Archive for category: Developing Countries

Information and stories about developing countries.

5 Areas in Which Developing Countries Lead the World

5 Areas Developing Countries Lead the World
Upon initial inspection, developing countries face many obvious challenges, some of which obscure the progress being made. The realities of poverty can sometimes force this progress; after all, from the bottom, there’s only one way to go: up. Developing countries lead the world now in ways unforeseen perhaps a decade ago, and in some ways have even distinguished themselves on the global stage. Five areas serve to highlight where these countries are outperforming the developed world.

5 Areas in Which Developing Countries Lead the World

  1. Renewable and Sustainable Energy
    On the rocky fringes of a global landscape, developing countries lead the world down some of the most implausible of paths. One such pathway grows greener than others. According to World Bank, an international financial institution that finances capital projects in countries throughout the world, Mexico, China, India and Brazil are among the leaders in sustainable energy policies.In Scoring 111 countries on policies that support energy access, World Bank analytics called Regulatory Indicators for Sustainable Energy (RISE) took into account each country’s energy access, efficiency, and policies. Vietnam, South Africa, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania also received praise for their efforts.Perhaps one reason for this trend could be the falling costs of solar energy, allowing for developing countries to reach their most isolated residents. Whatever the reason, developing economies invested in renewable energy to the tune of $177 billion in 2017. That’s a 20 percent leap in one year.
  2. Election Technology
    In places like Nigeria, electronic voter identification takes precedence over traditional work, while elsewhere, in developed countries like the U.K., the digital jump still hasn’t been made.While the electronic “fixing” of an election may be possible, the likelihood of it working in a persuasive manner depends largely on the closeness of an election. And while elections in places like Kenya meet opposition and challenge, Africa still finds itself ahead in the popular vote, so to speak, when it comes to digital voting technology.
  1. Mobile Money
    Developing countries lead the way in the implementation and use of mobile money technologies as well. Remarkably, Kenya has hit the decade mark with its M-Pesa mobile money service, but it is not alone in this growing trend among developing nations.In a 2017 report by Groupe Spéciale Mobile Association (GSMA), an organization that represents the interests of mobile operators the world over, 277 million registered mobile money accounts dotted sub-Saharan Africa at the end of 2016. These services generated $110 billion of economic value and helped to support more than three million jobs.
  2. e-Commerce and Trade
    Commercial transactions conducted electronically online, referred to as e-commerce, might often be associated with advanced economies. However, developing countries also lead the way in this area, in nations like Columbia, Argentina and Nigeria.In fact, in Latin America alone, e-commerce is expected to see growth of nearly 20 percent over the next five years. What does this mean for a developing economy? It means growth opportunities and greater integration within the world’s markets.In terms of countries opening themselves up to trade, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines take center stage. According to the World Economic Forum, an organization that engages world leaders to shape agendas, these countries have now displaced the traditional powerhouses.
  3. Positivity
    A recent poll by Gallup International, a leader in economic and market research, shows that the external powers of money may not necessarily translate to intrinsic happiness. The poll found that optimism came from places like Nigeria, Vietnam, Indonesia, Bangladesh and the Philippines.When asked questions about prospects for the future or personal happiness, confidence abounded in places like Mexico, despite grim financial outlooks for the country. Maybe money can’t buy happiness.

Despite lingering stereotypes and growing pessimism in our world, developing countries lead the world in several different areas, and while the change in perception may be gradual, reality dictates a much quicker realization: developing countries make strides every day, and in some cases, set the standard.

– Daniel Staesser
Photo: Flickr

The Role and Scope of Microenterprise in Developing Countries

The Role and Scope of Microenterprise in Developing Countries
Microenterprises — businesses with fewer than ten employees and often a sole proprietor — might not ordinarily come to mind when thinking of what drives an economy. However, in places where opportunity is most lacking, innovation abounds. In her course syllabus for a class entitled “Entrepreneurship in Developing Countries”, Stockholm University associate professor Birgitta Schwartz calls entrepreneurship fundamental to the organization of societies. She asserts that microenterprise in developing countries mobilizes people, resources and innovation. “It is about generating ideas, organizing and hands-on action that can have many different effects,” says Schwartz.

