Archive for category: Global Poverty

Key articles and information on global poverty.

8 Facts about Child Labor in Bangladesh

Facts about Child Labor in Bangladesh
Bangladesh is a small country in South Asia with a rapidly growing export-based economy including textiles, electronics, leather and jute. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world with approximately 168 million people and is the 39th richest country with an estimated GDP of $274 billion in 2018. Child laborers, however, highly support its flourishing economy. The following eight facts about child labor in Bangladesh further examine this human rights violation, and how the country is addressing the issue today.

8 Facts About Child Labor in Bangladesh

  1. Currently, 4.3 percent of children (between the ages of 5 and 14) in Bangladesh engage in exploitative work to support their families. Statistics determine that not all Bangladeshi children attend school. Lack of education is frequently a barrier to higher-paying jobs. Thus, intergenerational poverty is even more likely, perpetuating this cycle of exploitative labor. This phenomenon is not unique to Bangladesh; international coalitions dedicated to reducing child labor have pushed poverty reduction initiatives on local governments wherein this is common practice. These strategies include the creation and enforcement of minimum wage laws, mandatory schooling laws and stricter regulations on child labor itself.
  2. Eighty-three percent of child laborers work in rural areas. Since resources and jobs are more readily available in the city, children may seek employment in urban areas for low wages.
  3. Children are especially vulnerable to exploitation and therefore receive minimal compensation for their work. Research by the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) revealed that child laborers worked an average of 64 hours a week. Furthermore, these children earn less than $2 per day.
  4. There are regulations on child labor in Bangladesh. The Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics informs the existing legislature which defines child laborers as those working between the ages of 5 and 14. In 2006, the Bangladeshi government outlawed work by children under the age of 14. Despite this, the number of child laborers has continued to rise in the past decade, given that most children work at small local businesses, factories or homes. The National Child Labor Survey reported that there were 1.3 million child laborers in Bangladesh. The International Labor Organization (ILO) estimates that approximately 5 million children are full-time workers.
  5. The Bangladeshi government established its Child Labor National Action plan in 2012, designed to eradicate child labor by 2016. Bangladesh has since extended the plan to 2021, as part of the 2010 National Child Labor Elimination Policy. This policy outlines the government initiatives to eliminate child labor by strengthening the education system, raising awareness, funding research and prioritizing public health and nutrition. The policy also outlines plans to remove children from dangerous workplaces. Lack of governmental oversight of hazardous working environments also poses a great risk to child laborers oftentimes exposed to toxic chemicals and relied upon to operate heavy machinery. While establishing legal precedents for safe work environments is important, implementing punitive legislature holding factory owners accountable is also a promising solution to reducing child labor in Bangladesh.
  6. Since 2002, the Bangladeshi government has offered stipends to children in primary school. The subsidizing of school costs alleviates the financial burden of education on poor families, providing additional incentive for their children to stay in school rather than work. As of 2013, 7.8 million children receive stipends worth about $1. The government has also implemented the Female Secondary Stipend Program, partially funded by the World Bank to provide stipends for 1.5 million girls nationwide. Girls attending school in rural areas are also eligible for free tuition and textbooks.
  7. Bangladesh also has the fourth-highest rate of child marriage in the world. While families rely on their children to work, many encourage their young daughters to marry due to being unable to support them. Reducing poverty is a promising start for addressing gender discrimination.
  8. Eliminating underage prostitution, another common form of child labor should also be a governmental priority in Bangladesh. Young girls are vulnerable to trafficking which primarily takes place in “brothel villages” populated by 700-1,000 other women. As of 2000, prostitution has been legal in Bangladesh, but with no extended protections for underaged girls. Estimates determine that there are 100,000 women selling sex within the country.

These eight facts about child labor in Bangladesh highlight the depth of this problem and reinforces the immediate attention that it deserves. Child labor is not a singular isolated issue, however, but a manifestation of sociopolitical shortcomings. In fact, child labor is a derivative of poverty. Reevaluating economic policies to enrich individuals and strengthen families is where the world has to start.

– Jordan Powell
Photo: Flickr

, , ,

Millie Bobby Brown and UNICEF Advocate for Children

Brown and UNICEF

On World Children’s Day in 2018, “Stranger Things” actress Millie Bobby Brown was named a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, making her the youngest to hold the title at 14 years old. UNICEF, which stands for United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund, is a nonprofit organization that has sought to provide aid for underprivileged children and protect their rights across 190 countries and territories since 1946. Brown’s role with UNICEF as an ambassador is to use her global platform to raise awareness of issues that affect youth around the world, such as lack of education, violence, poverty and bullying.

Children Taking Over for UNICEF

Before being named ambassador in 2018, Brown and UNICEF partnered in 2016 when the actress co-hosted the organization’s 70th anniversary event at the United Nations headquarters. The anniversary celebration was deemed a “children’s takeover” because it was hosted by Brown and other young celebrities who have been involved with UNICEF as well as young people who have directly benefited from the organization’s efforts. While co-hosting the event as a representative for the future of UNICEF, Brown interviewed soccer star David Beckham about his philanthropic efforts with UNICEF in his 11 years as an ambassador.

