand, such that its industries can become more digital.
According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the authorities see this as an opportunity to transform tourism from low-cost, high-density travel, to high-end, low-density travel. This would allow for other domestic industries to flourish without wreaking havoc on the country’s economy. It may also be more ecologically friendly, offering greater protection of natural resources on which the tourism industry is dependent. All of these factors have the potential to gradually reduce the number of people living below the poverty line, by strengthening Thailand’s social and fiscal fiber.
– Arahi Fletcher
Photo: Unsplash
Mobile Phone Data Can Improve Disease Response in the DRC
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) “has the third-largest population of [impoverished people] globally.” The coronavirus has hit the DRC’s economy hard, further reducing the country’s capacity to fight disease. One advancement in disease response in the DRC is the government’s use of mobile phone data for population mapping, which helps create public health policies for COVID-19 and could do the same for other prevalent diseases in the country in the future.
Ties Between Disease, War, Poverty and COVID-19 in the DRC
The DRC has historically faced challenges in combatting cholera, malaria, HIV, measles, Ebola and Rift Valley fever. Factors contributing to the challenges in combatting disease include a weak health care system, low laboratory capacity, a lack of plans regarding border lockdowns for disease containment and a lack of information about vaccination and disease prevention for the public.
Additionally, the DRC endured a civil war from 1997 to 2003. The civil war ravaged the country’s infrastructure and the ongoing political instability in the country currently poses obstacles for aid workers to safely enter the country. The effects of the civil war also reduce the government’s ability to fight prevalent diseases in the DRC.
Furthermore, in 2019, the DRC’s economic growth stood at 4.4%. After the COVID-19 pandemic began, the DRC’s economic growth shrank to 0.8% in 2020. The slowdown in economic growth has made it even more difficult for improved disease response in the DRC.
Using Mobile Phones to Combat COVID-19
Low-income countries, including the DRC, struggle with data collection. However, data collection is vital in order to provide government officials with information to make sound public health decisions. The good news is that the DRC is starting to utilize mobile phone data for population mapping to combat COVID-19, which could greatly improve the DRC’s response to other diseases as well.
Orange DRC, a telecommunications company, provides anonymized mobile phone data to a marketing company called Kinshasa Digital. Using the phone data, Kinshasa Digital is constructing a dashboard for the DRC so that health officials can follow population movement after implementing various public health policies. The dashboard is useful because it allows the government to follow the spread of COVID-19 and use this data to create policies that will be most beneficial for the public’s health.
Data-Informed Responses
In addition, Vodacom DRC, a mobile carrier, and Flowminder, a company that analyzes mobile data, have created a report utilizing call detail records that analyzes how population movement patterns in Kinshasa’s Gombe district have changed in response to the DRC’s COVID-19 confinement policies. The report indicates “a drop of 70% in the total flow of subscribers traveling to Gombe after the confinement,” which shows that many people are complying with the government’s policies.
The creators shared the report with government officials. Reports like these can help the government measure how effective its public health policies are. As the technology and analytics industries develop, these reports can further improve the government’s response to COVID-19 and possibly other diseases too.
The DRC faces challenges in disease response, but the current innovation with mobile phone data to create more effective COVID-19 policies shows a promising development. As mobile phone companies, analytics companies and the government continue to work together, disease response in the DRC as a whole could greatly improve.
– Anna Ryu
Photo: Unsplash
Brazilians Fight Amazon Deforestation Through Song
The Amazon forest is a critically important ecosystem and natural resource. It spans more than 2.3 million square miles and is home to around 30 million people. The Amazon lumber trade has left vast portions of the forest depleted and unsuitable for living or farming. After more than 15 years, Amazon deforestation rates have reached an all-time high. A recent publication by Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research states that deforestation rates have surged 22% from 2020, with the lumber trade exploiting 13,235 km2 of the forest.
Amazon Deforestation and Poverty
Impoverished Amazonian communities rely on the rainforest for natural resources, food and water. However, once those resources disappear, it takes years, if not decades, for them to become replenished. Despite Indigenous communities standing as the best caretakers of the forest, their efforts do not match the power of international traders and the government.
