, , ,

Lifelong Learning and Poverty Alleviation

Lifelong Learning and Poverty
Lifelong learning is the ongoing development of personal, social, civil and employment-related skills, an endeavor continuing throughout life. The acquisition of learning past one’s initial education is becoming more important in finding new opportunities. High-skill jobs are becoming more prevalent in many parts of the world, creating a larger demand for skilled workers. For this reason, lifelong learning can be a powerful tool in addressing poverty across nations. By 2030, 600 million people will be living in poverty, according to the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD). The United Nations acknowledges the role lifelong learning can play in dwindling this statistic through its inclusion of lifelong learning in the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). To that end, here are three ways that lifelong learning can address poverty.

3 Ways Lifelong Learning Addresses Poverty

  1. Financial Literacy: Financial literacy is the ability to apply various skills to effectively manage one’s finances. It can be a strong tool against poverty as families with this knowledge can take advantage of helpful tax credits and public programs. Unfortunately, this is a skill that seems to be lacking even in developed nations. Through a survey, the OECD found that only 52.5% of respondents across 12 member nations had sufficient financial knowledge. Financial literacy has only become more important as people have more choices regarding retirement planning, investment strategies and tax programs. Focusing on initiatives that support the acquisition of these skills for all ages can be an effective strategy to address this issue. A 2007 study by Peng et al shows that personal finance lessons enhanced rates of savings and investment knowledge “among high school and college students.” Financial literacy classes with a focus on lifelong learning and poverty relief strategies could help reduce the economic pressure many families face.
  2. Health Literacy: Health literacy is “the ability to process and understand basic information needed to make appropriate health decisions.” People with poor health literacy skills are more likely to have poor physical health in general. In addition, these people “receive less preventative care,” struggle to manage chronic illnesses and have higher rates of hospitalization. People who do not manage their health are more likely to require costly medical services in the future for avoidable ailments. Maintaining one’s health is important to be able to participate in the labor market. Those living in poverty can rarely afford to miss out on employment. Knowledge on health and self-care must be accessible among people of all ages and literacy skills are a major factor in accessing these competencies. Children who are born to literate mothers are 50% more likely to live beyond the age of five than children of women who are illiterate. A study in Indonesia revealed a 19% vaccination rate among the children of uneducated mothers in comparison to 68% among mothers with at least secondary level education. It is clear that health literacy is crucial in maintaining the health of the next generation.
  3. Income: Educational attainment closely links to income. Those with more education are likely to earn more than those with less education. Frequently, many find that their jobs do not provide the level of compensation necessary to meet their needs and those of their families. To find better employment opportunities, it is important to continually develop one’s skills and education. In fact, just one more year of education has the power to increase income by 10%, according to World Bank data. Despite this, many of those who would benefit the most from lifelong learning find it difficult to access these opportunities. A 2007 survey in Kenya revealed that 30% of individuals did not participate in literacy programs due to a lack of learning centers nearby. Programs promoting income growth must integrate lifelong learning and poverty relief solutions in an appealing and available manner to better support marginalized groups.

Looking Ahead

Lifelong learning opportunities can influence many areas of one’s life. In promoting education, it is important to remember that people can develop new skills at all stages of life regardless of age. Programs focusing on lifelong learning and poverty show promise in improving conditions for many global citizens.

– Gonzalo Rodriguez
Photo: Flickr

, , , , , ,

GoodDollar Promotes Universal Basic Income

GoodDollar
GoodDollar is both the name of an Israeli cryptocurrency and a not-for-profit company launched in 2020. Cryptocurrency is an immaterial system of money that has secure coding. Additionally, people can exchange it virtually and governments do not control it. Yoni Assia is the mind behind the GoodDollar project and coin (G$), the virtual currency that intends to democratize the economy by working to promote universal basic income and reduce inequality. Universal basic income (UBI) is “a periodic cash allowance given to all citizens… to provide them with a standard of living above the poverty line.” Here is some information about how GoodDollar promotes universal basic income (UBI).