Millie Bobby Brown in Denmark

In Jan. 2019, Brown and UNICEF travelled together for the first time when the actress went to
visit the global supply headquarters in Copenhagen, Denmark. There, she assisted in assembling
early childhood development kits, which offer children in disastrous and contentious areas and living conditions a way to play and learn. The kits include art supplies, puzzles, games, books and puppets, and are given to caregivers helping in these areas. The kits are designed to be utilized by up to 50 children who are experiencing trauma and stress, and assist in creating a safe learning environment for them.

Brown also toured UNICEF’s supply and kit packing warehouse, the largest humanitarian warehouse in the world. Hundreds of necessities such as clothing and school supplies are sent from the warehouse every day to children and families in need around the world. In 2017 alone, $3.46 billion worth of supplies were sent to 150 countries in areas by UNICEF.

Collaboration Kits for a Cause

Representatives from Moncler, an Italian apparel and lifestyle brand, also accompanied Brown and UNICEF during the trip. In 2017 the Warmly Moncler project was launched in light of the collaboration between UNICEF and Moncler. The initiative provides winter survival kits containing hats, gloves, scarves, shoes, thermal blankets, socks and fuel to heat homes and schools to disadvantaged children and families in areas with harsh winter conditions worldwide. Since the collaboration was launched, over 38,000 families who live in some of the coldest countries in the world have benefited from the project.

For the future, Brown can be expected to continue to use her platform as an ambassador for
UNICEF to meet with as many children as she can, hear their stories and advocate and speak
out on their behalf.

– Cydni Payton
Photo: Wikimedia Commons

,

How the “Boat of Knowledge” is Impacting Education in the Philippines

Boat of KnowledgeEach rainy season, the children of the barangay (small village) Darul-Akram in Languyan, Tawi-Tawi have a decision to make. For half the year, the path to school is blocked by a rushing, crocodile-infested river. To reach the school, children would have to cross the 60- to 100-meter wide river on rickety boats, risking their lives. Because of the perilous journey to reach school, many parents would force their children to stay home. The result of that decision is high dropout rates and a large population of children who never completed basic education. Regretfully, that was the norm. Each rainy season, parents would keep their children at home. However, everything changed with Vincent Durie’s “Boat of Knowledge.”

Creation, Concept and Impact of the “Boat of Knowledge”

Durie is a fellow of the Bangsamoro Young Leaders Program-Leadership Communities (BYLP-LeadCom). After discussing the safety concerns with both parents and teachers, he developed the “Boat of Knowledge” project. Along with his fellow leader, Tau-Spartan, he secured a grant. With the grant, he purchased a two-engine boat to ferry students to school.

The “Boat of Knowledge” project is two-pronged in its approach. The 30-person boat ferries both middle schools and high school students. It even makes as many as three trips back and forth to make sure that everyone gets to school. Meanwhile, along with ensuring that each student receives an education, the boat provides work for fishermen in the off-season, helping to stimulate the economy of this small village.

Today, 99 percent of students in Darul-Akram are logging regular school hours.

Education in the Philippines

Although the nation has a substantial economy, the education program within the Philippines is heavily underfunded. Education is often hindered by shortages in textbooks and buildings. As a result, only 78 percent of students complete the basic level of education. In fact, fewer complete any secondary level of education. In addition, absenteeism is a major problem. Without any serious structure for evaluating attendance, millions of children do not go to school. Currently, 2.8 million Filipino children are not in school.

The Ayala Foundation: Providing the Spark

Durie’s project is part of the Ayala Foundation, a nonprofit based in the Philippines that seeks to connect the growing business market with communities across the country. Its goal is to create creative, self-reliant and self-sustaining communities all across the Phillippines. To do so, the Ayala Foundation helps to build bridges that connect different sectors of the market, acting as a catalyst for cooperation.

The Ayala Foundation created the initiative BYLP-LeadCom. The initiative seeks to use the energy of Filipino youth to create positive change in communities. One change, for example, is supporting Durie with his “Boat of Knowledge.” Today, BYLP-LeadCom operates in five different provinces across the Philippines.

Certainly, Durie’s “Boat of Knowledge” is simple. However, by providing children an opportunity to gain an education during the rainy season, Durie and the Tau-Spartans have opened a world of possibilities for the children of Darul-Akram.

– Andrew Edwards
Photo: Flickr

,

The Growing Crisis of E-Waste in Developing Countries

E-Waste in Developing CountriesE-waste in developing and developed countries is when electronics are used, and they come to the end of their lifecycle. In contrast to other forms of waste, disposal of  e-waste is specific, in order to protect humans and the environment from the harmful materials within; yet, impoverished countries do not have the resources nor funds to dispose of their e-waste properly.