Survival International, an Indigenous people’s rights organization, has described the Awa people of Brazil as “the most threatened tribe on earth” because loggers and ranchers constantly threaten their homeland and reservation. A local woman named Pirai expressed to BBC that “loggers, farmers, hunters, invaders… they are all coming back, they are killing all our forest.” Illegal logging pushes into land designated to various tribes. These communities face the harsh realities of Amazon deforestation, like decreases in biodiversity, which leads to changes in ecosystems and possible food sources.
Today, legal and illegal logging, cattle farms and soy farms have destroyed about 18% of the forest. However, in recent years the destruction of the rainforest has soared following the election of President Jair Bolsonaro. The Bolsonaro government has proposed several bills with the agenda of loosening environmental protections throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. With Brazil standing as one of the largest exporters of beef and lumber, President Bolsonaro has prioritized economic gain at the expense of ecological and societal protections.
SOS Amazon
Despite efforts of law enforcement to halt illegal lumber trade practices in the Amazon, the Bolsonaro government has dismissed several officers for enforcing environmental protections. After being assigned to the Amazon region for more than 10 years, Police Chief Alexandre Saraiva became one of those cases because of his commitment to combating Amazon deforestation. After leading Brazil’s largest illegal lumber bust and investigating former Brazilian Environmental Minister Ricardo Salles, President Bolsonaro demoted and relocated Saraiva to an area of Brazil that is nowhere near the Amazon forest.
In response to his relocation and demotion, Saraiva teamed up with songwriter Christina Saraiva and Brazilian singer Esther to create the song “SOS Amazon.” Saraiva and Ester released the song on YouTube prior to the 2021 United Nations Climate Summit to raise awareness among wealthy nations about their roles in Amazon deforestation. According to Reuters, Saraiva “estimated that 90% of export papers are forged to hide their origins.” Therefore, the illegal lumber trade continues to be detrimental to the prosperity of the forest and local populations. The lyrics express that “the earth bleeds and burn. The fire flies and kills. I can’t lie and rest. I can’t just stay still.”
These powerful words convey that the Amazon forest is essential to the prosperity of the earth and local population and many impoverished communities’ futures rest on saving the rainforest. Saraiva expressed that “the Amazon is ours, Brazilian, but the obligation to preserve it is also ours. The international community needs to do their part by [ending the] acquiring [of] illegal Brazilian timber.” Wealthy nations must hear Saraiva’s message that local people and their livelihoods, in addition to vital natural resources, are suffering and dying because of Amazon deforestation, which may prompt them to end deforestation and save Amazonian communities.
How to Help the Amazon and its People
Often, when natural resources and habitats are in danger, everyday people feel powerless to create change. However, people can do plenty from the comfort of their own homes. One great way to start thinking about change is by learning about the issue. When people become educated on specific topics, they often feel more empowered to help. Another way to help is by checking one’s carbon footprint and cutting down on paper usage.
According to Reuters, the top buyer of illegally processed wood is the European Union. As a result, ordinary people can prompt change by calling local representatives to support legislation that aids in rebuilding the Amazon instead of destroying it. Thousands of people making little changes in their lives to support the Amazon could create big impacts and brighter futures.
– Hannah Eliason
Photo: Unsplash
Peru’s Economic Growth Predicted to Exceed 13%
For several decades, the World Bank classified Peru’s economy as one of the fastest-expanding economies. While this is true, this expansion slowed between 2014-2019. This led to an 11.1% drop in economic growth in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The drop caused job sectors to slow down, though others surged in their place. Despite the fall, there is good news: Peru’s economic growth could increase by 13% at the end of the fiscal year 2021.
What is Economic Growth?
The improvement or decline in the market value of goods or services produced measures economic growth. The more goods and services produced or traded, the more money that goes to the economy. The changes in a country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) typically measure economic growth. With economic growth comes increased salaries, job availability and standards of living.
There are two primary methods to improve economic growth: improved goods, both technological and physical (capital) and tools that help increase production. Both avenues traditionally lead to economic growth. In this case, both methods explain why Peru’s GDP had a decline in 2020 and how Peru’s economy has recovered since then.
Peru’s Economic Foundation
Peru’s economy has experienced its ups and downs. The economy is based in the services sector, with telecommunications and financial services being the most significant. Services contribute to 60% of the overall GDP, with industries providing 35% to the GDP. However, reforms in the industry are a result of the changes in the mining industry. As Peruvian industries shrink, the telecommunications and services sectors grow.
