How the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation Reduces Poverty

Children account for nearly half of the world’s poor and arguably suffer the most because of it. Limited access to education, drinking water, food and opportunity are all symptoms of poverty that make it difficult for impoverished children to thrive. Unfortunately, only one-third of the world’s poorest children are covered by social protection from their governments. Therefore, it is essential for nongovernmental organizations and charities to help provide aid, investment and infrastructure that can help lift these children out of poverty. Several organizations have already helped uplift over one billion people out of poverty, many of these being children, in the last 20 years; one of these organizations is the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF).

What Is the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation?

The Children’s Investment Fund Foundation is one of the largest charitable organizations in the world and incorporates a multi-faceted investment strategy to improve the environments in which impoverished children live. The Foundation diversifies its $4.7 billion worth of assets into investments to help improve climate, education, access to food and child survival in developing countries. CIFF was founded in 2002 by Jamie Cooper-Hohn and hedge fund manager Sir Chris Hohn and has grown from its headquarters in London to include offices in New Delhi India and Nairobi Kenya.

How Does CIFF Reduce Poverty?

As the fund has expanded its operations, it has provided lifesaving and poverty-reducing initiatives for poor children in developing countries. In 2013, CIFF pledged to donate $787 million over seven years to tackle global malnutrition. This was part of a total pledge of $4.1 billion toward reducing malnutrition announced at the Nutrition for Growth summit in London. A study by the Lancet medical journal found that malnutrition contributes to 3.1 million under-five child deaths yearly or 45 percent of all under-five deaths. Reducing malnutrition saves lives, improves health and accelerates development in countries by providing a future for millions of children.

The fund has coupled this tremendous effort, with more targeted approaches toward various crises that have devastated impoverished children in affected countries. In 2014, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation gave $120 million to international health programs, increasing the number of children receiving antiretroviral therapy, funding deworming initiatives and combating the Ebola crisis in West Africa. These programs have helped save millions of lives.

Roundworms, hookworms and whipworms are common in tropical areas and specifically affect children in low-income areas who lack adequate access to sanitation. Worms contribute to the malnutrition of children in developing nations that kill millions each year. The $50 million donation to national deworming programs by CIFF will help establish the necessary healthcare and sanitation infrastructure that can help protect these vulnerable children. Furthermore, CIFF’s $50 million contribution to increasing access to antiretroviral therapy will help save the lives of the over 120,000 impoverished children who die from AIDS each year while its $20 million towards the Ebola outbreak in West Africa helped end the crisis.

CIFF continues to expand access to life-saving healthcare for poor children in developing nations. Recently, it has bolstered these efforts by supporting initiatives to protect children in developing nations from exploitation that bars them from access to an education that could lift them out of poverty. An estimated 25 percent of people trapped in slavery are children. CIFF has already pledged $18.3 million to protect children worldwide. This funding is going toward strengthing law enforcement systems, ensuring swift prosecutions of offenders, stopping the demand for products of child labor and campaigning to instill change.

These programs funded by the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation reduce poverty by freeing impoverished children from the bounds that keep them from rising out of poverty. Good health, human rights and access to education are now within reach for millions of children because of the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation.

– Anand Tayal
Photo: Flickr

How Eating Less Meat Can Reduce Poverty

Many scientists have agreed that Earth’s maximum carrying capacity is between 9 and 10 billion people. The world is rapidly approaching this limit; the global population is expected to reach 9 billion by 2050.

Poverty, water and food scarcity and environmental destruction are already major issues which an increase of nearly 2.5 billion people will severely exacerbate. How can the world cope with these crises? One solution is eating fewer animal products.

Eating less meat can reduce poverty and hunger, and benefit the environment. There are economic and health benefits to plant-based diets. The average American consumes 222.2 pounds of red meat and poultry a year; this is roughly double the amount the government recommends.

The amount of eggs and dairy being consumed is also much higher than recommended. Although becoming vegan or vegetarian are the most effective options, even lowering consumption to the recommended guidelines could have a huge impact.

The Negative Effects of Animal Agriculture

Agricultural production uses 38 percent of Earth’s land, or about 3.5 billion acres; nearly 80 percent of this is used for animal agriculture. These 3.5 billion acres can produce enough food for 10 billion vegetarians, but only 2.5 billion Americans who eat meat, as more than half of the world’s harvest is used to feed animals instead of people.