Due to these countries improperly disposing of their waste, toxic chemicals then leak into the environment. In turn, health hazards arise. Below illustrates the prevalence of e-waste around the globe, recycling e-waste methods, impacts on human health and possible solutions eliminating excess e-waste in developing countries.

Presence of E-Waste

As technology advances exponentially around the world, consumers are constantly purchasing, upgrading, replacing and discarding their electric products. These products include computers, printers, televisions, cell phones, microwaves and washers, and dryers. Among the developed nations, the U.S. alone throws away 400 million tons of electronic items per year. In contrast, the European Union produces 8.9 million tons of e-waste and Japan produces 4 million tons. In total, the world produces 50 million tons of e-waste a year. It is an estimate that the world’s population will be discarding 60 million tons of e-waste by 2021.

The Differences in Recylcing E-Waste

Both developing and developed countries recycle their e-waste. In the formal recycling facilities of developed countries, electronics are disassembled, separated and categorized by material. They are then cleaned and shredded for further sorting. It is necessary hat recycling companies adhere to health and safety rules. They must also use pollution-control technologies to decrease the health and environmental hazards of handling e-waste.

This process is expensive, and to avoid spending the large amount of money needed to recycle e-waste formally, developed countries illegally ship their e-waste to developing countries for disposal. However, these developing countries do not have the means to recycle their e-waste formally. This is why countries, like Nigeria and Ghana, recycle their e-waste in informal ways.

Within developing countries, the informal e-waste sector includes sites where the extraction of valuable components of electronics happen using crude recycling and disposal methods. Families and individual workers depend on the extraction of valuable metals for an income. Metals include gold, silver, copper, platinum, palladium, lithium and cobalt.

Effects of Chemicals in E-Waste

However, these electronics also contain toxic heavy metals, such as lead, mercury, cadmium and beryllium. They also include polluting PVC plastic and hazardous chemicals like brominated flame retardants. These chemicals remain in electronics after extraction of valuable materials. They are burned, buried and discharged into waterways. Furthermore, these chemicals can find their way into the air, earth, water and ultimately into food.

Victims of contamination from e-waste in developing countries can experience both direct and indirect exposure. Direct contact with hazardous materials from e-waste in both formal and informal recycling settings can cause increases in stillbirths, spontaneous abortions, premature births and lower birth weights. They can also cause increases in mutations, congenital malformations, abnormal thyroid function, lead levels, decreased lung function and neurobehavioral disturbances.

Intervention in Recycling E-Waste

To decrease the amount of informal recycling of e-waste in developing countries, the United Nations created the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal. This organization bans the trading of hazardous waste between nations. Sadly, this policy fails to reduce informal recycling due to a general lack of governance and enforcement resources.

Renne Cho, a staff writer for the Earth Institute, lists six solutions in research that disposers should consider and practice globally to solve the global e-waste crisis. These six solutions are: designing better products, repairing and reusing devices already owned, extending producer responsibility, improving the recycling system, making recycling more convenient and making our economy more circular.

In regard to improving the recycling system, one strategy proposed to alleviate e-waste in developing countries is taking advantage of the large collection network of informal recyclers existing. Instead of eliminating this network, developing countries can utilize these companies to bring their collective e-waste to the formal sector.

Another solution to reduce the amount of e-waste illegally shipped to developing countries is for countries to invest in the resources necessary to provide the enforcement and supervision that will restrict the importation of e-waste.

The rapid rate at which consumers are now purchasing, upgrading, replacing and discarding electronics gives little reason to believe the e-waste crisis will end soon. More awareness about how e-waste is impacting the health of men, women and children in developing countries is necessary.

– Jacob Stubbs
Photo: Flickr

, , ,

Three Ways the Relationship Between Technology and Philanthropy Is Evolving

Technology and PhilanthropyThe ongoing technological revolution is redefining how global political, social and economic development happens. Currently, around 50 percent of the world is online. According to “Digital Spillover” research conducted by Huawei and Oxford Economics, the digital economy was worth $11.5 trillion in 2016, or 15.5 percent of global gross domestic product. This could grow to nearly 25 percent of global GDP by 2025. This not only transforms today’s business landscape but also the business of doing good deeds. Here are three ways that the relationship between technology and philanthropy is already evolving.