Although mining was the primary source of income for Peru’s economy, the industry had the highest recorded fall in production ever. Many mining companies had to minimize the number of workers they could allow at a time in the mines and processing plants. The minimization cut production and output with a 13% reduction in copper production and processing. With the reduction in mining work and production output, other sectors stepped up to fill the job gap and start contributing to Peru’s GDP more significantly than in the past.
Improvements in 2020 and 2021
The downturn in Peru’s economy in 2020 left 27% of the population in poverty, as the World Bank reported. The additional 2 million people who slid into poverty highlighted the growing poverty rate in Peru. However, hope is on the horizon.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the telecommunications sector expanded. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, telecommunications were slow to grow in Peru. Back in 2012, the Peruvian government passed law 29985, explicit approval of the usage of electronic money. Law 29985 showed the government’s willingness to explore technology and expand its place in Peru. However, there were still barriers to the use of e-money. In 2012, many Peruvians still lacked access to the internet, computers, and technology needed to access e-money.
Advantages of Technology
Technology in Peru improved in 2020 when most services, including banking, went remote. The number of individuals using e-money increased by an average of 1,000 new users in specific e-money platforms a month. With new internet platform users and increased internet usage came new jobs and the potential for economic gain.
Historically, increased online usage leads to job opportunities through expanded internet and broadband access, especially in areas that lacked immediate internet access. In 2020 and 2021, there were increases in job openings and hirings in the telecommunications sector across Peru. Jobs in telecommunications filled rapidly in 2021, with the most considerable growth taking place in June 2021.
Expected Economic Growth
Telecommunications and its contributions to Peru’s economy have steadily climbed since 2014. In 2019, telecommunications generated a revenue of approximately $6.3 billion. With the expected economic growth stemming from growing telecommunications, the sector’s contributions to the GDP could be even higher by the end of the year. This could make telecommunications one of the most significant contributors to the GDP in Peru’s service sector.
With the newly opened and added jobs, the Peruvian services and telecommunications sectors have grown. This is allowing the sectors to increase their income and contributions to Peru’s economy. Thus, enabling the GDP to expand and retain economic growth as well. As the market opens and job availability grows, the Peruvian government predicts that Peru’s economic growth will grow by 13%. With Peru’s projected economic growth, there is an excellent likelihood that the poverty rate could shrink at least 1% to 2%, if not more.
– Clara Mulvihill
Photo: Flickr
The Action Foundation in Kenya
Close to 1 million people with some form of disability live in Kenya. People with disabilities are at a greater risk of living in poverty. Women and adolescent girls with disabilities are even more at risk of poverty as well as gender-based violence. Maria Omare founded The Action Foundation (TAF) in Kenya, a grassroots nonprofit organization, because she noticed a need for disability awareness, education that caters to children with disabilities in low-income areas and support for the caregivers of children and adolescents with disabilities. TAF is paving the way for inclusivity and resiliency. TAF is minimizing disparities among children and adolescents with disabilities and their caregivers through three programs.
The TUNZA Program
TAF’s TUNZA program offers support to caregivers of children and adolescents with disabilities. It also provides necessary skills and resources to caregivers. In Kibera, where the center is located, many families live in extreme poverty. They do not have the resources or finances to care for a child with a disability.
Earlier in 2021, TAF in Kenya launched an inclusive early childhood care education map and referral directory. This tool helps caregivers find and utilize therapy services at little to no cost. This can play a vital role in helping children with disabilities have a better quality of life.
The TUNZA program also brings awareness and education about disabilities because many Kenyans believe that children born with disabilities are cursed, bewitched or a bad omen. A survey found that 45% of mothers who have a child with a disability are “pressured to give up and/or kill their child.” Other mothers experience coercion to leave their children at an institution. The statistics are even more staggering in rural areas in Kenya.
The IBUKA Program
Many people are taking notice of TAF’s advocacy efforts and are helping to amplify the organization’s voice, such as Michelle Obama and Google. Obama publicly highlighted TAF’s work in teaching girls with disabilities STEM-oriented education, such as robotics and coding, as a partnership with the Girls Opportunity Alliance.
Women and girls with disabilities in Kenya are more likely to face poverty, discrimination and denial of basic needs. Ibuka in Swahili means “emerge” or “rise,” and that is the aspiration of the IBUKA program.