How Is Microenterprise in Developing Countries Unique?

The answer to this lies partly in motivation. For many Western societies, entrepreneurship eyes opportunity, while in developing countries, it is borne out of necessity. According to a 2017 report by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), 76.2 percent of Africans see entrepreneurship as a good career choice, as opposed to around 65 percent for developed nations like the United States.

What is the reason for this? Well, with factors like extreme population growth and an increasing life expectancy, keeping the working age constant means having to create many additional jobs. As a result, microenterprise in developing countries represents a large percentage of employment. In Ghana, for example, household or micro-businesses tally 57 percent of the country’s total workforce.

Added Challenges

While entrepreneurship presents challenges enough, the added factors associated with living in poverty create a special dynamic all its own. These challenges may include:

  • Adequate access to financing
  • The risk involved with political and economic imbalance, and
  • A lack of the skill set necessary to create a successful market

Lacking alternative sources of financing, the successful entrepreneur living in poverty may use internally generated cash flow from one business to fund his or her other businesses. Perhaps surprisingly though, research suggests that countries that have experienced economic instability are more likely to have higher rates of private saving. In a manner of speaking, crisis provokes a necessity to save.

Microenterprise may play more of a role in poverty alleviation than was previously thought. Entrepreneurs in developing countries look at risk differently. Whereas Western business strategy sees a competitive threat from the well-established incumbent businesses, such a threat doesn’t exist in developing countries. And while urbanization threatens this advantage, entrepreneurs look to the more rural areas of their country to start and grow their businesses.

Microenterprise in developing countries can be made even more difficult without the added benefits of mentorship and apprenticeship. Many of these emerging markets have few people with the necessary skills to effect the kind of change that can be the impetus for large-scale economic strides. With a lack of accountability, trust becomes even more important. Micro-businesses in these countries are often family-owned and much more attuned to the local market environment, which results in higher returns to capital and a larger potential for growth.

Success in Spite of Circumstances

An example of microenterprise at its finest is Hanan Odah, a Palestinian refugee whose husband died in the civil war in Syria. She rebuilt her micro-business, selling stationery and perfume and now helps her new community and her family of three to survive. Despite conflict and economic collapse, Odah continues to build her brand, thanks in part to a steely will and in part to microfinance programs that loan small amounts of money at low interest rates.

This is the kind of presence that microenterprises can have in developing countries. Whereas external forces may cause economic instabilities, small startups with low overhead and little opposition, like Odah’s, continue to thrive and grow.

Entrepreneurship in developing markets depends not necessarily on the traditional tenets of opportunity and vision, but rather on necessity and provision. For every stereotype of countless roadside stands selling nearly-identical wares, there is a provocative truth lurking beneath the surface of this dormant economic volcano.

– Daniel Staesser
Photo: Flickr

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10 Facts About Third World Countries or Developing Nations

Facts About Third World Countries
Third world countries all over the world are struggling to have their voices heard due to widespread negative perceptions and stereotypes. Many areas of the globe lack all the facts about third world countries, both knowing where such nations are located as well as efforts from within to push forward. Here are 10 facts about third world countries that will help give a better look at these developing nations.