  1. Direct Access to Donors Through Social Media
    Technology can be used to nurture closer links between donors and nonprofits. According to Giving USA, individuals, corporations, foundations and estates donated $410 billion to charities in 2017. This represents less than 3 percent of the United States’ GDP. Working to change this number through fundraising technology is social media platform Facebook. In November 2018, three years of launching its fundraising technology, Facebook reported that donations have broken $1 billion. No Kid Hungry, a U.S.-based child-hunger charity, reported raising $5 million from over 200,000 donors through Facebook fundraisers. Other social media platforms, like GoFundMe, have also made it easier for individuals to connect with causes they feel passionate about. Houses for Refugees is a notable beneficiary of such advancements, receiving over $2 million in donations through crowdfunding and online campaigning.
  2. Unmediated Engagement With People in Need
    Although many people in the world are not yet able to access the necessary technology, the internet is helping connect NGOs and their clientele more efficiently. This will change how NGOs are able to operate in cases of natural or financial disasters, as well as create new and innovative ways in which organizations can make a difference. Mobile cash transfers are becoming a popular way of transferring money to those in remote areas of the world. For example, in 2017, because of difficulties in establishing cash liquidity in Zimbabwe, the U.K. government partnered with CARE International, a major humanitarian organization that is fighting poverty in 92 countries worldwide. This partnership provided small monthly cash payments by mobile phone or SIM cards to over 72,000 families, enabling them to continue buying basic foodstuffs and utilities. Technology can also be used to develop help build communities from the inside, by reducing long-standing tensions between communities. One example of a technology company hoping to change lives by connecting people is Tech2Peace, a joint Palestinian-Israeli startup designed to train youth in technical skills such as website building, while also encouraging intercultural dialogue and conflict resolution sessions.
  3. Better Analytics to Improve Efficiency
    Technology companies are helping nonprofits streamline their systems of data collection and analytics. New technological developments are changing how companies can exercise “Corporate Social Responsibility,” or CSR, an ethical business strategy designed to maximize a company’s positive social influence. For example, Microsoft is currently partnered with the Virginia-based charity Operation Smile, which provides children with the free surgical repair for cleft lip, cleft palate and other facial deformities. Operation Smile has a number of programs including operating international medical missions, running care facilities, conducting research on the causes of cleft lip and providing education to improve community treatment worldwide. One area where Microsoft assists Operation Smile is by developing customized solutions that allow the organization to analyze real-time patient outcomes and feedback, sharing simultaneously this data with volunteers around the globe. This cuts downtime spent by individual surgeons for patient evaluations and allows Operation Smile to perform more operations.

Technology and philanthropy are intricately connected. Advancement in technology has improved the relationship between donors and charities, charities and beneficiaries, and streamlined all the processes that define these relationships. As the technological revolution finds new ways to change the world, it will also find new ways to help those in need.

– Holly Barsham
Photo: Google Images

, ,

The Threat of War is a Public Health Crisis

Threat of WarThe U.S. spends nearly $649 billion on military defense with the budget set to grow for the fifth consecutive year in 2020. Meanwhile, 98 countries have decreased military spending, something the Global Peace Index has called the largest improvement for peace. Although people perpetuate militarization and war as necessary tools for peace and security, as well as a means to reduce the future threat of war, such ideals are not true.

Dispelling War Myths

According to the 2006 National Intelligence Estimate, during the war on terror, terrorism actually increased and spread. Several U.S. military commanders have made statements against war, claiming that violence and particular war tactics are actually creating a greater threat, not suppressing it. The former head of the C.I.A. Counterterrorism Center, Robert Grenier, stated that counter-terrorism strategies can backfire by helping form enemy alliances and therefore a larger threat.

“[Al Qaeda] are not just focused on helping oppressed Muslims in Kashmir or trying to fight the NATO and the Americans in Afghanistan, they see themselves as part of a global struggle, and therefore are a much broader threat than they were previously. So in a sense, yes, we have helped to bring about the situation that we most fear,” Grenier told Frontline.

Reports of a modern arms race have circulated for the past two years. Senior U.N. security expert, Renta Dwan, said the risk of a nuclear war is at its highest since WWII. There are over 13 thousand nuclear weapons in nine countries. Ninety percent belongs to the U.S. and Russia, yet using less than half of India and Pakistan’s arsenal is enough to cause a worldwide nuclear winter. A peace treaty banning nuclear weapons has only 23 of the 50 ratifications it needs to come into effect but the United States, Russia and other nuclear powers strongly oppose it.

Even if a nuclear threat had a low annual risk – as some claim – a group of physicians published an article for the American Heart Association arguing that experts need to think of the threat in terms of humanity’s lifetime. This is parallel to how cardiologists think of the cumulative risk of heart disease over a lifespan, not just within a given year. This means a one percent annual risk of a nuclear war translates to a 50 percent risk over a 70-year period. They claim that just as preventing heart disease requires behavioral changes such as losing weight, preventing nuclear war also requires a change in high-risk behavior, such as threats, sanctions and false accusations.

Changing the threat of war isn’t as unrealistic as it sounds. The European Union has established social institutions to deal with conflict between member states, and there are many global networks and health professionals working to end war as an institution. The first time the idea of ending the threat of war nearly came to fruition was during the Cold War, with the historical and ambitious US-USSR agreement in 1961, or the McCloy-Zorin Accords.

A World Without War

The McCloy-Zorin Accords outlined a detailed plan for a general and complete disarmament. Many agree that disarmament, international law enforcement and investment are all necessary to end the threat of war. Partial or full disarmament is a must, including selling weapons to countries that do not manufacture them but needs to be under the supervision of an international organization to verify the disarmament.