One of the ways the program combats negative stereotypes of women and girls with disabilities and offers them hope is through mentorship and education. It teaches the women and girls the skills necessary, such as STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) and vocational training, so that they can play an active role in the workforce. Women with disabilities are less likely to face poverty, discrimination, exploitation and violence when they are able to work or run their own businesses.
The SOMESHA Program
Children with disabilities in Kenya are unlikely to attend school due to a lack of accessibility. Also, fewer “than one in four children with a disability had access to any services.” Many families cannot afford special services for their children as the average monthly income per person is $39 and women in Kibera make 42% less than men.
The SOMESHA program aims to offer accessibility and inclusive education for children with disabilities. The program fits learning to the unique needs of each child. The SOMESHA program created a mobile-based application that improves literacy and promotes inclusivity. It is an interactive application for both caregivers and children. The application was especially helpful during the COVID-19 pandemic when Kenyans could not socialize in large groups.
The heartbeat of The Action Foundation in Kenya is in the people. Omare, the center’s staff and volunteers, the caregivers and the children make the organization thrive. The people of Kenya have historically looked down on people with disabilities as inferior, bewitched and helpless. However, Omare and her team are changing the narrative. They are offering hope and resources to families with children who have disabilities.
– Amy Helmendach
Photo: Unsplash
Mental Health in the United Kingdom
4 Facts About Mental Health in the United Kingdom
NHS to the Rescue
Despite the challenges of mental health in the United Kingdom, there is a strong apparatus in place to address the challenge. In 2008, the NHS introduced the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) program, which has since become one of the most recognized mental health programs in the world. The IAPT utilizes talk therapies to treat people with anxiety and depression in England. Due to its success, the NHS is expanding the program. New goals aim to reach nearly 2 million adults with IAPT services by 2024. Program expansion will also focus on “supporting people to find or stay in work” amid rising unemployment.
COVID-19, rising unemployment, growing depression and anxiety rates among the youth as well as unequal access to care presents a complicated problem for the United Kingdom, which will require creative solutions. However, the nation remains steadfast in its commitment to improving mental health in the United Kingdom with the support of the NHS and countless organizations.
– Richard J. Vieira
Photo: Flickr
Strengthening Uzbekistan’s Judicial System
A weak justice system often keeps incarcerated inmates from rejoining the labor force. It silences the general population and neglects the humanitarian elements necessary for domestic development and free enterprise. The Republic of Uzbekistan is an underdeveloped country that has long felt these symptoms, due to its misaligned judicial system. However, in December 2020, President Mirziyoyev stated his openness in establishing “a system of quarterly monitoring visits to pre-trial detention centers and penitentiary institutions with the participation of representatives of the public.” The President desires to improve the efficiency and humanitarian aspects of Uzbekistan’s judicial system, in hopes of enhancing “the image of our country in the international arena.” Penal Reform International helps Uzbekistan achieve this vision. It has paired up with the United Nations Democracy Fund to help improve Uzbekistan’s judicial system so that the country might prosper in the future.
Penal Reform International’s Action Strategy in Uzbekistan
Penal Reform International is a non-governmental organization that works to augment judicial systems in underdeveloped countries. As such, it strategizes the reforms necessary to render just sentences, access to government institutions and the overall fulfillment of the tenets of international law.
The organization helps Uzbekistan through its vision to, “consolidate the creative potential of society for the implementation of a course of large-scale reforms for the accelerated development of the state, its democratic institutions and economy, the formation of conditions for a dignified and prosperous life of citizens, the effective implementation of their personal, political, social and economic rights, freedoms and legitimate interests,” as stated in the report.
To work towards this vision the organization has teamed up with the Commissioner of the Ombudsman of the Republic of Uzbekistan. Together, Penal Reform International and the Ombudsman work on implementing judicial accountability, monitoring prisons, working to strengthen the appeals court and lessening harsh sentences.
