The COVID-19 pandemic has been devastating to nations all over the world, but especially the Global South. India, for example, has an enormous population of 1.3 billion people, with labor forces large enough to create the world’s fifth-largest economy. However, as of September 3, 2020, total confirmed cases across the country had reached 3.85 million, with 67,376 total deaths. As COVID-19 spreads throughout India, it leaves behind long-term effects on issues from medical resources to economic scarcity.
Income and Unemployment
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic in India, economic disparity existed in many forms. In 2019, the average per capita monthly income was approximately 10,534 Indian rupees.
To put this in perspective, 10,534 Indian rupees equals $143.42 USD, meaning the annual income of the average Indian citizen was just $1,721.04. Over the past five years, India’s unemployment rate has been increasing steadily, but in April 2020, it skyrocketed to 23.5%. Factories and construction sites, known for housing and feeding temporary employees, threw their workers onto the streets. About 95% of employed women worked in informal positions, but many lost jobs as households and businesses determined outside workers were too dangerous. As restrictions are slowly lifting across the country, frightened people return to work because fears of starvation hold more weight than fears of COVID-19 infection.
Lack of Medical Resources
For those in need of COVID-19 medical care, options for help are slim. According to reports from The New York Times, public hospitals are so immensely overwhelmed that doctors have to treat patients in the hallways.
For those with non-COVID-related medical needs, options are almost nonexistent. On March 24, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that to “save India,” a nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of the virus is necessary as well as the postponement of non-essential surgeries. For Ravindra Nath Singh, a 76-year-old man with Parkinson’s, this meant being discharged from the ICU in a hospital in Lucknow just minutes after becoming stable on a catheter and feeding tube. For a young woman in New Delhi, this meant eight hospitals turning her away while in labor for 15 hours, only to die in the back of an ambulance.
Child Labor and Education
The spread of COVID-19 in India forced schools to shut down, which proved unhelpful to students’ already low attendance rates. According to a study in 2018 by DHL International GmBH, India hosts the highest population of uneducated children with a staggering 56 million children out of school. As restrictions across the country lift, one of the biggest hurdles will be encouraging enrollment, especially with uncertain learning conditions. Enrollment hesitation enables another widespread issue in India: child labor. Experts claim the most significant spike in child labor is yet to come as immense economic losses will compel large corporations to seek cheap labor.
The lack of in-person education also has a significant impact on child mental health. An Indian girl, 12-year-old Ashwini Pawar, once had dreams of becoming a teacher, but now must reconsider her life’s ambition. In an interview with TIME magazine, she considers her family financial burdens, saying “even when [school] reopens I don’t think I will be able to go back…” These circumstances push concerns of economic inequality as the pandemic might dissolve great strides made in development over the past decade.
Deaths and Infection Rates
In very little time, India has become the new epicenter of the coronavirus. The daily number of confirmed cases shot up from about 40,000 to 80,000 in just a few weeks. Unlike most of the world, this virus is heavily affecting the workforce demographic. More than 50% of COVID-19 deaths in India have occurred between the ages of 40 and 64, an interesting contrast to developed countries where 70% of deaths have occurred in age groups 70 and older.
According to Sanjay Mohanty, a lead scientific author from the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, this contrast is due to India’s age distribution. Mohanty states, “the median age in the country is 24 years and therefore more younger people are available for virus transmission…” Unfortunately, the road to recovery is a long one as millions of people are still susceptible to infection.
The Good News
Despite the seemingly daunting situation, there are many reasons to have hope for India. Well-known organizations such as UNICEF and Give2Asia are focusing aid on India, pushing the nation’s needs into the limelight.
Newly-risen charities are also making impressive strides on the ground. Snehalaya ‘Home of Love’ is a charity based out of Ahmednagar dedicated to feeding impoverished families during the pandemic. In Ahmednagar’s 17 official slums, the organization has fed more than 17,000 families and raised more than $80,000 of aid in just six months.