The accords specified that people carry the disarmament out in stages and that an international disarmament organization verify each stage. The accord recognized non-nuclear armaments, establishments and facilities as necessary for maintaining internal order, but called for the abolishment of weapon stockpiles, national armed forces, military establishments and the discontinuance of military budgets.

The accord also required simultaneous efforts to strengthen peace and international arbitration institutions. U.N. conflict management already resolves many conflicts, but better resourcing could maximize its impact. The World Court also resolves many interstate conflicts but does not recognize war as a crime. The accords are a gilded example of how to end the threat of war and prove its attainability.

How Non-Violence Prevails

Non-violent and civil disobedience campaigns have proven to be more effective in resisting tyranny, resolving conflicts and achieving security than violence. From 1900 to 2006, non-violent campaigns were twice as likely to succeed as violent rebellions across the globe. Non-violent campaigns are also more likely to usher in democratic intuitions and are 15 percent less likely to result in a civil war.

Even when non-violent resistance meets with violence, non-violence still prevails two-to-one. A major benefit of non-violent campaigns is how they tend to draw in larger and more diverse groups of people, but many of these campaigns usually happen without any training or support. If people better resourced such efforts and trained civilians, these campaigns could be even more successful.

Large and well-coordinated campaigns are actually able to switch from concentrated methods, such as protests, to dispersed methods when met with violence. Dispersed methods include strikes, stay-at-home demonstrations, a coordinated shut-down of electricity and even banging pots and pans. Dispersed methods, said Professor Erica Chenoweth, are “very hard or at least very costly to suppress, while the movement stays just as disruptive.”Chenoweth, a professor in Human Rights and International Affairs, believes that if history courses shifted focus onto the decades of mass civil disobedience that came before the Declaration of Independence, or if Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King came first and not as an afterthought, then perhaps the “war culture” could change and end the threat of war.

The 2019 Global Peace Index reports that 104 countries recorded an increase in terrorism, while only 38 improved. Changing international policies and promoting civil disobedience instead of violence and war as a means for change does not only make movements of change more resilient but prevents terrorism and promotes stability.

– Emma Uk
Photo: Flickr

Alleviating the Drought in Zimbabwe

Drought in Zimbabwe

There has been a severe, ongoing drought in Zimbabwe for the past few years. Zimbabwe is a particularly sensitive country to drought. Because it already has issues with food security, low amounts of rain and other water sources make the situation even more difficult. Due to the fact that most agriculture in Zimbabwe relies on rainwater, the crop harvests in the region have suffered severely as a result of the drought. According to the United Nations World Food Programme, nearly 5.3 million people in the country (about a third of the country’s full population) face food insecurity due to low rainwater killing crops. With about 63 percent of people in Zimbabwe living below the poverty line, they will feel the impact of this drought the most.

Drought conditions are worse than ever

Temperatures as of late have been several degrees higher than average. The years 2015-2018 were the hottest ever recorded around the globe. These hotter, drier conditions have effected Zimbabwe. The heat intensifies the drought’s impacts on crops and livestock, resulting in a decrease in available food. The main crop which Zimbabwe relies on is maize. Typically, Zimbabwe’s annual maize consumption is about 1.8 million tons. However, due to droughts, the harvest in 2019 may be closer to 1 million, which is nearly half of the usually available amount. Experts say this could be the worst drought Zimbabwe has faced in over 30 years, with the country seeing 15 to 45 percent less than average rainfall.

Zimbabwe Flash Appeal program and other solutions

To combat this issue, the UN has launched the Zimbabwe Flash Appeal program, working to provide 234 million USD in aid. The program offers much-needed resources like food, water, sanitation and overall protection to over 2.2 million people in the country. With food prices increasing as a result of new governmental policies, people will be needing this aid more than ever.

There are other potential solutions to this issue, as well. Dispersing silver iodide into clouds (effectively “seeding” them) causes the clouds to thicken. This makes it more likely for the rain to occur, as water droplets are super-cooled and made heavier. Silver iodide mimics the chemical structure of ice. This causes other water droplets that are already cold enough to freeze to attach themselves and fall as rain.

Zimbabwe is one of 56 countries in the world that uses cloud-seeding technology, budgeting about $400,000 for it in 2018. The science is new and uncertain, and whether it effectively alleviates drought conditions is still disputed. However, it could provide one option to help correct the drought in Zimbabwe.

Another avenue to explore is diversifying crops and livestock in the midst of changing environmental conditions. One adaptation undertaken in some regions is an increased reliance on poultry livestock, such as quail and other indigenous birds.

Despite challenges, local farmers are working together to overcome the challenges in the area due to the drought. Economic and environmental crises are severe, but with efforts by the UN and local people in the country, there is still hope amid the drought in Zimbabwe.