Supporting the Ombudsman
Uzbekistan’s Human Rights Commissioner, known as the Ombudsman, is integral to prison and judicial reform. The Commissioner identifies, for the President and Parliament, governmental and judicial “deficiencies” to pave the way for the establishment of key reforms. Penal Reform International helps Uzbekistan by supporting the Ombudsman, which has led to the formation of “an expert group” meant to assist the Commissioner of the Ombudsman with torture prevention measures, “and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”
The expert group monitors “the conditions of detention of the detainees, the procedure for treating them, the quality of the provision of medical services and the organization of meals,” the Penal Reform International reported. The group also organizes work and educational activities within penitentiaries so that inmates can both remain productive and refine their trades.
As a result of Penal Reform International’s support for the Ombudsman, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan restructured the Pardon Commission, a program involved in reducing sentences or releasing inmates on reasonable grounds. Implemented by the President, this restructuring allows the Ombudsman to take on a permanent role in pardoning inmates. Another result of its support is the reform of Uzbekistan’s Criminal Procedure Code, which “Article 951 ‘Inadmissibility of evidence” supplemented.
The newly ratified Article establishes strict legal proceedings for the judicial system during court trials, and states that “factual data is recognized as inadmissible evidence if it is obtained by illegal methods or by depriving or limiting the rights of participants in criminal proceedings.” Because of Penal Reform International’s work with the Office of the Ombudsman, Uzbekistan passed numerous reforms necessary for future equity and the consequent alleviation of poverty and human rights abuses.
Penal Reform International’s Success
As Penal Reform International reported, 6,467 convicts were released on parole, due to thorough judicial examinations. Further, 32,032 inmates received more mild punishments, upholding an important facet of democratic governance.
As a product of their work with the Ombudsman, 28,929 inmates received a transfer from prisons to colonies-settlements (more humane living spaces). Lastly, Penal Reform International has helped evolve the institutional law system within Uzbekistan by increasing the qualifications needed to take the bar examination and practice law. As a result, Penal Reform International has augmented the quality of Uzbekistan’s judicial system. Because of Penal Reform International’s work, Uzbekistan might better prosper in the future and become a key ally within the international community.
– Jacob Crosley
Photo: Flickr
Spain’s Housing Crisis
What are Private Equity Companies and Landlords?
Private equity companies, more commonly referred to as private equity firms (PEFs), are designed strictly for investment management. PEFs are companies investing in other companies. PEFs strictly buy and sell stocks in private companies on other private corporations’ behalfs to generate income and revenue from the sales of stocks. PEF investments are not made in the public market, but rather, in private firms to potentially increase the amount of money made as a return on investment.
Private equity landlords are corporate landlords that PEFs invest in. This places additional pressure on landlords to make a profit and increase returns for PEFs. Therefore, on top of the money earned in rental prices and the fees incurred through home management as part of rentals, there is a cycle of continuously increasing rents to make more money for PEFs.
Housing Crisis in Spain
Spain’s housing crisis has been an issue since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The changes it has undergone include drastic rent hikes and lack of home availability in certain regions. The main reason is that many did not feel safe living in congested cities and have attempted to vacate the cities and buy or find home rentals elsewhere.
Spanish citizens have struggled to find affordable housing in a nation with 21% of the population at risk of poverty as of 2020. Furthermore, roughly 7% of Spanish families live in severe poverty, according to El Pais.
To top everything off, the hike in rental prices averages 50% over five years. However, prices exceeded a 60% jump between 2014-2017 in Madrid and Barcelona. Comparatively, wages in Spain have increased by 1.6% on average. This is driving income inequality and presenting challenges in affording and maintaining rental housing. Housing in Spain has become a burden for many due to the influence of private equity companies on rental prices.
During the pandemic, with the lack of growth in wages nationwide and increased hikes in rental costs, Spanish law mandated that no evictions could take place. Nevertheless, in some areas, such as Ciutat Mediriana, evictions continued. Spain’s housing crisis left people on the street with no way to access affordable housing.
Private Equity Landlords in Spain
Blackstone, a PEF based in the United States, has investments in 30,000 homes across Spain. Blackstone opened housing rental investment opportunities in Spain in 2013. It has not slowed its increases in Spanish housing rental prices since. The return on investments for Blackstone in Spain hit all-time highs for the PEF as it has increased rent prices year after year. The significant returns for Blackstone due to the increased rent prices are costing individuals more than 30% of their income.
Spain’s housing crisis does not have an overnight solution. However, the bill that Spain’s left-leaning officials proposed could fix the problem to some extent. According to Euronews, if Spain implements the bill, it will place rental price caps on any rental company with more than 10 rental homes, effectively strengthening rent control.