Hope also goes beyond organized help. As seen in various reports, neighbors are sharing all types of resources, from food to hygiene products. Amid a global pandemic, and even beyond it, India’s path to healing will accelerate with charity aid and attention.
– Amanda J Godfrey
Photo: Flickr
The Czech Republic: Drought and COVID-19
Poverty & Hunger in the Czech Republic
In a 2017 study, the Czech Republic Hunger Statistic was 2.5%. This means that 2.5% of the population’s food intake was insufficient to meet basic dietary requirements. Meanwhile, the World Hunger Statistic is around 11%.
Despite the Czech Republic’s success in the fight against poverty, the country has some areas of weakness. For example, the Czech Republic’s wage gap is larger than other European countries. Women tend to earn about 22% less than men. As a result, a disproportionate number of women, especially single mothers, fall below the poverty line.
Additionally, the Czech Republic’s relatively low poverty rate of 3.4% is somewhat misleading. The poverty rate considers the standard of living within the Czech Republic. Sociologist Daniel Prokop uses Luxembourg to exemplify why this can be misleading: “the median [income] in Luxembourg is twice as high as in the Czech Republic. Therefore, the poverty line is twice as high, making it easier for low-income workers to fall below it.” So, countries with higher median incomes have a higher standard of living. Since the Czech Republic has a lower relative poverty threshold, an impoverished citizen in Luxembourg may not be considered impoverished in the Czech Republic.
Working Through a Long-term Drought
The Czech Republic is experiencing the most threatening drought in 500 years. The drought began in 2018, and it escalated to a climate crisis in April 2020- right in the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. There is a fear that the continuation of the drought in the Czech Republic will cause mass famine.
Scientists are using an ESA satellite to monitor the drought and soil conditions, keeping the country’s agribusiness sector stable. Well-organized agricultural systems are preventing major catastrophe in the present. Yet, crop yields are expected to continue shrinking in the upcoming months. The biggest concern, however, is the impending water shortage. The Ministry of Environment in the Czech Republic has implemented over 15,000 projects across the country to build pipelines for drinking water, preserving dams and reservoirs and much more.
COVID-19 Impacts
Thankfully, the Czech Republic has handled COVID-19 wisely from the start. They were the first country in Europe to issue a mask mandate, sending the notice on March 19, 2020. So far, there are no significant deviations from normal malnutrition and poverty rates due to the pandemic. Despite a couple of recent clusters in the eastern parts of the country, heavily populated cities such as Prague (population: 1.3 million) are seeing consistently low infection rates as of late July. Many citizens’ lives have returned to normalcy, with schools and buildings re-opening and commerce flourishing.
Tomorrow’s Outlook
Organizations ranging from small local projects to large NGOs are working to combat poverty and hunger in the Czech Republic as the drought and COVID-19 continue. For example, the Prague Changemakers organizes volunteering projects by recruiting local citizens. Together, they cook and distribute food to the local homeless population. Additionally, Naděje is an example of a larger NGO. Naděje was founded in the 1990s following the revolution and their organization’s goal is to serve the homeless. Naděje began by serving food in railway stations. Soon, the NGO expanded to building homes and shelters across the country. For their first major project, Naděje established day centers for the homeless to get food, creating two hostels for men and one for women.
Ultimately, responsible governmental action and the work of NGOs like Naděje have provided stability to the Czech Republic in an uncertain time. Hopefully, their work in the Czech Republic will continue to keep COVID-19 and the drought under control. It seems other countries should take notes as unemployment, hunger, and poverty rates remain relatively low in the Czech Republic.
– Ruhi Mukherjee
Photo: Flickr
Poverty in the UK Fought Through Film
Child Poverty
Child poverty is one of the most notable effects of overall poverty in the UK. This poverty crisis struck Britain hard in 1999. Its child poverty proportion became the highest out of all of the western European countries.