-Jade Follette
Photo: Pixabay

,

10 Facts About the Keeping Girls in School Act

Keeping Girls in School ActFor hundreds of years, people have robbing women and young girls of their right to an education. Of the 774 million illiterate people around the globe, two-thirds are female. Without an education, women die at higher rates, have an increased number of child deaths, are more likely to marry young, are less likely to find work and are more likely to receive lower pay. The Keeping Girls in School Act is designed to address the worldwide barriers that currently exclude 130 million school-aged girls from their right to an education. The legislation has the power to cut child deaths by 50 percent and will raise girls’ future wages by $15 to $30 trillion. Here are 10 facts about the Keeping Girls in School Act.

10 Facts About the Keeping Girls in School Act

  1. The bill has bi-partisan Congressional support. On April 9, 2019, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) introduced the Keeping Girls in School Act into the Senate. On that same date, Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Rep. Lois Frankel (D-FL), Rep. Susan Brooks (R-PA) and Rep.Nita Lowey (D-NY) introduced the bill into the House. More recently, Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR), Rep. Peter J. Visclosky (D-IN), Sen. Todd Young (R-IN) and Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD) have also decided to cosponsor the bill, totaling a number of 25 co-sponsors in the House and three in the Senate. With advocates in both the House and the Senate, the Keeping Girls in School Act has garnered the support of not only both legislative bodies but both political parties.

  2. The bill will cut child deaths by 50 percent. Education is one of the most valuable resources when it comes to saving children’s lives. Malnutrition is one of the leading causes of death for children under five largely due to many mothers’ lack of education on proper hygiene, health and nutrition. According to UNESCO, if all women received secondary education, it would cut in half the number of child deaths and save three million lives. When provided with an education, mothers are able to raise their children in a healthier way because they have the knowledge necessary to provide them with a higher quality of life.

  3. The bill focuses on secondary education. The Keeping Girls in School Act focuses on education at the secondary level rather than the primary because girls are at higher risk of dropping out as adolescents. Between the ages of 14 to 18, girls are at the greatest risk of pregnancy, child marriage and genital mutilation. By focusing on girls in this age range, the Keeping Girls in School Act has the power to not only educate young women but to prevent inhumane practices from infiltrating their lives.

  4. The bill will reduce child marriage by 66 percent. Without proper education, people force many young girls into marriage because the girls do not understand that they have the right to refuse it. Education informs young women about their rights and provides them with the tools necessary to challenge the cultural expectations. According to UNESCO, one in seven sub-Saharan African women are married under the age of 18 due to their lack of education. Education is one of the leading factors when it comes to reducing child marriage. If the Keeping Girls in School Act passes, it will play a vital role in eradicating child marriage because it will grant young women the awareness that they have autonomy over their own lives.

  5. The bill is divided into 14 barriers. The Keeping Girls in School Act is divided into 14 sections in an attempt to address all the barriers that prevent women from receiving an education. These include: harmful social norms, lack of safety at or traveling to school, child and forced marriages, distance from and cost of school, the priority of education given to young men, poor nutrition, early pregnancy, HIV, disabilities and racial or religious discrimination. The Keeping Girls in School Act not only outlines these 14 barriers but sets out to challenge them. By individually working to overcome these educational confines, the Keeping Girls in School Act will not only make education more accessible for young women but it will also improve the quality of their lives.

  6. The bill will decrease violent conflict by 37 percent. Lack of education is one of the biggest contributors to violent conflict. Likewise, conflict-affected areas inhibit girls’ access to education greatly. Girls in conflict-affected areas are 90 percent more likely to be uneducated due to the violent reality of their communities. By providing young women with access to education, the violence that keeps thousands of girls from being educated will decrease and the fear that leads their lives will consequently lessen.

  7. The bill will save worldwide governments 5 percent or more on education budgets. With more girls attending school, there will be fewer child marriages, so more women will be able to enter the workforce later on. As a result, they will earn more money and will be able to contribute to their country’s economy in a way they were formerly unable to. An investment in female education is more than a social rights investment because it also houses an economic return. With more economically stable women, more people will be able to purchase products and their countries’ economies will rise as a result. By prioritizing girls’ education, U.S. foreign assistance is not only investing in young women but also investing in themselves.

  8. The bill will promote gender equality. By advancing girls’ education, the U.S. is taking a global stand against inequality. Worldwide, four million more boys receive education than girls. The Keeping Girls in School Act has the power to bridge the gap. Providing education for young women is not only the acknowledgment that they are equally valuable but it is the recognition that they are undeniably capable. In Pakistan, women with secondary education earn 70 percent of the country’s average male income while their primary school counterparts earn only 51 percent. By advocating for the Keeping Girls in School Act, the U.S. is challenging social norms that have oppressed young women for decades. As a result, the Act also possesses the power to change the way people value women around the globe.