10 Facts About Third World Countries

  1. The term “third world countries” was first used during the Cold War. This term was used to specify the countries that didn’t side with NATO/capitalism or at the time the Soviet Union/communism. Since the Soviet Union no longer exists, the term “third world countries” has become more open to interpretation in today’s society. The new generic meaning for third world countries are poor and underdeveloped nations. Such descriptors can refer to poor education, infrastructure, improper sanitation and/or poor access to healthcare.
  2. Third world countries can be categorized in different sections. Third world countries can be measured up in five different sections — political rights and civil liberties, gross national income, human development, poverty and press freedom. It is likely to see the same countries in each of these sections. For example, Somalia is listed under political and civil liberties, gross national income, poverty and press freedom.
  3. The term “third world” is becoming more and more out of date. Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the interpretation of “third world countries” has become more open. With this phrase being so open it is easier to see the holes within. In an article by NPR, Marc Silver asked, “Who is to say which part of the world is “first?” And how can an affluent country like Saudi Arabia, neither Western nor communist, be part of the Third World?” To replace the term, “third world countries,” others are using phrases such as “developing world,” “developing countries” or “majority world.” There still isn’t a global consensus on which term to use.
  4. There are 166 developing countries. According to the International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry, there were approximately 166 developing countries; of these 166 developing countries, 52 are African countries; currently, Africa has a total of 54 countries.
  5. Water pollution is a growing concern in developing countries. More people die every year from unsafe water than from any form of violence. On January 10, 2018, the head of United Nations Environment and the Director General of the World Health Organization signed an agreement to improve joint actions to tackle pollution concerns around the world. Along with this agreement, the organizations also seek to improve coordination of waste and chemicals management, water quality, and food and nutrition issues.
  6. Health and nutrition resources are minimal. When determining whether a country is “developing,” there are three criteria to take into account. These three criteria are low-income, human resources and economic vulnerability. At least half of the world’s population lacks access to essential health services. Along with poor access to health services WHO reported that two billion people lack key micronutrients in their diet and 88 percent of countries suffer from either two to three forms of malnutrition.
  7. Eighty percent of the world lives on $10 or less a day. Nearly two-thirds of the global workforce is listed under an ‘informal’ economy. Informal work means that these employees don’t have proper social protection, rights at work and adequate working conditions. In fact, the United Nations reports that “93 percent of the world’s informal employment is in emerging and developing countries.” Of this number, men, covering 63 percent, are most likely to obtain informal employment. The United Nations concluded that those living in rural areas are twice as likely to be informally employed than those in urban areas.
  8. There exists a higher percentage of violence against women. One in three women will globally experience physical or sexual violence by a partner or non-partner. This is true in any country, but the World Health Organization reported that those in developing countries are still more likely to experience this violence. It is reported that 36.6 percent of women in the Africa region and 37.7 percent of women in the South/East Asia region are most likely to undergo physical or sexual violence.
  9. Three hundred eighty-seven million children worldwide live in poverty. Of all the children in the world, 19.5 percent live in extreme poverty while the child mortality rate has improved in recent years. In 1990, there were 93 deaths per every 1,000 live births. In 2016, this amount dropped to 41 deaths per every 1,000 live births. According to UNICEF’s most recent report, about 15,000 children under five still die every day.
  10. Seventy-nine percent of people in third world countries live without electricity. It is seen that there is more harm than good for most who are living without electricity. Those who live without electricity are producing indoor air pollution through burning fires. This causes up to 3.5 million deaths per year.

Whether it is called “third world” or “developing,” countries all over the world are pushing to grow and move forward. Without proper funding and education, it becomes increasingly difficult to improve as stated in these 10 facts about third world countries. Visit Act Now on The Borgen Project website to find 30 ways to help those trying to overcome obstacles succeed.

– Victoria Fowler
Photo: Flickr

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The Health Impacts of Cooking Fuel in Developing Countries

Cooking FuelFinding a reliable and clean source of cooking fuel in developing countries is a persistent obstacle for poor households. From using animal dung in East Asia to wood and charcoal in Africa, the simple process of cooking varies greatly in both safety and reliability across the world. Adverse health effects from household smoke have encouraged governments to provide affordable and cleaner options for cooking fuel.

Cooking Fuel in Developing Countries

The youngest and most vulnerable in the developing world are most likely to benefit from cleaner cooking fuels. Since indoor air pollution is most prevalent with the extremely poor — those living on less than $1 a day — providing cleaner options for cooking has disproportionately positive health effects for them.

Traditionally, coal and biomass have been the primary sources of cooking fuel in developing countries and have been particularly damaging in countries that lack access to other viable options. Unhealthy levels of air pollution in homes lead to premature deaths every year. The prime culprit is smoke from coal and wood in poorly ventilated kitchens.

Convenience Over Safety

Until recently, however, convenience has trumped health and environmental concerns. Despite recent efforts to modernize energy use in the developing world, the number of people reliant on solid fuels, such as wood, is expected to grow to 2.7 billion by 2030. Although the adverse health effects of indoor air pollution contribute to 2.6 million deaths per year, there has been major resistance from people accustomed to their traditional way of cooking.