About Rent Control
Rent control boosts the economy because it diversifies investments in the public and private sectors. Spain’s housing crisis leaves little opportunity for spending money outside of rental affordability. This leaves other economic sectors falling behind and losing strength over time.
Rent control helps individuals living in lower-income situations keep their housing for longer and more secure periods of time. Landlords are also guaranteed filled buildings when rent prices do not increase and overburden their tenants. Rent control reduces homelessness and evictions, consequently keeping people in their homes and effectively reducing poverty rates.
The bill that the Spanish government proposed to cap rent price increases also benefits the landlords through reduced taxation, giving them the incentive to support the rental caps. This bill could mean diversification of businesses and enhanced opportunities for localized businesses or landlords to combat the PEFs and boost the local economy.
The PEFs in Spain drove rental prices beyond easy affordability for many. Spain’s housing crisis is out of control as a result. This bill could reduce homelessness and poverty. It could boost the economy through localized diversification of business and investments and give Spanish citizens chances to find new homes.
– Clara Mulvihill
Photo: Flickr
Impact of COVID-19 on Poverty in Thailand
COVID-19 and the economic consequences of its spread have caused greater levels of poverty in Thailand since 2020. Reports determined that the COVID-19 pandemic plunged almost 800,000 people into poverty in 2020. The impact of COVID-19 on poverty in Thailand has primarily manifested as a spike in unemployment. By spring of 2021, Thailand’s job market had 710,000 fewer jobs compared to the previous year. The pandemic also adversely affected tourism flow to the nation, which accounts for about a fifth of GDP and 20% of employment. Thailand’s economy and poverty levels have not experienced such a negative impact since the Asian Financial Crisis of 1997.
Government Initiatives to Mitigate Poverty
The government’s initiative, however, in responding to this crisis has somewhat curbed the pandemic’s potential for further devastation. Authorities were quick to introduce quarantine measures that were effective in containing the virus during most of 2020. Though several waves of infections have exacerbated the impact of COVID-19 on poverty in Thailand, the policy packages were effective in creating fiscal stimulus.
The support ranged from financial assistance for debtors to health-related spending for affected households, including those outside the social security system. Simulations suggest that more than 780,000 additional people could have fallen into poverty in 2020 if the government had not bolstered social support.
Thailand’s Continued Alleviation of Poverty
Thailand’s efficient response to the pandemic is impressive, but not surprising. Since 1988, the country has reduced its poverty levels from 65.2% to 6.2% in 2019, according to the World Bank. Its most effective initiative was to scale up cash transfer programs such that it became one of the largest scale fiscal responses to COVID-19 in the world.
“The crisis in 2020 demonstrated Thailand’s ability to leverage its robust and universal digital ID, sophisticated and interoperable digital platform and a number of administrative databases to filter eligibility for new cash transfer programs,” said Francesca Lamanna, the Senior Economist at the World Bank.
The Current Status of Poverty Levels in Thailand
While the government has responded relatively well, the country continues to struggle as it enters the fourth wave of COVID-19. The official unemployment rate was 2% in the first quarter of 2021 due to COVID-19, with the loss of jobs most concentrated in the services sector. On the one hand, slow vaccination rollout and widespread doubt seem to be stalling recovery. On the other, some infected individuals living below the poverty line may go so far as to violate quarantine rules in order to continue earning much-needed income.
The impact of COVID-19 on poverty in Thailand and its economic dependence on contact-intensive sectors means the continuing waves of infection prolong unemployment, with financially vulnerable groups bearing a disproportionate burden of economic insecurity.
Volunteer Workers Spearhead Poverty Aid Missions
In response to these conditions, the number of volunteers in Thailand has also been surging. Bangkok Community Help is one such organization. It has grown to more than 400 participants since its founding early in the pandemic in 2020. Greg Lange and Friso Poldervaart are two restaurant owners that spearheaded the community initiative after neighbors approached them to inquire if they could use their empty restaurant kitchens to prepare hot meals.
While the scale has transformed considerably, Bangkok Community Help’s main objective remains to assist vulnerable sections of Bangkok through volunteer and donation initiatives. “After [last April and May], we decided to focus more on more long-term projects, like building houses for people, turning a garbage dump into a park, and teaching kids,” Lange and Poldervaart told TimeOut.