In 2016-17, poverty impacted nearly 30% of children — 4.1 million — in the UK. In the following year — 2018-19, the number of children in poverty in the UK increased by 100,000. The trend is on an upward spike rather than its 2003 downward rate when child poverty was made a priority. Poverty in the UK needs to be addressed, especially among the youth. It leads to increased hardships in life from education to mental and physical health to employment and so much more.
Use of the Film Industry
Films produce major results in ending poverty. The film industry has positively impacted poverty in the UK in many ways. For one, the film industry creates many job opportunities. In 2009, the core UK film industry created or impacted nearly 100,000 jobs relating to film production, sales and tourism. Furthermore, portrayals of the UK in films contribute heavily to tourism and yearly account for about £1.9 billion. That brings the total UK film industry contribution in 2009 to raising the GDP by more than £4.5 billion.
The improved economy can be a promising solution for aiding the UK’s children out of poverty. The country can use the funds to help out the struggling citizens, focusing specifically on the poor. In this way, films pose as a promising solution for poverty aid in other countries as well.
“Poor Kids”
The amount of money and the impact the film industry has on the UK is astounding and a promising solution for poverty. However, the impact one film made for children in poverty is even more remarkable.
The film, “Poor Kids,” has made great strides toward improving the lives of impoverished UK children. The film illustrates the living situations of three families in poverty through the lens of the children. Courtney (age 8), Paige (age 10) and Sam (age 11) give detailed and heart-wrenching accounts of their experiences growing up in poverty. The film received much acclaim. It was a Broadcast Best Documentary Nominee, a Learning on Screen Nominee, a Televisual Bulldog Best Documentary Nominee and received the Chicago Film Festival Gold Plaque for Social and Political Documentary in 2012.
Films awards aside, “Poor Kids” sparked change in the community. Make Lunch is a program that began after Poor Kids debuted as a direct result of the film. The program contributes free meals to children during the times when school is not in session and when children could potentially go for a long period without food. In the summer of 2012, as many as 13 lunch kitchens were providing the free lunches.
And That’s A Wrap
The effects of poverty in the UK are prevalent, notably in the large number of impoverished children. The worsening situation provides a sense of sorrow to the country, but a solution presents itself. Films not only contribute to the wealth of a country, but they provide jobs as well. Both of these aspects could be potential resources to utilize when fighting poverty.
Additionally, films bring about emotion, and that creates change. The inspiration that “Poor Kids” ignited contributed to a charity that helps the children in poverty. With results, such as the Make Lunch program, films can yield great benefits for poverty in the UK and the world.
– Hailee Shores
Photo: Flickr
Beyond the Makeup Counter: Estée Lauder’s COVID-19 Response
Starting in March 2020, Estée Lauder’s COVID-19 Response includes supporting Doctors Without Borders, non-governmental organizations, BeautyUnited and manufacturing hand sanitizer to contribute to COVID-19 relief efforts.
Supporting Doctors Without Borders
To launch their global COVID-19 relief campaign, Estée Lauder donated $2 million to Doctors Without Borders. Doctors Without Borders—also referred to as Medecins Sans Frontieres—developed a specialized response to the virus by supporting “under-resourced and highly impacted countries.”
Estée Lauder’s donation will go a long way as Doctors Without Borders currently works in 70 countries worldwide. Doctors Without Borders provides quality care to vulnerable and at-risk community members: “elderly people in nursing homes, homeless people and migrants living in precarious circumstances.”
Doctors Without Borders also seeks to improve infection and prevention procedures in healthcare centers by funneling personal protective equipment (PPE) to frontline workers in developing countries. By funding Doctors Without Borders’ programs, Estée Lauder’s COVID-19 Response assisted workers and patients in Burkina Faso, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Niger and Syria.
Funding NGOs Worldwide
Estée Lauder’s COVID-19 Response focused on assisting non-governmental organizations in China, specifically the Red Cross Society of China, Give2Asia and the Shanghai Charity Foundation. Estée Lauder sought to help the former epicenter of the virus recover and even provided additional donations to the China Women’s Development Foundation, supporting female front-line workers.
