Archive for category: Global Poverty

Key articles and information on global poverty.

A Rundown on the History of Ebola in Liberia

History of Ebola in Liberia
The first outbreak of Ebola in Liberia was documented in March 2014. By June of that year, Ebola began to take lives. On August 6, the president of Liberia declared a state of emergency, closed schools, and established an Ebola task force.

In her statement on August 6, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf stated, “The virus currently has no cure and has a fatality rate of up to 90 percent. The aggregate number of cases: confirmed, probable and suspected in Liberia has now exceeded 500 with about 271 cumulative deaths. With 32 deaths among health care workers. The death rate among citizens, especially among health workers is alarming.”

Development of Epidemic

In mid-August, the Ivory Coast banned all flights traveling to or from Liberia. Ebola had also spread to neighboring countries, including Guinea and Sierra Leone. Multiple clinics began opening in Monrovia, country’s capital, and across the country, but they did not have enough space to house all those inflicted, and many people died outside hospitals waiting for care.

The president of Liberia requested international assistance in early October of 2014, and on October 16, President Barack Obama granted the use of the National Guard and reservists in Liberia.

At that point, nearly 4,500 people had died from Ebola in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. The military personnel sent by the U.S. assisted in building clinics and providing humanitarian assistance.

Working on Ebola-free Country

World Health Organisation (WHO) began to implement its 70-70-60 plan to curb the epidemic. The goal was to get 70 percent of the cases isolated and 70 percent of the deceased buried safely within 60 days starting on October 1, 2014. WHO also worked with Liberia’s Ministry of Health to train health care workers on how to safely treat patients that were infected.

In November 2014, WHO reported that there was evidence of a decline of new cases of Ebola in Liberia. In January 2015, clinics that had been overflowing began to close due to a lack of patients.

As of January 28, 2015, there were only five reported cases of Ebola in Liberia. The prevalence of the disease began declining significantly over the next year.

On the May 9, Liberia was declared Ebola-free and three months passed without a recurrence of the disease. Medecins Sans Frontieres encouraged people to stay aware of the disease coming back after the announcement of the eradication.

A few new cases were found in the summer of 2015, but they did not lead to another significant outbreak. Liberia continued to be declared Ebola-free on and off for every 42-day period that passed without a reported case. Most recently, Liberia has been Ebola-free since June 9, 2016.

The Causes for Epidemic Spreading

The massive outbreak of Ebola in Liberia has been contributed by lack of sanitation, corruption and hiding of bodies/diseased people, among others factors.

Many Liberians did not report cases of Ebola or deaths due to it. Instead, they were self-treating and burying bodies in unsafe places. This practice led to the disease spreading at a faster pace.

Lack of sanitation was a major contributor, as many Liberians in Monrovia use the beach and the river as a lavatory. Without sanitary spaces, Ebola was able to run rampant. Additionally, it was reported that body-collection teams would accept bribes from families who did not want people to know their relative died of Ebola. Instead of collecting the body, the teams would leave it with the family so they could host their own funeral.

Thankfully, Liberia has been Ebola-free since 2016 and is now better equipped to handle an outbreak it was to return.

– Amelia Merchant

Photo: Flickr

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Eliminating Human Trafficking in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Human Trafficking in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Human trafficking is both a human rights and an economic concern. The following is a discussion on the progress being made in eliminating human trafficking in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Human trafficking accounts for a large portion of the economic flow in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; unfortunately, little is being done to combat this occurrence by the Congolese government. This practice has thus continued to be a common human rights violation in the country and is perpetuated by a handful of linked issues such as corrupt government, poor economic climate and low infrastructure. 

Prevalence of Human Trafficking and Existing Laws

Currently, no laws exist in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to prevent human trafficking.

Further, human trafficking rings are often under the control of gangs and various militant groups that the Congolese government has little power to challenge. This makes the country a breeding ground for human trade and other human rights violations.

Current Aid and Interventions

Despite the Congolese government’s inefficiency in eliminating human trafficking in the DRC, several different aid groups have begun working on behalf of the cause. Among these groups are the United Nations and USAID.

Unfortunately, Joseph Kabila, the current president of the Congolese nation, is refusing aid, insisting that it is not needed despite the millions of displaced people unable to regularly access food. Kabila has threatened outside parties that offer assistance — including Sweden and the Netherlands — and made it hard for the victims of and those vulnerable to human trafficking to receive the intervention that they need.