GoodDollar’s Mission

According to Forbes, 80% of the population owns only 6% of the world’s wealth, while the remaining 20% owns the rest. Against this unfair backdrop, GoodDollar is a potential game-changer through how it promotes universal basic income.

Yoni Assia believes that “too many underprivileged people are locked out of opportunities that could take them out of poverty, including access to capital markets and digital work opportunities. Therefore, the GoodDollar project aims to alleviate that by fostering financial inclusion and empowerment around the world.” The creator of GoodDollar is also the founder of eToro, a social trading company and platform, which is responsible for investing $1 million in the new cryptocurrency.

How GoodDollar Works

GoodDollar can benefit anyone who signs up and creates an account (a wallet). For that, people need to record a short video to ensure that they are real humans, not bots, and they can complete the entire sign-up process in less than 5 minutes. There are two groups of users, claimers and supporters. Claimers are people who benefit from free digital cash (G$) without the need to invest any amount, being allowed to claim it every day and use it to pay for goods, services and exchange it with friends. Up to now, 255,000 claimants have received G$180 million, totaling more than $20,000. Supporters are both companies or regular people that believe in the UBI cause and fund a mechanism that generates interest (the DeFi — decentralized finance, protocol).

Interest generates in a blockchain, a kind of extremely safe digital information record system, and becomes the reserve of G$ coins to that undergoes distribution among claimers and supporters. The supporters benefit not only from the interest generated by their initial staked amount, but also the interest generated on top of the previous interest rate. Currently, only small businesses accept G$ coins, and they are not very valuable. However, as more people join the GoodDollar movement, its value will rise.

Hope for GoodDollar’s Growth

“Inequality plagues the world. Let’s solve for it in our future,” is a statement on GoodDollar’s website. The company is still in its early stages, but getting ready to release version 2.0 of the GoodDollar protocol. In the first year of the second version, it plans to distribute around $47,000 worth of G$. AI Multiple’s review on GoodDollar points out that, to grow and make a real difference in its users’ lives, GoodDollar needs to have more supporters and a G$ reserve that grows “faster than the number of claimers.”

The more people use this cryptocurrency, the more valuable it will become. If “a public figure sheds a light on it via their social media platforms or accepts it as a payment method for a business product or service, that could boost its popularity.”

A Promising Future

The Forbes article discusses how basic income distribution could help to reduce the financial inequality that the pandemic exacerbated, and the GoodDollar team has been working hard to make it a reality someday. While the future of the project depends on a combination of factors, blockchain solutions like GoodDollar are undeniably promising and revolutionary economic models.

Tal Oron, GoodDollar project director, hopes that within a few years, “GoodDollar [will distribute] $2 a day per person, and, together, as a global community, without government support, raise hundreds of millions of people above the poverty line.” The way that GoodDollar promotes universal basic income will only benefit people globally.

– Iasmine Oliveira
Photo: Flickr

, , , , , , ,

Microfinancing Partners in Africa Shows Success

Microfinancing Partners in Africa
Microfinancing Partners in Africa is a nonprofit that provides microfinance opportunities to people in Sub-Saharan Africa. Its current programs vary in nature. Some examples include giving loans to subsistence farmers to purchase a cow, providing water filtration systems and educating students on microfinance.

Microfinance is an innovative approach to growing the economies of impoverished nations by giving its citizens access to small loans, usually under $200. It is a way for those in poverty to develop a stable income because they do not have access to traditional loans.

Historically, companies have used high-interest rates to take advantage of impoverished people seeking loans. However, agencies like Microfinancing Partners in Africa counter that practice. It offers options that often require recipients to take financial literacy courses and give them loans without requiring collateral. In this way, Microfinancing Partners in Africa works to actively combat poverty within Sub-Saharan Africa. Here are some of its success stories:

Jane Nalwadda

Jane Nalwadda is a woman from Uganda born with an obstetric fistula. Her condition left her unable to have a child with her husband who consequently left her after three years of marriage. The abandonment left Nalwadda without a reliable source of income. She fell into utter despair until a friend recommended the Kitovu hospital to her. There she would be eligible for a free fistula repair surgery program. Here is where Microfinancing Partners in Africa stepped in.