Though 800 million people do not have enough food, livestock are fed “more than 60 percent of [the world’s] corn and barley, and over 97 percent of [its] soymeal.”

Animal production is also incredibly inefficient. Livestock requires large amounts of land, food, water and energy to produce, yet “take more energy and protein from their feed than they return in form of food for people.” Ten pounds of grain are required to produce one pound of meat; in comparison, land used to grow rice can support 19 times more people than land used to produce eggs.

Though some agricultural land is too arid for plant agriculture, much of it could be used to grow plant-based foods for people instead of for animals. Even if only 10-20 percent of the land currently used for animal agriculture was converted to crop production for humans, this would more than make-up for the loss of meat.

Agriculture also uses great amounts of water — accounting for an astonishing 70 percent of global freshwater consumption — and livestock production accounts for the vast majority. According to the International Water Management Institute, 6000 liters of water is required to produce one kilogram of chicken, more than double the amount of water needed to produce one kilogram of cereals.

Benefits of Plant-Based Diets

Reducing animal product consumption worldwide could greatly reduce the amount of water used, and alleviate the ever-increasing water crisis that various countries face.

In addition, reducing meat consumption could improve the economy. If everyone became vegan, the world would save $1.6 billion by 2050. Industrial agriculture exacerbates poverty in developing nations as it is controlled by large corporations — such big organizations drive local farmers out of business.

In fact, local farmers are either forced to become contract growers for large corporations or move to cities, where they often must resort to working in sweatshops. Either path puts them at great risk of exploitation.

Overcrowding in the cities also drives down wages and leads to a rise in poverty and homelessness. A shift to local, more plant-driven production is more sustainable for local farms and can act to reduce poverty.

The Impact of How Eating Less Meat Can Reduce Poverty

Consuming fewer animal products could reduce world hunger and poverty. The United Nations World Food Council estimates that transferring 10-15 percent of cereals fed to livestock to humans is enough to raise the world’s food supply to feed the current population.

In addition, the International Food Policy Research Institute estimates that reducing the amount of meat consumed by 50 percent in high-income countries could result in 3.6 million fewer malnourished children in developing countries.

Eating less meat can reduce poverty and hunger. This is a choice that every individual can make, a choice that — particularly for middle and upper-class people in developed nations — isn’t too difficult. More stores are starting to carry a variety of plant-based products, many of which are less expensive than meat and dairy.

Small Steps for Great Gains

Scientific research and many doctors also agree that plant-based diets are oftentimes more healthful and nutritious than diets heavy in meat and dairy. Though becoming vegan or vegetarian may not be an option for everyone, reducing the number of animal products you consume could have amazing benefits for impoverished communities, for the environment and for the economy.

– Laura Turner
Photo: Flickr

An Inside Look at Child Poverty Around the World

Half of the world’s children live in poverty and face the constant risk of conflict, discrimination and abuse. Here are five countries with the highest levels of child poverty around the world and the current state of these countries.

Five Countries With the Highest Levels of Child Poverty

1. Romania – Roughly half of Romania’s children are at risk of poverty or social exclusion. Romania’s child poverty rate increased from 50 to 51 percent after Romania entered the European Union. Child labor in Romania is at one percent; although this is encouraging, it is still an issue in the case of child development. Along with a poor economy, healthcare in Romania is minimal for children. It is estimated that 12 percent of children in Romania die before the age of five.
2. Israel – The child poverty rate in Israel showed a decrease from 2006 to 2015, but from 2015 to 2016 there was a slight rise in the poverty levels from 30 percent to 31.2 percent. The poverty levels for ultra-Orthodox families and single-parent families in Israel increased in 2016. One out of three children in Israel live in poor conditions and suffer from malnutrition. One cause to the poor state of children in Israel is due to the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. This conflict has injured and killed many children in Israel, and Israeli school buses have been the target of many attacks.
3. Turkey – 17 percent of Turkey’s population lives in poverty, and the gap between rich and poor is becoming wider and wider. Babies born in Turkey are suffering as soon as they are born; 11 percent of babies are born with dietary deficiencies and 20 percent of children die before the age of five. Education in Turkey is progressing, but five percent of children still do not attend school. The majority of those children are girls.
4. Bulgaria – Children under the age of 18 in Bulgaria have reached the highest risk of poverty and social exclusion. It is estimated that 52 percent of these children are at risk. Disabled people, ethnic minority groups and children are some of the most vulnerable groups in Bulgaria and are ill-equipped to be deprived of their basic rights of clean water, food and security.
5. Mexico – The majority of the poor in Mexico are children. It is estimated that 53.8 percent of children in Mexico live in poverty. In addition, 14 percent of children in Mexico have suffered from slow development and are malnourished. Many of the problems regarding child poverty in Mexico can be linked to the lack of trust in the government and decreases in income; this often prohibits children from attending school, forcing them instead into the workforce to help provide for their family.