Earlier this year, the humanitarian assistance needed in the DRC was estimated at $1.7 billion, which is four times the amount of aid that was offered last year. Due to increased hostility from President Kabila, those raising aid for the nation will face large hurdles from the government if they continue working amidst Kabila’s threats.

Although the United Arab Emirates has been clear that they will not sponsor aid unapproved by Congolese officials, at this point no other aid source has withdrawn their pledge to support the rehabilitation of the DRC. The hope is that the aid to be received will be used to confront big-ticket issues in the nation, with human trafficking among the biggest concerns.  

Moving Forward in Eliminating Human Trafficking in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

While there are many obstacles that the Democratic Republic of the Congo faces along with anyone who dares to support its victims, there is a clear opportunity for the world to be a force for good.

There is power in numbers, and the greater support citizens of the nation receive, the greater the likelihood the nation will push through to the other side of its very real and serious struggles.

A great tool for U.S. citizens is writing to representatives about issues that are important, requesting changes. Many small voices can make a powerful impact.

– Alexandra Ferrigno
Photo: Flickr

Top 10 Facts Everyone Should Know about Genocide

Top 10 Facts Everyone Should Know About Genocide
Genocide, or the mass murder of specific groups of people, is something that most consider to be a thing of the past, citing the Jewish holocaust and Nazi regime that ended over 60 years ago. Unfortunately, the concept of genocide is alive and well in the current state of world affairs. Moreover, it is important to note that genocide has farther reaches than those of mass death, extending into severe turmoil for those left alive.

Top 10 Facts Everyone Should Know about Genocide

  1. Genocide leads to mass poverty. As seen in German ghettos under the Nazi regime, and in Rwanda’s, Bosnia’s and Herzegovina’s staggering poverty rates, genocide is not a stand-alone issue but rather one with many other branches of issues.
  2. Genocide promotes poor infrastructure. When citizens cannot afford basic sustainability or are too poor to contribute to the tax pool, things such as well paved roads and access to electricity become luxuries and not expectancies. Healthy and functioning infrastructure promotes an overall health in an economic system. However, where infrastructure is lacking, it is sure to impact personal financial success and vice versa.
  3. Genocide increases crime statistics. Because genocide increases the likelihood of living in poverty, genocide indirectly increases the likelihood of crime. According to Marcus Felson, a criminologist, developing countries have more severe poverty than developed countries. Developing countries lack affordable access to advanced security tools that exist in developed countries, such as home security systems, which deter crime. With less reliable protection against crime, citizens may find themselves in an environment where crimes are easier to commit.
  4. Genocide disrupts schooling. Genocide devastates every aspect of an impacted community. Some major disruptions include weakened infrastructure, which in turn devastates school systems and access to education.
  5. Genocide creates a lack of workforce, inhibiting a functioning economy. The most obvious result of genocide is a decrease in prior population. When this is paired with a weakened infrastructure and widespread poverty, the economy suffers greatly as there is reduced resources available to invest.
  6. Genocide goes hand-in-hand with poor government systems. As seen in Nazi Germany and the genocide of over six million Jewish people, genocide is linked to totalitarian government regimes, similar to what is seen in modern day North Korea. Moreover, genocide paves the way for unstable governments to take power for extended periods of time. This is seen in current day Bosnia and Herzegovina, where corrupt government officials are rampant.
  7. Genocide cripples healthcare systems. Pre-civil war Rwanda had high rates of HIV/AIDS. However, due to sexual violence associated with the war, the rates of HIV/AIDS increased even further. The Rwandan government become nearly destitute from the war and consequently had a limited resource pool to draw from in order to treat citizens. Another example is seen in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where a devastated health care system from the Bosnian War still pervades.
  8. Genocide targets minorities before any other group. This is likely due to the “black sheep syndrome” that sometimes pushes minority groups to the fringes of society, not wholly integrating or fitting in with the larger society. This makes it easy for minority groups to be identified and targeted.
  9. Genocide leaves impacted societies vulnerable for many years after. While it is intuitive to assume that a society will not simply “go back to normal” when a genocide has ended, this is caused not by fiscal challenges but overall social distrust and emotional poverty, symptoms of the larger trauma. This is evident in nations like Rwanda, Bosnia and Herzegovina, where tensions and vast poverty are still present many years after the genocides.
  10. Genocide can be prevented. Genocide does not come about by a single factor, but rather by many single decisions to ignore humanity in others. Every single person has both the opportunity and the responsibility to treat others with respect and dignity. Each person is a factor in deciding what kind of world we all live in and everyone can choose what kind of impact to make. Choose kindness.