Donations vary in scale and source. Individuals may hand out meals they prepared themselves to hungry construction workers, while foreign aid initiatives fund larger-scale operations such as survival packages of preserved goods. Australian Aid paid for rice recently distributed outside of Bangkok’s main port facilities through the Australian Government Aid Program. The program provides small grants in support of local, non-governmental organizations in Thailand.
The New Zealand – Thai Chamber of Commerce, an organization dedicated to promoting commerce between Thailand and New Zealand, donated apples. These organizations have even employed volunteers to bring oxygen tanks to the homes of the infected when hospitals were overcrowded, in the hopes of keeping them alive until a hospital bed becomes available. Bangkok Community Help continues to inspire individual and government action through its aid, opening aid centers and converting unused schools and auditoriums into treatment centers.
Future Possibilities
Looking towards the future of COVID-19’s impact on poverty in Thailand, there are different projections. The devastation of the pandemic is a large-scale issue that called for radical measures, but the methods of mitigation employed may be useful in shifting political focus towards strengthening social support systems in the future. These circumstances have the potential to catalyze an economic reform in Thailand, such that its industries can become more digital.
According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the authorities see this as an opportunity to transform tourism from low-cost, high-density travel, to high-end, low-density travel. This would allow for other domestic industries to flourish without wreaking havoc on the country’s economy. It may also be more ecologically friendly, offering greater protection of natural resources on which the tourism industry is dependent. All of these factors have the potential to gradually reduce the number of people living below the poverty line, by strengthening Thailand’s social and fiscal fiber.
– Arahi Fletcher
Photo: Unsplash
How USAID Helps Prevent War in West Africa
Case studies throughout history depict the ill effects rendered to countries entangled in perpetual war. Examples from the last two centuries include Germany’s hyperinflation post-World War I and the infrastructural and economic problems in Rwanda and Sierra Leone post-civil war. History shows that war is a direct cause of poverty in many countries. In turn, poverty is indirectly responsible for factors such as starvation and the inability to control diseases. Due to its current period of fierce conflicts, West Africa experiences the drastic effects of war and accompanying poverty. If West Africa desires to alleviate poverty while fostering economic, infrastructural and developmental growth, it must find ways to both prevent war and maintain peace. Thankfully, some organizations are working to do just that. Here is how USAID helps prevent war in West Africa.
USAID in West Africa
USAID intervenes in West African conflicts with its Regional Peace and Development Program, established in September 2016. Importantly, the program works to avert war by bolstering the political integrity and honesty of West African regimes, while simultaneously holding them accountable. It does this by collaborating with regional and state institutions as well as providing training, research and other educational outreaches.
One segment of this program is Partnerships for Peace (P4P), which educates citizens on the roots of violence. Another branch within the Regional Peace and Development Program is Voices for Peace (V4P), which counters violent extremism by promoting human rights through education and media outlets. Both initiatives are successful examples of how USAID helps prevent war in West Africa.
Partnerships for Peace (P4P)
P4P is oriented towards strengthening West Africa’s ability to counter violent extremism. It primarily focuses on the countries of Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad and Mauritania. In total, it allocates $21.9 million to these nations to counter violent extremism.
To limit radical extremism, P4P developed the Regional Counter to Violent Extremism Lexicon. This lexicon, which has undergone translation into six African languages, provides appropriate terminology for local contexts, being sensitive to cultural, religious and ethnic diversity. Moreover, P4P uses its funding to counter violence by supporting regional anti-extremist organizations. It also provides grants to implement initiatives and programs addressing violent extremism. By funding civil organizations and promulgating anti-extremist educational doctrines, P4P has deterred conflict in West Africa.
Voices for Peace (V4P)
V4P prevents war by promoting good governance and social cohesion. With its budget of $31.5 million, the organization discourages the escalation to conflict by targeting at-risk youth, women and marginalized groups. V4P connects these vulnerable populations with media platforms, respected leaders, institutions and networks to spread awareness. Specifically, they discuss the ill effects of war and the widespread death and poverty stemming from it.