In the Middle East and Africa, Estée Lauder assisted Oxfam International’s work in South Africa, Kenya, Ghana and Nigeria. ELCCF even extended its relief efforts to Latin America by awarding grants to Mision Huascaran in Peru, Panama Solidario, Unibes in Brazil, Cruz Rojo in Mexico and the Waldorf Foundation in Colombia. Estée Lauder donated $3.2 million to these NGOs, providing “flexible funding in this time of need.”
Endorsing BeautyUnited
As part of its COVID-19 response campaign, Estée Lauder partnered with 40 other beauty brands and celebrities, like Victoria Beckham, Gwyneth Paltrow and Drew Barrymore as part of BeautyUnited.
BeautyUnited’s “industry-wide effort” also supports frontline health workers. This “special coalition” of beauty moguls and cosmetics corporations specializes in providing PPE to doctors, nurses and essential workers in the developing world. As part of BeautyUnited, Estée Lauder’s COVID-19 response moved beyond monetary donations to provide “life-saving” medical equipment.
Manufacturing Hand Sanitizer
After donating $15 million to relief efforts and joining BeautyUnited, Estée Lauder wanted to do more. Given the scarcity of hand sanitizer at home and abroad, Estée Lauder worked with Jo Malone London, another cosmetics brand, to manufacture hand sanitizer in their U.K. factories. As the pandemic escalated, hand sanitizer became a hot commodity; one Estée Lauder wanted to share with the rest of the world.
Estée Lauder’s COVID-19 Response went above and beyond the expectations of a traditional cosmetics company. The future remains uncertain, but ELCCF will continue to assist impoverished countries throughout this health crisis. Echoing their founder’s giving spirit, Estée Lauder is prepared to meet new and “emerging needs” and will continue to “prioritize medical and emergency” response efforts.
– Kyler Juarez
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Water Poverty in Nigeria Improved by A Map
Water poverty in Nigeria is still a pressing issue today. Only 30% of Northern Nigeria’s population can access safe drinking water and adequate sanitation facilities. The subsequent use of unclean water leads to the spread of waterborne diseases such as cholera, guinea worm and hepatitis. The lack of water has impaired the livelihoods of farmers and led to a lower enrollment rate at schools, especially for girls. However, the situation is not without aid.
The History of Water Poverty in Nigeria
Since 1995, Nigerians have benefited from WaterAid, a charity organization that has established a multitude of water and sanitation projects. The organization works through partnerships with local government authorities, civil society groups and state agencies to implement its programs. The projects have led to progress in development plans and data collection efforts that have increased clean water supply and access to safe toilets.
WaterAid has worked to improve water poverty in Nigeria by implementing its services in more than 100 of Nigeria’s most impoverished communities, which include:
WaterAid, along with government support, has provided more than 3 million Nigerians with clean water, hygiene and sanitation.
The Data4WASH Programme
The Abuja-based nonprofit Media for Community Change and U.S.-based NGO BLI Global have a similar goal of eliminating water poverty in Nigeria. On August 27, 2020, the two organizations formed a partnership to launch the Data4WASH Programme. The program consists of an interactive online platform that accumulates data and maps GPS coordinates. It then creates a map that water-impoverished communities can utilize to advocate for themselves.
Through the map, empirical and widespread evidence can prove the need for adequate investment in the design and installation of clean water and sanitation facilities. Additionally, the program empowers civil society by involving them in the national initiative to improve water poverty in Nigeria. The map encourages people to identify and report water-deficient and poorly sanitized areas in their communities. For instance, final year students from the Department of Statistics at the University of Ibadan will participate in the data collection process.
COVID-19
The Data4WASH Programme has been especially valuable after COVID-19 disrupted Nigeria’s progress in alleviating water poverty. According to WaterAid, 60 million Nigerians lack access to a clean water supply and services and 150 million people lack basic hand-washing facilities with soap and water.