Established types of cooking fuel in developing countries, if not healthy or environmentally friendly, are hard to usurp as the primary source for energy use.  Both India and Brazil have approached the problem through promoting liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) usage but from distinctly different angles.

LPG in India

For decades India has subsidized cleaner energy sources such as LPG as an incentive to transition homes from less healthy options, such as wood, charcoal and animal dung.

Although subsidies have been historically inefficient, India has made progress in providing affordable and clean fuel to households through a biometric identification system. Since 2016, India has provided 34 million households with stoves and a free cylinder of LPG.

India has focused on targeted, subsidized fuel for those needing the greatest assistance. In 2012, in response to increasing graft and black market activity, India initiated a Direct Benefit Transfer Scheme of LPG.  The subsidization program has only been possible due to access to individual bank accounts and biometric identifiers; which allows the government access to household’s income levels in order to better target various need requirements.

LPG in Brazil

Brazil, on the other hand, has focused on the market development of the LPG gas industry and promoting education to consumers. Specifically, the government’s approach to promoting efficient and healthy means of cooking has evolved into selling the public on the beneficial qualities of LPG. Rather than subsidized fuel or free LPG cylinders, Brazil has relied on educating Brazilian’s on the use of new stoves, as well as providing a free trial period.

To get accustomed to the new fuel, LPG cylinders and accompanying stoves were offered on a short-term, three-day trial. Once completed, households involved were allowed to either purchase the new cooking equipment or return it. The majority of consumers felt comfortable enough with the more modern cookware to transition to LPG usage. Direct experience with the product, instead of handouts, has been the impetus in Brazil for creating a market for cleaner cooking fuels and stoves.

Allowing poor households to see the benefits firsthand has directly created a demand for LPG. This approach of consumer development, rather than India’s direct cash transfer, could be replicated to provide cleaner cooking fuel in developing countries still reliant on wood, dung and charcoal.

The number of households who opt for cleaner and safer cooking fuel in developing countries will vary in approach. It depends on the level of poverty in the country and the policies the government, and the taxpayers, are willing to commit to.

Reducing deaths from indoor air pollution and providing a reliable source for cooking should be the ultimate policy goal of modernizing indoor fuel consumption. After all, making dinner in the developing world should not come at the price of smoke filled kitchens and declining health.

– Nathan Ghelli
Photo: Flickr

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WASH United: Working to Achieve Clean Water, Sanitation and Hygiene 

water, sanitation and hygiene
Undernutrition is a major cause of disease and death that affects millions of people worldwide. A direct cause of undernutrition is disease indirectly related to factors such as contaminated drinking water and poor sanitation and hygiene. WASH United aims to fulfill the basic human right to clean drinking water and sanitation as recognized by the United Nations General Assembly in 2010.

Water, Sanitation and Hygiene the Building Blocks of Global Health

Since 2010, the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) has been working to improve water, sanitation and hygiene services and practices in more than 100 countries worldwide. Last year, nearly 14 million people were provided with access to clean water and more than 11 million with basic toilets.

WASH is the unified term for water, sanitation and hygiene. Although each is a separate issue, success in one category is dependent on the other. For example, without clean water, basic hygiene is not possible; without toilets, sources of water become polluted. By focusing efforts on these dependent factors, WASH United hopes to increase the awareness of and access to clean drinking water, sanitation and hygiene.

Water

Each year 800,000 children are killed by diarrhea caused by dirty water, poor sanitation and lack of hygiene skills. This is more than the number of children killed by AIDS, malaria and measles combined. UNICEF reports that the risk of diarrhea can be reduced by almost 50 percent by washing hands with soap before eating and after using the toilet. WASH United works to make hand washing a habit for everyone through interactive games and positive messaging.

Sanitation

Worldwide, 2.4 billion people lack access to a hygienic toilet while 946 million have no access to a toilet of any kind. Instead, they use open places in and around their communities such as railroad tracks and ditches. Even with access, there are tens of thousands of toilets in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa that are abandoned and unused. WASH United strives to change attitudes through innovative tools around sanitation and create a demand for toilets. 

Hygiene

A 2013 UNICEF study reported that one out of three girls in South Asia knew nothing about menstruation before starting their period, while 48 percent of girls in Iran and 10 percent of girls in India believed that menstruation is a disease. WASH United aims to educate women about important components of hygiene during menstruation and work closely with communities to motivate positive practices. 