The nonprofit established the microfinance program The Piglet Project. The program helps women make money post-fistula repair by helping them raise and breed pigs, eventually creating a sustainable business. Jane was able to raise $29 with her first litter of pigs, which enabled her to build a better pen. She now has a steady means of making a living and can build a promising future.

Bujugo Village

Bujugo is a tiny village in Tunisia that has clean water accessibility problems. The village received seven water filters from Microfinancing Partners in Africa in 2019. Villagers then received training to use the filters and developed a time table to maximize the amount of village usage. Now, 49 families receive clean drinking water because of this microfinancing program.

Florence Mbaziira and Joseph Mbaziira

Florence and Joseph Mbaziira are an older couple from Uganda who works on a farm with mostly unproductive land. They tirelessly worked on their farm to support themselves and their four grandchildren. By 2014, the family was still living off a small income that came from selling the produce that they grew. Afterward, they turned to the Cow Project.

Microfinancing Partners in Africa created the Cow Project to support farmers through a “living loan.” The Mbaziiras took full advantage of the program and bought a cow for their land. Microfinancing Partners in Africa trained them to use the cow’s manure to increase crop yields. The couple now grows coffee, bananas and seasonal foods. Thanks to microfinancing, the Mbaziiras are able to support their family through their own farming business.

Saida Juma

Saida Juma is a divorced woman with two children living in Tanzania. Previously, she worked as a maid for $5 a month. However, her passions were elsewhere. She had the desire to start selling fish. Juma worked with Microfinancing Partners in Africa to obtain a microloan of $50. With the money, she was able to go into business for a local fisherman by selling fish. Her earnings are enough to support her children as well as send them to school. Her goal is for her children to be well-educated and take over her business when she retires. She also plans to take out another $100 loan soon to buy a fridge to store unsold fish.

All of these people were struggling to survive. Microfinancing Partners in Africa’s varied programs were able to help inspire and empower them to gain a livable income. Microfinancing Partners in Africa helped increase the quality of life for these people and many others, proving that microfinancing is an effective way of fighting poverty.

– Olivia Welsh
Photo: Flickr

, , ,

3 Countries Where Mobile Banking Fostered Financial Inclusion

Mobile BankingMobile banking is a clear step toward financial literacy and freedom. It allows users to access and manage accounts without needing physical access to a bank. It is a huge asset and accepted norm in countries like the United States, where it is used by over three-quarters of the population. By 2021, there will be an estimated 7 billion mobile banking users. But in countries where much of the population doesn’t have access to financial institutions, mobile banks presents an option that allows users to gain the financial freedom they wouldn’t otherwise have. Traditionally, without access to banks, there is no access to bank accounts. This makes it not only difficult to save and protect money but also nearly impossible to access loans. Below are three countries where going mobile improves financial inclusion.

Kenya

In 2011, around 80% of the Kenyan population didn’t have a bank account. This was revolutionized by the introduction of mobile banking, resulting in an incredible increase in financial accounts up to 75% in 2014. The percentage of Kenyan’s with a mobile account has since jumped to around 80% in 2019, with that number still growing. Though mobile banking is taking hold in many African countries, Kenya leads the charge of mobile adaption. This success is evident through the country’s recent economic growth, averaging 5.7% in 2019, one of the fastest-growing economies in Sub-Saharan Africa. Mobile banking has been succeeded so rapidly and fruitfully in Kenya due to its incredibly low cost and user ease. After the infrastructure is created, all that’s needed is an old flip phone and a banking SIM card. These products are relatively easy and inexpensive to get, even in countries with fewer resources. Mobile banking has allowed Kenyan’s to save money, send and receive it with ease, apply for loans, and has led to financial inclusion. Kenya acts as a clear leader in developmental growth through mobile banking.