  9. Fifty international nonprofit organizations endorse the bill. The largest global poverty organizations around the world support the Keeping Girls in School Act. Organizations such as UNICEF U.S.A, CARE U.S.A and ADRA International are currently backing the legislation. By supporting this bill, these organizations are not only spreading awareness for the global issue but they are exemplifying the mass of its importance.

  10. The bill will receive updates every five years. Keeping in line with global progression, if enacted into law, the Keeping Girls in School Act promises to keep up. If passed, the Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment, the Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues and the Senior Coordinator for International Basic Education Assistance will oversee the bill. This makes sure that the diversity of issues addressed are in line with the reality of the world’s social climate, ensuring that women’s education progresses at the fastest possible rate.

These 10 facts about the Keeping Girls in School Act can spread awareness of a bill that has the power to change the lives of young women around the world. Programs such as CARE’s Keeping Girls at School and funds like UNESCO’s Malala Fund For Girls’ Right to Education are making great progress towards improving the issue. However, with 76 million illiterate female youths worldwide, the Keeping Girls in School Act will help to increase education for women even further.

– Candace Fernandez
Photo: Unsplash

, ,

Top 10 Facts About Living Conditions in Cuba

Top 10 Facts about Living Conditions in Cuba

The rise of Cuba’s Marxist-Leninist regime is situated in the context of the nation’s history, leadership and government. Cuba remains one of the few one-party socialist government bodies in the world. Living conditions for the people of Cuba were on par with European levels prior to the Cuban revolution of 1959, led by Fidel Castro and his socialist constituents. Following the overthrow of then-Cuban authoritarian President Fulgencio Batista, specific metrics of living conditions from the macroeconomic, sociopolitical and sociological perspectives weakened and consequently placed the people of Cuba under enormous political and financial strain.

Presently, little empirical evidence suggests that the top 10 facts about living conditions in Cuba are contextually related to Cuba post-revolution or pre-revolution. Living standards measure the general wealth, prosperity and quality of life for any given national population. Economic and non-economic factors that contribute to the assessment of living standards include but are not limited to: consumption, GDP per capita, income inequality, regular access to food and water, housing, crime rates, education, healthcare, social services, environmental health and economic freedom.

In assessing the top 10 facts about living conditions in Cuba, the country’s political climate, past and present, plays an important role in understanding living standards and how they affect the people of Cuba every day. Moreover, the normalization of relations between Cuba and the United States insofar as mainstream tourism carries with it the caveat of unreconciled embargoes placed on Cuba’s economy. In addition to living standards, present and planned solutions serve to incentivize U.S. lawmakers to revisit relevant legislation that empowers Cuba to trade, produce and export with more sovereignty. Until the issue of U.S. embargoes is reconciled or at the very least ameliorated, living standards in Cuba will cease to improve. With Cuba’s past and present contexts in mind, here are the top 10 facts about living conditions in Cuba:

  1. Cuba’s GDP has increased each year since its historic low of $5.69 billion in 1970 to a record-setting $87.13 billion in 2015. The country focuses much of its exports on tourism, construction, transport and agriculture. As of 2016, Cuba exported $1.18 billion worth of goods and services and imported only $6.73 billion. This denotes a negative trade balance between Cuba and the rest of the world.
  2. The Human Development Indicators (HDI) rank Cuba 73 in the world with an index of .777 according to the United Nations Development Program. This suggests Cuba has high human development. Cuba maintains a high HDI because of its allegiance to a centrally planned economy. Government ownership of land, labor and capital facilitates total control over goods/services production.
  3. Women in Cuba represent a large and growing faction within politics, labor and education. According to the American Association of University Women, they “make up 66 percent of the labor force in Cuba, and more than 70 percent of professionals in the country are women” (AAUW). Women and girls in Cuba have a long way to go as far as equality is concerned. However, female representation in political office maintains 43.6 percent of the 614 member unicameral legislature.
  4. Women have a significantly higher gross enrollment ratio as a percentage in education compared to their male counterparts. In 2008, women represented nearly 150 percent GER compared to men at just 90 percent. In the years following, women continued to dominate in the field of college enrollment. As of 2016, the parity of gender-based gross enrolment as moved towards equilibrium.
  5. The infant mortality rate has fallen from 80 per 1000 live births in 1950 to 5 per 1000 in the modern-day due to Cuba’s centrally planned government system. In 2015, over 10 percent of Cuba’s GDP, or $9.2 million, went to public health. Specifically, funding went to providing more staff, supplies and medicine to hospitals and clinics across the island. Additionally, Cuban Health Minister Roberto Morales Ojeda focuses his efforts on public health measures, including potable water, adequate diet and food supply and regular free checkups for expecting mothers and children.
  6. The construction of new housing units in Cuba has fallen from 42,940 in 2000 to 31,103 in 2012. This indicates a monumental challenge for Cuban residents to build and reside in safe, structurally sound homes. In response, the Cuban government shifted its focus onto the construction industry in order to attract more foreign investment. They have implemented 10 construction sector projects across Cuba, proposed in the 2016-2017 Foreign Investment Portfolio during the 34th Havana International Trade Fair. This is an economic development program in the works. No data has been released on its return or growth as of yet.
  7. The rapprochement strategy nicknamed “Cuban Thaw,” initiated by former President Barack Obama in 2014, is intended to normalize diplomatic relations with Cuba after a half-century of hostility and restricted trade. Eased restrictions on travel and remittances allowed Americans to send unlimited sums of money to Cuba. Additionally, U.S. citizens to travel to Cuba for religious and educational purposes. As a result, the tourism sector strengthened and put more money into the pockets of Cuban business owners. Despite President Donald Trump’s recent attempts to stomp out the Cuban Thaw, more than 4.7 million visitors pumped more than $3 billion into the Cuban economy at the end of 2017, according to U.S. government figures.
  8. Hurricanes remain a threat to Cuba’s agricultural industry. Flash floods destroy coffee bean crops and disrupt communications and citizen access to electricity. In order to address the economic and sociological needs of Cuban citizens, a Spanish NGO named Hombre Nuevo, Tierra Nueva, works to aid farmers in rural areas, provide medicine to dispensaries for children and the sick and improve the food supply for the elderly.
  9. La Libreta, a 50-year-old food rationing system, is still operational in order to control food supply for Cuba’s population. This system allots a certain amount of rice, bread, milk, matches, sugar and oil depending on the individual’s age, gender and income.
  10. There are several subsidized public transport options for tourists and Cuban citizens, owned and operated by the Cuban government. Tourists tend to use Viazul, the premium bus service offered by the Cuban government. Viazul is different than other more mainstream public transport in that it has air conditioning and provides a more comfortable experience for passengers. Meanwhile, more accessible and affordable options leave much to be desired for Cuban citizens.