To date, WASH United has reached 500 million people through campaigns and media work and has trained 200,000 children in good WASH behavior. However, there is still work to do. WASH United aims to achieve water, sanitation and hygiene for all people by 2030, and aspires to reach the World Health Assembly global nutrition targets by 2025. These targets include: 

  • A 40 percent reduction in the number of children under five years of age who are stunted
  • A 50 percent reduction of anemia in women of reproductive age
  • A 30 percent reduction of low birth weight
  • Increase the rate of exclusive breastfeeding in the first 6 months up to at least 50 percent
  • Reduce and maintain childhood wasting to less than 5 percent

Although there is still much to achieve, WASH United has already impacted the lives of millions. To date, it has reached 500 million people through campaigns and media work and has trained 200,000 children in good water, sanitation and hygiene behavior.

– Anne-Marie Maher
Photo: Flickr

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Four Major Benefits of Volunteering in Other Countries

The Benefits of Volunteering in Other CountriesWhen discussing and researching poverty and poverty-related issues in other countries, a common aid route that comes up is volunteering. Oftentimes, though, the notion of actually traveling to another country, working with the people and also living within a totally new culture can be a very intimidating adventure.

However, the benefits of volunteering outweighs the fear and intimidation associated with travelling and living in a new culture. Benefits vary from personal growth, to help with job searches and the creation of improvement in those countries. Here are just some of the benefits of volunteering in other countries.

1. Personal Growth and Diversity

With so many different cultures around the world, simple things such as hand gestures and other ways we communicate with each other can have a vastly different meaning in another part of the world.

Being thrust head-first into a brand new culture is an excellent way to learn first-hand about different cultures and the way they communicate. While there may be some trial and error involved, learning about and experiencing these differences can lead to better development for communication skills elsewhere.

2. Cultural Exchange

While volunteers will learn a lot about the culture they are staying at, the same can be said in reverse.

Depending on the program, people from the host country may be used to volunteers from other countries coming to live with them, but sometimes that volunteer may be the first one. In both situations, the volunteer brings new information about their own country, culture and life story.

Through volunteering in other countries, there’s a benefit of not only learning about another culture, but of also teaching about and sharing personal experiences.

3. Long-Lasting Relationships

One of the many elements mentioned when talking about volunteering is the connections and relationships made while living and working in another country. This benefit of volunteering is arguably one of the biggest highlights.

While the work being done abroad is very important and will lead to tangible results, there are also other elements of foreign volunteerism that can be just as important. For example, teaching English to a classroom full of children is incredible and important in academic and professional regards, but it’s really the connections made with those kids that will stick years later. Making meaningful connections will also help kids better remember and learn, as well.

4. Make a Difference

From building homes to teaching children, volunteering allows the individual to actually create a difference and leave a mark on this world for the better.

Volunteers are able to work side-by-side with people from another culture in order to create something to better their lives. Lending a hand in building homes for people who need them, helping educate children so the other teachers have more time and helping doctors with all of their patients are just a few of many ways volunteers can greatly aid another culture.

These are only some of the benefits of volunteering in other countries. While volunteering and moving to another country can be a scary and intimidating option, it’s a wonderful and unique experience that not only hones personal skills but applies them to people in need. The major benefits of volunteering in other countries is the experience’s ability to foster teamwork, create personal connections and inspire memorable moments.

– Marissa Wandzel

Photo: Google

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Bringing Affordable Internet Access to Developing Countries

Bringing affordable internet access to developing countries would help it to gain access to the global marketplace as well as manage healthcare crisis. Therefore, The Borgen Project is trying to get the Digital GAP Act passed because having access to the internet is very important for economic development, the act is attempting to ensure that impoverished countries get exactly that.

Fighting Pandemics via the Internet

Affordable internet access would help fight pandemics because it can be used to both: a.) train healthcare workers in better ways to help prevent communicable diseases from spreading; b.) monitor the spread of a disease before it turns into a pandemic.

Another way affordable internet access would help developing nations is by allowing people in remote areas to use telemedicine to get basic medical care. Telemedicine is using technologies such as the internet to allow people who live in remote areas, without enough doctors, to gain access to healthcare. However, it is only feasible in areas that have low-cost internet access.