By enhancing data collecting processes, Nigeria can fortify its most vulnerable communities and health care systems to withstand the present detriments of COVID-19. Further, it can institutionally protect against potential health threats in the future. These measures established by the Data4WASH Programme’s interactive map system would also satisfy U.N. SDG 6 — “clean water and sanitation access for all, including safe and affordable drinking water.”
Locally crafted, community-driven initiatives like the Data4WASH Programme and intergovernmental organizations are vital to ending global poverty. One sets guidelines and the other provides outlets that encourage entrepreneurship. The two must work together to end water poverty in Nigeria and all around the world.
– Joy Arkeh
Photo: Flickr
4 Facts About Historical Israel-UAE Peace Agreement
5 Facts About the Israel-UAE Peace Agreement
The Middle East has been home to a lot of conflicts. However, the new Israel-UAE Peace Agreement gives many a reason to hope for a more peaceful future. The deal itself is only the first step in the right direction, which should help to promote a more peaceful world.
– Allison Moss
Photo: Flickr
From Slaved To Saved: Wipe Every Tear
A Way Out
In the Bible, the Book of Revelations chapter twenty-one verse four reads, “He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or crying or mourning or pain.” The organization aims to take away the mourning and pain from women who have been trafficked in the sex trade. They are given a new way to live a life where they are surrounded by love and taught valuable skills to survive in the world.
The organization is fueled by women who are former sex slaves who want to help save others. They go back into bars in the red light district of Angeles City and invite women who are interested in getting out of sex trafficking back to their safe house in Manila. If the women are interested in escaping, Wipe Every Tear gives them a bed to sleep in, pays off their debts and enrolls them into school.
Safe Homes
Once any former sex slave has escaped, she is given any support needed to help her recover. This may include a weekly allowance and care for her children. Because many women are drawn into sex trafficking as a means to pay off debt or fuel a drug addiction, Wipe Every Tear aims to give them a safe home to gain back control of their life. Sexual exploitation is more common than it should be, with one in every four girls being the victim of abuse.
Wipe Every Tear provides a fully holistic approach to healing the women who come to safe homes. Women can receive medical and dental care. In addition, over 200 women and children have gone through its safe houses and received the opportunity at starting fresh.
Education
Many employers in the Philippines will not hire anyone with anything less than a bachelor’s degree. Wipe Every Tear provides tuition fees to women so they can pursue a college degree. If anyone needs transportation, Wipe Every Tear provides that too. The foundation began in 2008. By 2015, they celebrated their first college graduate. As of 2020, they have helped 30 women receive college degrees.
Wipe Every Tear also works with several other organizations to help provide education and jobs that teach business skills. Bella Goose Coffee is a fair trade coffee company that opened a shop in the red light district to give these women a better career opportunity. A proper career and education are fundamental in helping women stay out of sex slavery.
Wipe Every Tear continues to advocate within the global community to help women trapped in the sex trade. With community events, volunteer trips and business partners, it has established a successful method to help many women and their families. Wipe Every Tear is bringing light and happiness to many and ending their mourning and pain.
– Tawney Smith
Photo: Flickr
COVID-19 in India: Pandemics in the Global South
Income and Unemployment
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic in India, economic disparity existed in many forms. In 2019, the average per capita monthly income was approximately 10,534 Indian rupees.
To put this in perspective, 10,534 Indian rupees equals $143.42 USD, meaning the annual income of the average Indian citizen was just $1,721.04. Over the past five years, India’s unemployment rate has been increasing steadily, but in April 2020, it skyrocketed to 23.5%. Factories and construction sites, known for housing and feeding temporary employees, threw their workers onto the streets. About 95% of employed women worked in informal positions, but many lost jobs as households and businesses determined outside workers were too dangerous. As restrictions are slowly lifting across the country, frightened people return to work because fears of starvation hold more weight than fears of COVID-19 infection.