There are many ways to help the millions of children living in poverty around the world. Here are five ways that one person can change the future of child poverty.

Five Ways to Make an Impact on Child Poverty

1. Contact your representatives in Congress – One of the easiest ways to make a difference is by simply sending an email or making a quick phone call to support bills that can greatly affect the lives of those suffering in extreme poverty. If support is shown for a bill, members of Congress are more likely to push the bill forward.
2. Support The Hunger Project – The Hunger Project is a non-governmental organization that is fighting to end global hunger. The Hunger Project builds confidence in those who are suffering from social suppression and hunger and helps them find a voice to take charge of their own development. As an example, an outcome evaluation in Ghana and Malawi showed significant improvements in gender equality after The Hunger Project stepped in to help.
3. Promote proper water quality – Women and girls spend roughly six hours a day going out and collecting water. This keeps young girls from educational opportunities and emphasizes the limited access to clean water for children in developing countries. Access to clean water can unlock significant potential for millions of children. Reduced time spent collecting water has shown an increase in school attendance for children.
4. Empower Women – By empowering women, closing gender gaps and eliminating gender discrimination, the wellbeing and progress of children will increase. When girls are discriminated against, they are less likely to attend school. There is a correlation between educated women and child survival and development; a lack of proper education decreases the child survival rate. One study suggested that if men and women had the same influence in decision-making, it could allow 13.4 million fewer children in South Asia to be undernourished.
5. Sponsor a child – Sponsoring a child can provide the child with opportunities for success that they might never have. It also shows the child that there is someone who cares enough to encourage them and provide them with the basic necessities. When children know that they are supported, it pushes them to try their hardest and reach their full potential.

Children are the future, and each person around the world has the responsibility to help the future grow. It is important to be aware of child poverty around the world and take steps to reduce it.

– Victoria Fowler
Photo: Flickr

How an Individual’s Impact on Poverty Reduction Can Make a Difference

The Borgen Project was started with one person who wanted to make a difference. Clint Borgen started his endeavor to create The Borgen Project after seeing the poverty and conflict during the genocide in Kosovo. When he returned, he moved to Alaska to join a fishing expedition in order to make money to start his organization. The Borgen Project started with one person’s bold ideas and passionate heart setting to eradicate global poverty. There are many other ambitious individuals, like Clint Borgen, that have started organizations focusing on reducing poverty. The following organizations show how an individual’s impact on poverty reduction can generate a movement leading to organizations that work toward a world with less poverty.

1. ONE is an international organization that focuses on action and campaigning to end extreme poverty and prevent diseases. The co-founders for ONE are Bono, the lead singer of U2 and Bobby Shriver, son of the founder of The Peace Corps. These two passionate men came together to start ONE, an international campaign and advocacy organization of more than nine million people around the world. This organization prioritizes social justice and equality in the world. ONE utilizes its advocacy power to encourage government programs to make lives better around the world. It is funded almost entirely through foundations and corporations.
2. Concern Worldwide has focused on working with the world’s most vulnerable people for 50 years. This organization was founded by John and Kay O’Loughlin-Kennedy in response to the famine that occurred when the province of Biafra tried to secede from Nigeria. In 1968, this organization, then called Africa Concern, focused in Africa sending supplies to the people affected in Biafra. In 1970, Africa Concern turned into Concern Worldwide with volunteers encouraged to respond to natural disasters causing poverty in other communities as well. Today, Concern Worldwide focuses on emergencies, health, nutrition, education and livelihoods to reduce poverty. This organization operates on donations and utilizes 90 percent of its funds for relief and development.
3. Trickle Up envisions a world where no one lives in extreme poverty or vulnerability. In 1979, Mildred Robbins Leet founded this organization with the goal to help people out of poverty. The group’s work aims to help women, people with disabilities, refugees and other economically and socially excluded people. Its goal is to continue lifting millions of people out of extreme poverty and to eradicate extreme poverty by 2030. Instead of giving individuals money, Trickle Up provides people with seed capital grants, skills training and the support to create small businesses in order to help individuals reach economic self-sufficiency. Trickle Up’s approach starts with stabilizing one’s family, planning and building a livelihood, connecting and saving in groups, investing and growing businesses and finding an individual voice to advocate when people need to speak up in their communities. This organization tracks its individual impact on poverty reduction by focusing on the changes people experience in their quality of life. They keep track of data on how the organization helps others combat hunger, build livelihoods, gain access to savings and credit and empower individuals for social involvement.