The top 10 facts about living conditions in Cuba concern the nation’s political history, present leadership and the possibility of civilian intervention insofar as to move the dial in favor of normalizing relations between the U.S. and Cuba. Presently, the U.S. embargo on Cuban trade creates disparate equality on the basis of income, GPD per capita, GDP by nation and GNP.

– Nicholas Maldarelli
Photo: Flickr

, , , ,

5 Former Presidents on Foreign Aid

Former presidents on foreign aidIt is not widely known how much foreign aid is being spent as a part of the national budget, especially because statistics and figures can change dramatically under different administrations and eras. The policies of former presidents on foreign aid can reflect the national and international priorities of the nation itself and what the presidents themselves valued more compared to other factors within the federal budget.

5 Former Presidents on Foreign Aid: Who Spent What?

  1. Harry S. Truman is well-known for the Marshall Plan and the Truman Doctrine. While the Truman Doctrine was to extend economic and military aid to Greece, the Marshall Plan was more inclusive as it was designed to help Western European countries rebuild after World War II, consisting of $13 billion. Other goals achieved through these means were building markets for U.S. businesses and earning allies during the Cold War.
  2. Ronald Reagan believed in budget cuts domestically, but he was a strong advocate for non-military foreign assistance. He promoted the “0.6% of GDP” minimum to be spent on foreign aid, as he believed that such aid plays a large role in foreign policy strategies. Such strategies were to create stronger U.S. allies and to promote economic growth and democracy globally. Reagan also emphasized that it is an American value to provide foreign assistance based on the U.S. founding beliefs that “all men are created equal.”
  3. Jimmy Carter was an advocate for making human rights a priority of the U.S. foreign policy. Not only did he sustain foreign aid, he also made sure to redirect the routes of such aid away from brutal regimes, such as that of Ethiopia’s Mengistu Haile-Mariam. He also ensured that foreign aid was an instrument used for luring in more American allies during the Cold War. For instance, by 1980, 75 percent of the total aid designed for Africa were redirected towards the Horn of Africa, as Mengistu was Soviet-backed.
  4. During Barack Obama’s presidency in 2011, figures on foreign aid were reported as being increased by 80 percent when compared to the reports in 2008. Foreign assistance kept increasing from $11.427 billion in 2008 to $20.038 billion in 2010 to $20.599 billion in 2011. During 2011, the aid was split into Economic Support Fund, Foreign Military Financing Program, multilateral assistance, Agency for International Development, Peace Corps and international monetary programs.
  5. In 2002, George W. Bush planned an expansion of 50 percent over the next three years through the Millennium Challenge Account which would provide $5 billion every year to countries where that governed unjustly. Additionally, Bush called for $10 billion to combat HIV/AIDS in Africa and the Caribbean over the following five years. There were also emergency funds put aside, consisting of $200 million for famine and $100 million for other complex emergencies.

The policies of former presidents on foreign aid widely reflect their intents and objectives, such as wishing to create more U.S. allies during the Cold War or to stop health epidemics from spreading, like HIV. International assistance can be employed in differing areas of focus that all eventually reach out to help an individual or a community climb out of poverty.

– Nergis Sefer
Photo: Flickr