Lack of Medical Resources
For those in need of COVID-19 medical care, options for help are slim. According to reports from The New York Times, public hospitals are so immensely overwhelmed that doctors have to treat patients in the hallways.
For those with non-COVID-related medical needs, options are almost nonexistent. On March 24, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that to “save India,” a nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of the virus is necessary as well as the postponement of non-essential surgeries. For Ravindra Nath Singh, a 76-year-old man with Parkinson’s, this meant being discharged from the ICU in a hospital in Lucknow just minutes after becoming stable on a catheter and feeding tube. For a young woman in New Delhi, this meant eight hospitals turning her away while in labor for 15 hours, only to die in the back of an ambulance.
Child Labor and Education
The spread of COVID-19 in India forced schools to shut down, which proved unhelpful to students’ already low attendance rates. According to a study in 2018 by DHL International GmBH, India hosts the highest population of uneducated children with a staggering 56 million children out of school. As restrictions across the country lift, one of the biggest hurdles will be encouraging enrollment, especially with uncertain learning conditions. Enrollment hesitation enables another widespread issue in India: child labor. Experts claim the most significant spike in child labor is yet to come as immense economic losses will compel large corporations to seek cheap labor.
The lack of in-person education also has a significant impact on child mental health. An Indian girl, 12-year-old Ashwini Pawar, once had dreams of becoming a teacher, but now must reconsider her life’s ambition. In an interview with TIME magazine, she considers her family financial burdens, saying “even when [school] reopens I don’t think I will be able to go back…” These circumstances push concerns of economic inequality as the pandemic might dissolve great strides made in development over the past decade.
Deaths and Infection Rates
In very little time, India has become the new epicenter of the coronavirus. The daily number of confirmed cases shot up from about 40,000 to 80,000 in just a few weeks. Unlike most of the world, this virus is heavily affecting the workforce demographic. More than 50% of COVID-19 deaths in India have occurred between the ages of 40 and 64, an interesting contrast to developed countries where 70% of deaths have occurred in age groups 70 and older.
According to Sanjay Mohanty, a lead scientific author from the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, this contrast is due to India’s age distribution. Mohanty states, “the median age in the country is 24 years and therefore more younger people are available for virus transmission…” Unfortunately, the road to recovery is a long one as millions of people are still susceptible to infection.
The Good News
Despite the seemingly daunting situation, there are many reasons to have hope for India. Well-known organizations such as UNICEF and Give2Asia are focusing aid on India, pushing the nation’s needs into the limelight.
Newly-risen charities are also making impressive strides on the ground. Snehalaya ‘Home of Love’ is a charity based out of Ahmednagar dedicated to feeding impoverished families during the pandemic. In Ahmednagar’s 17 official slums, the organization has fed more than 17,000 families and raised more than $80,000 of aid in just six months.
Hope also goes beyond organized help. As seen in various reports, neighbors are sharing all types of resources, from food to hygiene products. Amid a global pandemic, and even beyond it, India’s path to healing will accelerate with charity aid and attention.
– Amanda J Godfrey
Photo: Flickr
Measles in Sri Lanka: A Thing of the Past
Despite the availability of a measles vaccine since the 1960s, measles continues to afflict the world’s impoverished. Annual outbreaks in low- and middle-income countries have a severe and pronounced effect on their health systems. In 2018, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 140,000 people died of measles globally.
COVID-19 Pandemic’s Effects on Measles
COVID-19 has made the possibility of wider measles outbreaks more likely. The pandemic has constrained health systems, and as a result, it has been difficult for some children to obtain the two vaccine doses necessary to achieve immunity to measles. However, the international community is coming together to solve the problem. The WHO initially set a target of 2020 for eradicating measles in Southeast Asia. Recently, the 11 member countries of the region have pushed back the goal until 2023.
Sri Lanka’s Eradication of Measles
One Southeast Asian country that has already seen success in eradicating measles is Sri Lanka. A small island nation in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka’s health infrastructure is significantly effective at combating disease and promoting positive health outcomes. This strong health care system, combined with a robust vaccination program and effective monitoring, has made measles in Sri Lanka a thing of the past.