USAID helps prevent war through V4P by promoting democratic values, human rights and good governance. The organization widely disseminates these values by targeting the media, educational institutions and radio talk shows. Significantly, the organization’s humanitarian message, which has undergone translation into 30 languages and 93 radio stations convey, has reached diverse groups. Consequently, USAID’s V4P ably empowers the marginalized while inspiring civic action in citizens across West Africa.
Hope for the Future
USAID’s efforts have played a critical role in successfully delivering West Africa from its tumultuous past. Now, the organization assists in guiding West Africa towards a lasting peace that will allow the region to escape poverty and establish sound governance. For the sake of both international security and poverty alleviation, the international community ought to take a similar course in supporting programs that aid West Africa’s anti-violence organizations.
– Jacob Crosley
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Qali Warma Addresses Nutrition through School Lunches in Peru
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention highlights the importance of school lunches in introducing children to nutrition and influencing their health outcomes over time. Although the emphasis on school meals has grown significantly in countries around the world over the last decade, Peru has struggled to make a drastic nutritional transition in comparison to its developed counterparts. However, the nation’s Qali Warma program aims to improve nutritional outcomes through school lunches in Peru.
Peru in Numbers
As of 2021, the World Food Programme (WFP) recognizes 22% of Peru’s population as impoverished without access to proper nutrition. Furthermore, of children younger than 5, 13.1% suffer from chronic malnourishment. With a total population of 31 million individuals, these statistics illustrate the severity of inadequate nutrition in Peru.
However, over the years, Peru was able to reduce rates of chronic child malnutrition by 50%, a significant feat for the nation. While statistics on hunger and poverty show improvements over the past 10 years, it is important to recognize that rates of malnutrition differ across regions of Peru. In some rural areas, chronic child malnutrition reaches almost 34%. Furthermore, the rates of child stunting among Indigenous groups have remained the same since 2011. The lack of access to healthy and nutritious foods in Peru is partly responsible for these concerning rates.
Qali Warma Nation School Feeding Program
The lack of access to healthy and nutritious foods in Peru has led to a plethora of health concerns. Among the most pressing issues are anemia and obesity, which both serve as risk factors for other illnesses. The Peruvian government recognizes the concerning rates of anemia and child obesity in its country, leading to the implementation of the Qali Warma school feeding program.
Qali Warma is a social program that the Peruvian government implemented, aimed at increasing the health and nutrition of children through school lunches in Peru. The name Qali Warma originates from the Indigenous Quechua language and translates to “vigorous child.” The meaning behind the name is an ode to the mission of the group — encouraging “healthy eating habits” among the youth of Peru. Qali Warma’s main focus is children in early learning and primary education. However, to benefit Indigenous children in the Peruvian Amazon, the program extends its reach to high school students.
Since its implementation in 2012, the Ministry of Development & Social Inclusion of Peru (MIDIS) has overseen the program along with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Initially developed as a three-year-long initiative, the success of the program means Qali Warma will continue until 2022. For the past decade, Qali Warma has provided healthy school lunches in Peru, improving eating habits among children while simultaneously engaging with local communities and providing people with food education.
A Two-pronged Strategy
The program consists of two services working in tandem with each other. The food service entails planning school meal menus and gathering the ingredients and supplies needed to put the meals together. Qali Warma uses specific calculations to ensure it meets the necessary nutritional and caloric requirements for child development. Moreover, the organization takes into account different cultural diets and consumer habits of each area it serves. The educational service component is primarily instructional. Qali Warma promotes “healthy eating habits and hygiene practices among the beneficiary children” while providing technical support and educational outreach to people implementing the food services.
Results and Reach
As Peru continues to invest in programs like Qali Warma, outcomes are proving successful in improving children’s health. By 2019, Qali Warma’s school lunches in Peru benefited more than 4 million children in total. Overall, the government notes an improvement in the overall nutritional state of these children since addressing nutrition with school lunches in Peru. Qali Warma reports that the impacts of school lunches extend far beyond nutrition as children are also more focused in classes and are eager to attend school. Nutrition specialists second this sentiment.
While Peruvian youth have struggled to maintain healthy levels of nutrition, addressing these issues in the places where children spend the most time, like schools, creates a lasting impact. Increasing the nutritional benefits of school lunches in Peru is a crucial first step in addressing malnutrition. However, consistent monitoring and modification are necessary as the program expands to reach more children nationwide.
– Chloé D’Hers
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