These organizations, founded by only one or two people, represent how an individual’s impact on poverty reduction by ordinary people can generate change in the world. Clint Borgen, Bono, Bobby Shriver, John and Kay O’Loughlin-Kennedy and Mildred Robbins Leet exemplify the possibility of how one person can make a huge impact. These individuals are a testament to grassroots movements and why each person should feel empowered to make a difference.

– Jenna Walmer
Photo: Flickr

10 Facts About Poverty in Laos That Everyone Should Know

Laos, officially known as the Lao People’s Democratic, is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. Ranked as one of the most corrupt countries in the world by Transparency International, Laos also suffers from major poverty. To get a better understanding of the daily struggle in Laos, below are 10 facts about poverty in Laos.

10 Facts About Poverty in Laos

1. According to Vision Launch Discover, 90 percent of Lao people lived off of $1 a day in the 1990s; now, this number is about $1.25. The other 10 percent live in Vientiane, the capital and largest city of Laos. Vientiane draws in the most wealth as the economic center of Laos.
2. Laos is the most bombed country in history because of World War II. From 1964 to 1973, the U.S. dropped more than 2 million tons of ordnance over Laos during 580,000 bomb missions. Fifty people a year are killed from unexploded bombs left over from the war. These bombs scattered around the country are usually mistaken for toys and get tossed around before exploding; thus 40 percent of bomb deaths are children. Since 80 percent of people depend on their land to eat and live, people in Laos have no choice but to risk their lives working in fields covered in unexploded bombs.
3. Forty-four percent, or 363,000, of Lao children under 5 years old are affected by stunting, a highly common condition in Laos. Stunting is usually caused by maternal undernutrition before and during pregnancy.
4. More than 60 percent of children are malnourished and anemic. These conditions become potentially fatal due to the inadequate nutrition and lack of access to healthcare providers.
5. Although improving, 23.2 percent or about 1.4 million Laos people are still living at or below the poverty line. Still, this is a major improvement from the 33.5 percent of the past.
6. Agriculture is a key pillar in life in Laos, accounting for 80 percent of employment. The most important and produced crops are rice, vegetables, beans, sugarcane, starchy roots and tobacco.
7. Education is scarce; therefore, people are forced to work in agriculture since there is little to no access to established schools and workplaces. According to United Nations Lao PDR, 70 percent of employed people work in agriculture and over a third of them don’t make enough to live sufficiently.
8. Women receive less schooling but work longer hours than men; however, 70 percent of the illiterate population are women. According to UNESCO, more than 4,000 villages lack access to education.
9. Two-thirds of people have a short supply of food and living essentials. During May and October of 2010, Laos faced what community leaders called the worst drought in living memory after Typhoon Ketsana in late 2009. This drought left 85,000 people affected with no seeds to harvest and no place to live. While poor climate is not unusual in Laos, this puts more burden onto the people that depend on their land to survive.
10. For more than 20 years, the United States has donated more than $100 million to support UXO programs. This money is intended to clean up unexploded ordinances and give victims access to rehabilitation centers. Also, in February 2016, the United States and Laos signed to a Trade and Investment Framework Agreement, which will allow more opportunities and investments between the two nations.

Hardship and Progress

These top 10 facts about poverty in Laos illustrate the struggles and hardships that Laos people face daily. However, despite being one of the poorest countries in Southeast Asia and the entire world, about half a million of Laos people have been lifted out of poverty thus far.

Fortunately, the United States and Laos continue to rebuild a relationship with each other with a goal of saving lives and rebuilding a better country for the Laos people.

– Kristen Uedoi
Photo: Flickr