During a large outbreak of measles in 1999 and 2000, 15,000 Sri Lankans contracted the disease. Following this outbreak, the Sri Lankan government decided to implement a two-dose vaccine schedule throughout the country. In order to facilitate access to vaccines, early vaccination campaigns partnered with non-governmental organizations. In 2004, the Red Cross assisted the Sri Lankan government in public messaging, training volunteers and administering vaccines.
Sri Lanka was able to increase vaccination rates to more than 95%. This figure is important because health experts estimate that vaccinations need to be at least that high in order to create “herd immunity.” Herd immunity is the concept that high levels of vaccination mean that enough people are immune to the disease to protect the entire population. This safeguards those who are vaccinated and those who may not be able to receive vaccinations due to lack of medical access or adverse health effects.
Because of these efforts, the WHO officially considers measles eradicated in Sri Lanka. The last indigenous case of measles in Sri Lanka occurred in May 2016. Although Sri Lanka has noted isolated cases since then, experts indicate that the cases came from outside of the nation’s borders. Fortunately, the government was able to promptly identify and investigate these incidents.
Cases of measles in Sri Lanka have fallen faster than in other Southeast Asian nations — only five of 11 countries have fully eradicated measles. The region is, however, making some progress. Between 2014 and 2017, measles-related deaths in Southeast Asia dropped by 23%.
– Thomas Gill
Photo: Flickr
Improving Conditions for the Central African Republic Refugees
Political Progress in the CAR
The Central African Republic’s politics are one way that citizens will regain their freedom within the country. The U.N. Security Council is interacting with the CAR government to get humanitarian war crimes accounted for and penalized. The war has led to numerous human rights violations and international forums have condemned the actions. Other political progress is being made to elect leaders based on a democratic method. The proposed elections are seen as a method of peacefully negotiating between political differences without force. This holistic method of finding peace incurs that the problem be examined from all angles and solutions will be diverse.
Refugees’ Experience and Local Aid
Since the CAR is land-locked, refugees have scattered in camps in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Republic of Congo, Chad, Cameroon and Sudan. The journey for many leaving the territory of the CAR was extreme. Many refugees walked for weeks, hid in forests and were plagued with malnutrition. The resilience of the refugees is coming to fruition in the current transition to peace. Much progress is being made on the ground in the CAR that would create more stability in the government and society.
The problems faced by the displaced are numerous but also change from one area to the next. Much is being done to ease their basic needs, as the area is veiled in violence. The United Nations has adapted to local aid initiatives that provide effective assistance. Additionally, the U.N. has contributed $14.3 million to “help support local aid agencies deliver clean water, education, healthcare, livelihoods support, nutrition, protection and shelter.” Each of these assists makes the return of refugees more possible and more likely.
Humanitarian Aid
One institution committed to helping the Central African Republic refugees is UNICEF. The major ways the organization has contributed to the cause has to do with basic needs being met. For children, the organization is delivering Ready-to-Use-Therapeutic-Food that fights malnutrition and providing immunizations against diseases. Additionally, UNICEF is providing clean water, setting up temporary shelters, training teachers and encouraging education in camps and opening accessible sanitization stations. These major provisions are invaluable and majorly supporting the needs of refugees.
Another high priority for UNICEF is the resettlement of refugees within the country. The Central African Republic refugees, either internally or externally displaced, have begun rebuilding their lives. In 2019, the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) propelled a $430 million campaign to assist displaced refugees of the Central African Republic. Although funding and donations have not fulfilled this expensive plan, the campaign has certainly made headway. The coordination of funds is extremely beneficial in restructuring the country and enforcing the progress made in the developing peace agreements.
Major strides in assistance, both political and humanitarian, are making peace possible in the Central African Republic. The basic relief provided by both UNICEF and UNHCR is stabilizing the situation for refugees worldwide. As displaced groups transition back to their homes, currently and in the future, the assistance will be instrumental in securing a steady return.