India

In 2017, India had the second largest unbanked population, second only to China, with 190 million of its citizens left without access. In the same year, around 48% of India’s banks were inactive, only adding to the inaccessibility. Despite such a large number of citizens left without a bank account, over 50% of these individuals do have a mobile phone. With the proper infrastructure, mobile banking could revolutionize the way Indians send, receive and save their money. For low-income populations in India, most financial transactions occur in cash, a method that is not conducive to economic growth for poor families. With more universal access to banking, low-income populations could receive their income through direct deposit and pay their bills directly from their account, using their phone. This system promotes saving and also allows tracking of financial habits, producing an easier system for low-income individuals to amass credit and become eligible for loans. As the internet becomes increasingly accessible in India, mobile banking is expected to rise, and with it, financial inclusion.

Indonesia

In opposition to the other nations discussed, Indonesia has a much lower prevalence of mobile banking, but just as it has in Kenya and India, going mobile could revolutionize financial inclusion in Indonesia. Only about 20% of Indonesian’s currently have a bank account, but almost 40% of the population have mobile subscriptions, suggesting mobile banking has huge potential in the country. In 2020, an unexpected source has begun to jumpstart the exponential growth of mobile banking in Indonesia. In the wake of COVID-19, many physical banks are closed, and even those who previously had access are unable to interact with their finances. One bank, namely Bank Rayat Indonesia has even seen a 10% month to month increase in mobile banking, an unprecedented growth. Indonesia presents as a nearly perfect candidate for a “mobile revolution” given its high mobile penetration, low banking rate, and the recent inability of traditional banks to function. Despite the many challenges and tragedies COVID-19 has caused, it could be the driving force for a mobile revolution in Indonesia

— Jazmin Johnson

Photo: Flickr

, , , ,

Financial Literacy in Costa Rica to Reduce Poverty

Financial Literacy in Costa Rica to Reduce Poverty
Costa Rica is a country in Central America with a population of roughly 5 million. Although Costa Rica is the Central American country with the lowest poverty rate, that does not mean there is no cause for concern. The poverty rate in Costa Rica was 21% as of April 2020 and is only anticipated to worsen in the coming year due to the devastating economic impacts of COVID-19. Because of the global economic slowdown, inequality in Costa Rica can exacerbate as industries contract and unemployment rises.

Financial Literacy and Poverty

In the face of this global economic catastrophe, it is vital to educate the population on financial matters to prevent higher poverty rates. Personal financial literacy is an effective and fundamental tool used to lower national poverty rates. It also helps individuals better manage their finances and business dealings to maximize fiscal stability and growth.

Financial literacy programs have also assisted women in rising out of poverty. Women have a systemic relegation to domestic duties and patriarchal repression in many developing nations. As a result, they are a demographic that have historically been the most vulnerable to global poverty. Financial literacy programs teach women how to manage their own money in order to manage their own businesses. Women can also become more financially independent as opposed to being indebted to others in their family or industry.

Costa Rica’s Position

Costa Rica and Latin America as a region is considered one of the most unequal regions in the world according to the United Nations. One of the most effective strategies to reduce wealth inequality is by implementing education strategies that inhibit intergenerational wealth retention within families. Keeping money in the family and investing in future generations helps children escape the cycle of poverty. It also decreases their likelihood of experiencing marginalization and oppression in society, particularly among women. These tactics justify the use of financial education and programs about financial literacy in Costa Rica.

Solutions

One prominent organization focusing on education regarding financial literacy in Costa Rica is Coopenae. It began as a cooperative of educators in 1966 to give aid to schools and teachers. Now, Coopenae has grown into one of the country’s leading financial institutions to focus on service and education.

Individuals in Costa Rica have had very little education in financial instruments such as mutual funds, pensions and various other commonplace financial strategies. The ability of Costa Ricans to make better financial decisions is a simple matter of informing individuals about how they can access these instruments. Costa Ricans can then begin on the path out of poverty towards financial independence and prosperity. Coopenae plans to assist upwards of 12,000 people within the next two years. It aims at people from primarily low-income and disadvantaged communities.

 

Overall, financial literacy and education programs are extremely effective at reducing poverty rates. They are also effective at giving citizens the ability to properly manage their finances. They also open up the opportunity to start businesses or save for retirement. Therefore, financial literacy in Costa Rica is a smart and effective strategy to diminish poverty and foster a culture of financial responsibility and security.

 

– Ian Hawthorne

Photo: Enchanting Costa Rica