The internet would greatly benefit people living in third world countries by providing them with the information they need to stay healthy, for instance, learning how to prevent death as a result of diarrhoea by staying hydrated, teaching people the ways to avoid contracting HIV, providing helpful information to diabetic people so that they can manage their condition better, etc.

Affordable Internet Access and Financial Independence

Bringing affordable internet access to developing countries allows people to sell their goods in the open market. For example, easy access to the global marketplace via the internet allows both farmers and artisans to directly sell their goods to international buyers, without going through intermediaries, thereby getting the full value of their commodities.

Many of the technical tools used by people in the third world to trade, such as the blockchain, require affordable internet access. These tools are there to ensure that sellers get a fair price for whatever they are selling in the global marketplace.

Digital GAP Act and Children’s Education

Children in developing countries can use the internet to get access to online educational materials so that they are able to learn independently using resources available on the internet. These educational resources only become viable in areas where affordable internet access is readily available to people.

Seymour Papert, an MIT professor, believed that giving students in impoverished countries access to electronic devices would enable them to become curious and learn more. MIT provided students with inexpensive laptops that are very hard to break and the Digital GAP Act ensures that connecting such devices to the internet is an affordable option so that the children can use their laptops to access online resources and learn independently.

The Borgen Project is trying to bring the Digital GAP Act to the attention of the legislators and has an online tool, that will allow people who care about helping other people in the third world get access to the internet, to send a letter to their representatives. The bill has already passed in the House of Representatives but must be introduced in the Senate.

– Michael Israel

Photo: Flickr

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Six Lesser Known Organizations Addressing Poverty

Lesser Known Organizations Addressing PovertyMany U.S.-based organizations work hard to reduce poverty internationally. Not all of them have the same name recognition or notoriety, but they are all engaging in equally important and effective work. From nonprofits to research organizations, these are just some of the lesser known organizations addressing poverty in developing nations.

Lesser Known Organizations Addressing Poverty

  1. Africare
    Africare, one of the largest African-American led organizations with an almost entirely African-American staff, focuses on community-driven development in Africa. Working with the tools of community engagement, local public-private partnerships, locally driven behavior change and capacity building, Africare seeks to improve economic development, nutrition, water and sanitation and women’s and youth empowerment. Since Africare’s founding, it has provided more than $1 billion in assistance to people across Africa.
  2. The Hunger Project
    Operating for 40 years, The Hunger Project develops women-centered, grassroots strategies to help individuals out of poverty and hunger. Working in more than 16,000 communities internationally, The Hunger Project promotes self-reliant, community-led development, and partnerships with local governments to create sustainable change in communities facing poverty. Working in 12 countries and reaching 17 million people, The Hunger Project is creating community-led development for many, representing one of many lesser known organizations addressing poverty.
  3. Trickle Up
    Trickle Up, a U.S.-based nonprofit organization seeks to help people rise out of poverty internationally, focusing on those who are disproportionately affected – refugees, individuals with disabilities, women, indigenous populations and people in rural areas. The organization uses a program called Graduation, which involves a step by step process to lift individuals out of poverty. Recipients are given a small grant to start a business and paired with other local people to create a savings group. From there, individuals are coached and taught skills to build their business, confidence and livelihoods. With 250,000 participants and more than 1 million lives impacted, this nonprofit is generating great change.
  4. The Earth Institute
    Based out of Columbia University in New York City, The Earth Institute is a group of researchers, policy experts, scientists, economists and students all seeking to guide policy towards sustainability worldwide. It works domestically and internationally on a wide variety of topics, including climate, urbanization, water and energy, but also helping individuals out of poverty. By working on sustainable and efficient policy, such as preventing flooding in developing nations, The Earth Institute creates policy that improves the quality of life of individuals worldwide.
  5. Innovations for Poverty Action
    Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) is one of the lesser known organizations addressing poverty through dedicated evaluations of current programs designed to help impoverished populations and providing evidence showing which approaches work and which do not. IPA identified a gap in the data available and created a mission to fill it. It works closely with governments, for-profit companies, nonprofits and civil society to create evidence-based programs to help poor individuals out of poverty. The work is evaluation focused but provides a body of evidence that can be drawn upon for program design and development.
  6. Bread For The World
    Bread For The World is a Christian nonprofit that works in a bipartisan way to urge policymakers to pass policies focused on food security that improve the lives of those living in poverty both domestically and abroad. Working at the policy level, Bread For The World provides individuals with advocacy tools to help them write letters, email or call members of Congress to promote poverty reducing policy. Since its inception in 1974, Bread For The World has successfully funded foreign aid and domestic policy to reduce poverty worldwide.