– Eva Pound
Photo: Flickr
Khadi Oaxaca: The Future of the Garment Industry
Khadi Oaxaca is a small nonprofit with a big goal: community-based sustainable development. Comprising more than 400 families in Oaxaca, Mexico, this fabric and clothing producer is both contributing to local progress and taking part in a larger movement challenging what the future of the garment industry will look like. Seeking inspiration from the past, this avant-garde project has surprising roots in a tradition from across the globe.
Mahatma Gandhi’s Khadi Movement
Khadi refers to hand-spun, hand-woven Indian cloth. In 1918, Mahatma Gandhi began promoting khadi production as a means for impoverished individuals living in rural India to achieve economic self-sufficiency and consequently, liberation from dependence on British textiles. Khadi soon became a symbol of Indian national pride and the Indian independence movement at large.
Khadi Makes its Way to Mexico
Three decades after India gained its independence, Mark “Marcos” Brown—the man who co-founded the Khadi Oaxaca project—visited San Sebastián Río Hondo in Oaxaca. He subsequently traveled to India, where he lived in the Gandhi ashram for two years, learning about both the history of khadi and how to spin and weave the cloth. When he returned to Oaxaca in the 1990s, he brought with him a Gandhian spinning wheel and began teaching the other villagers, including the Ramírez family, how to use it.
In 2010, Brown, his wife Kalindi Attar and the Ramírez family laid the foundations of what would become Khadi Oaxaca. Together, they built what they hoped could be an alternative to conventional production for the future of the garment industry. They hosted a cotton-spinning workshop with more than 30 women from the town. In 2014, members of the group began designing clothing and using plant-based dyes. Today, the affiliation consists of spinners, weavers and embroiderers, as well as growers along the Oaxaca coast who supply cotton to these artisans.
Farm-to-Garment Economics
Khadi Oaxaca’s farm-to-garment model provides crucial income to indigenous Zapotec families living in the agrarian villages of Oaxaca. Though recent data is difficult to come by, Sedesol, the department of the Mexican Secretary of Social Development, reported in 2010 that more than 55% of the population of San Sebastián Río Hondo was living in extreme poverty. By promoting a “thread standard,” Khadi Oaxaca managers raised the market value of a kilogram of thread from 400 pesos ($18 USD) in 2010 to 1,500 pesos ($70 USD) today, enough to meet spinners’ basic needs of survival and incentivize the practice of spinning. The integrated supply chain offers autonomy and provides a reliable source of revenue that has only become increasingly important during the COVID-19 pandemic.
More Than Just Cloth: An Ethical, Sustainable Alternative
However, Khadi Oaxaca is about more than just business. The company aims to provide an example of cottage industry production as an alternative to today’s fashion industry, which is too-often exploitative of both natural and human resources. The fashion industry is the second-largest consumer of the world’s water supply and produces 10% of humanity’s carbon emissions. Moreover, the equivalent of one garbage truck full of clothes is burned or dumped in a landfill every second, amounting to 85% of textiles ending up in landfills every year. Furthermore, human rights abuses within the garment industry are rampant.
Fast fashion–inexpensive clothing produced rapidly in response to fleeting trends–is possible only through the employment of low-paid factory workers, a workforce that includes mostly females and may employ 16.7 million children in South Asia alone. Child labor is a major issue in Mexico as well, with several nonprofits currently working to eradicate its presence specifically from the fashion supply chain.
Weaving Sustainable Development
Khadi Oaxaca believes that garment producers and consumers can and should do better. The company sources its organic cotton from local farmers along the Oaxaca coast and uses plant-based, regionally harvested dyes–never chemicals. While the project remains a small-scale one, it hopes to function as an archetype for what the future of the garment industry could be: an environmentally-friendly industry that supports the livelihood of its workers and delivers beautiful, high-quality clothing to consumers.
– Margot Seidel
Photo: Pixabay