The field of international development is vast, and with many different organizations trying to address poverty internationally, it can be hard to know where to look to see what is being done. In addition to the many large organizations working internationally, we cannot forget about lesser-known organizations addressing poverty in developing nations.

– Katherine Kirker

Photo: Flickr

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The Boomerang Effect: How Foreign Aid Gives Back

Foreign aid gives backForeign aid is too often misidentified as charity, with the implication of a one-way relationship. Like other myths surrounding aid, such as its depletion of the federal budget, a reality much different than popular belief silently survives. In truth, only one percent of the U.S. federal budget goes toward foreign aid and shrouded in much the same circumstances lies the fact that foreign aid gives back just as much, and more.

Who Gives to Whom?

According to an article by Jason Hickel, Global Financial Integrity (GFI) and the Centre for Applied Research at the Norwegian School of Economics completed a study in which they found that a much larger amount of money travels from poor countries to rich countries, rather than the other way around. As of 2015, cumulative foreign investment in the U.S. totaled more than $3 trillion.

Beyond the quantitative, the proof of return on investment manifests in countries like South Korea, Japan and Germany. All having once depended on U.S. aid in their times of need, these nations now play major roles in the global economy.

How Foreign Aid Gives Back to Developed Nations

Consider the fact that half of U.S. exports now go to developing countries and that developing countries’ economies grow three times faster than our own. The economics speak for themselves—with more new consumers to trade and do business with, more growth opportunities arise both at home and abroad. In Tennessee alone, more than 22 percent of jobs are supported by trade—that’s 830,000 reasons to continue investing in developing nations.

Beyond the wallet, though, foreign aid gives back in ways that cannot be measured. Potential new markets keep the U.S. competitive on the world stage, allowing its reputation and influence to spread. As Bill Gates points out, foreign aid even helps to keep the U.S. safe. By its nature, aid fights poverty, promotes development and largely focuses on foundational areas like healthcare, nutrition and education, which provide for a strong infrastructure.

The ultimate goal of this infrastructure-building rests in the ability to form a middle class, and by extension, find some stability. Countries that achieve this are more capable of preventing global health epidemics and are less likely to go to war. Stabilizing these nations by promoting democracy and human rights and by helping to install strong governance has far-reaching effects.

What Drawbacks Exist for Foreign Aid?

While some would argue that corruption and misuse of aid render the process futile, the results drown out the argument. Programs are in place to fight against this kind of criminality and are finding success. Foreign aid gives back in ways never thought of before now, such as:

  • Stopping diseases before they gain global reach.
  • Promoting U.S. exports.
  • Countering violent extremism.
  • Combating climate change through education.
  • Supporting overseas embassies and new allies.

Foreign aid gives back despite the stigma that claims otherwise. Experts say that cutting the U.S. foreign aid budget would do very little to reduce the federal deficit anyway. If the strongest argument against the use of foreign aid remains money, then it is time to take out the wallet and make a change.

– Daniel Staesser

Photo: Flickr

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Important Investments in Infrastructure by the World Bank

Investments in Infrastructure by the World BankAiming to alleviate global poverty, the World Bank has provided the financial backing for the construction and reconstruction of vital infrastructures, such as roads, dams and electrical grids, to war-torn and developing countries since 1944. In the fiscal year 2017, the World Bank granted $59 billion for projects in developing countries.

There are currently over 2,600 active projects worldwide ranging from financial risk management to roads and railways. Investments in infrastructure by the World Bank toward developing countries start in the billions of U.S. dollars. Here are the top five most expensive pledges for active projects in developing countries.

Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor—II (India)

Active investments in infrastructure by the World Bank in India include the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor. It is an expansion effort that increases the reach and efficiency of freight cargo transportation in India’s northern and eastern regions, from Ludhiana to Dankuni.

The Eastern Freight Corridor, a project originally approved in October 2011, is a series of three projects that aim to double Indian Railways’ carrying capacity. In April 2014, the World Bank approved a $1.1 billion pledge, with a total cost of $1.65 billion, for the second tier of the project. This phase is set to build a 393-km, double-track, electrified, freight-only railway with a 25-ton axle-load at 100km/h. This sector will span between Kanpur and Mughal Sarai.

Uttar Pradesh, the most populous Indian state, stands to benefit from increased access to employment, health and education for its citizens by the de-cluttering of roadways. Once completed in December 2019, the full stretch of railway will be 1,839 km and is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 55 percent.

IN Swachh Bharat Mission Support Operation (India)

In 2015, the World Bank agreed to fund $1.5 billion of a $2.2 billion sanitation project, the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) Support Operation. The project focuses on the construction and promotion of using toilets in rural areas in India, in which 67 percent of Indians live.

The project is a part of a universal sanitation initiative that seeks to end the practice of open defecation by 2019. Ten percent of deaths in India are associated with poor sanitation. India also misses out on six percent of possible GDP due to insufficient sanitation. Further investments in infrastructure by the World Bank will provide $25 million to aid state training programs to encourage usage of toilets in rural areas.

PMGSY Rural Roads Project (India)

The Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) Rural Roads Project was established in 2010 when India’s National Rural Roads Development Agency and the World Bank agreed to a $1.5 billion deal. The project provides all-weather roads, servicing the states Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Meghalaya, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab.

The World Bank’s investment fully funds the PMGSY program for five years and covers civil works expenditures and furnishes a technical assistance program to assist agencies running it. PMGSY Rural completed work in April 2018 on a 7,000 km rural road, which is the longest road assembly in a year since PMGSY began in 2000.

This is the second of multiple investments in infrastructure by the World Bank as a part of the PMGSY project, the first being a $400 million loan in 2004. It connected 9,900 km of rural roads in Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. The greater PMGSY project aims for 375,000 km of roads, linking 178,000 habitations and refurbishing 372,000 km of existing rural roads.

South-West Roads: Western Europe-Western China International Transit Corridor (Carec 1b & 6b) (Kazakhstan)

Investments in infrastructure by the World Bank in Kazakhstan look to improve road management and traffic safety. The South-West Roads Project was approved in 2009 when the World Bank agreed to fund $2.125 billion of the $2.50 billion total cost. The project includes constructing a 1,500-km road connecting China and Western Europe from the Aktobe and Kyzylorda district border to South Kazakhstan.

Road construction provides a local economic boost. The World Bank’s end of the deal employs 30,000 to 35,000 people. The cost of workers, subcontractors and materials boasts $1.6 million in spending power. Four thousand South Kazakhstan workers receive $600 a month, compared to the latest estimates that show the average Kazakhstan citizen earns $525 a month.

Eskom Investment Support Project (South Africa)

The largest, active investment in infrastructure by the World Bank is $3.75 billion, funding the Eskom Investment Support Project. Approved in April 2010, the total $10.75 billion project provides support for Eskom to enhance its energy supply and security.

Much of the funding was allocated for completion of the Medupi Power Station, the fourth-largest coal-fueled power plant. Stirring controversy, the plant is expected to add an annual 25 million metric tons of carbon emissions. Eskom is already reported to contribute to a 40 percent share of South Africa’s greenhouse gas emissions.

Eskom is South Africa’s state-owned primary electricity producer and Africa’s largest facility in electricity production. There is concern about Eskom as a monopoly producer of electricity and, accordingly, a call for more contributors in South Africa’s energy market. The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa is currently pursuing a legal interdict from the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria in an effort to prevent Eskom from signing 27 renewable energy contracts.

As the World Bank continues to strive for its main objectives–decreasing the percentage of people living on less than $1.90 a day and spurring income growth for the bottom 40 percent–these projects, with such immense lending, are promising for the future of some of the world’s most economically vulnerable populations.

– Thomas Benjamin

Photo: Flickr