Due to the causes of genocide being varied and complex, these are only the top 10 facts everyone should know about genocide and not a comprehensive list. However, no matter how much information is gathered about genocide, the most imperative thing to take away is that no small action or thought is too small to matter. Every action and all thoughts contribute to what the future holds. Everyone makes a difference.

– Alexandra Ferrigno

Photo: Flickr

Slowly but Surely: 10 Facts About Living Conditions in North Korea

Top 10 Facts About Living Conditions in North Korea
The world was watching when Kim Jong Un ascended the international stage to shake hands with U.S. President Donald Trump. Yet the fanfare of a once-in-a-blue-moon summit in Singapore between the North Korean and American heads of state shuffled North Korean human rights abuses to the back of the media’s story deck. The latest member of the Kim dynasty lives and speaks in superlatives; his people do not. Here are the top 10 facts about living conditions in North Korea.

Top 10 Facts About Living Conditions in North Korea

  1. For a time following the immediate years of the Korean War, North Korea held a slight lead in wealth over South Korea, but famines and increasing state control over the domestic market led to economic contraction. Today, North Korea relies heavily on China for energy and food imports.
  2. North Korea’s GDP per capita stood at about $1000 in 2017. In comparison, China’s GDP per capita in 2016 was about eight times that; the United States measures in at approximately $58,000.
  3. North Korea’s weather is often harsh as it borders Siberia. Winters there can drag temperatures down below zero degrees Celsius (about eight degrees Fahrenheit). A profoundly inadequate heating system forces many inhabitants to gather fuel to keep warm months before the winds and snow arrive.
  4. In 2013, upwards of 18 million people in North Korea lived without electricity; infrastructure has yet to see major improvement since. In urban areas, approximately 41 percent of the population had access to electricity — that number drops down to 13 percent for rural areas.
  5. Although the state economy is running only by virtue of China’s life support, North Korea has a burgeoning black market. Smuggling and dealing in products from drugs to ice supplies many citizens with the income to buy food.
  6. Propaganda is ingrained in both North Korea’s billboards and in many of its people’s minds. As a correspondent for CNN discovered in his time in the hermit kingdom, many in Pyongyang, the capital and most prosperous city of the country, heap praise on the Kim dynasty and hate the Americans. It is unclear whether or not they are forced to do so.
  7. North Korea’s government groups its citizens via a categorization system called “songbun,” which is comprised of three different categories — loyal, wavering and hostile. As expected, those who are deemed loyal receive benefits, while those marked as hostile often find themselves recipients of discrimination.
  8. Life expectancy in North Korea averages at about 70 years. For perspective, it is ranked 157th in the world in this category by the CIA World Factbook. A variety of factors, such as inadequate health infrastructure and food shortages, contribute to its ranking.
  9. North Korean refugees are among the most disadvantaged groups in the world. If they are caught (illegally) crossing the North Korean border into China by DPRK officials, they risk being sent to labor camps. If caught by Chinese officials, they are turned back to their host country; even if they aren’t caught, many are forced into slave labor and prostitution in China and Russia.
  10. Religion remains a sensitive spot for North Korean officials. Buddhists and Taoists are frequently persecuted if found practicing their beliefs and/or religion, and any official religious spaces exist only for propaganda purposes.

Improving Day to Day

The top 10 facts about living conditions in North Korea show that the situation is abysmal, but standards are on the rise. Kim Jong Un has been more liberal than his predecessors in state control of the economy, allowing pockets of capitalism to flourish.

Despite this, totalitarian shackles remain as steadfast as ever before, and the possibility of political reform seems a distant specter. A long bridge of negotiation and diplomacy on the part of outside powers must be crossed if living conditions in North Korea are ever to substantially improve.

– Alex Qi
Photo: Flickr

4 Crucial Things To Know About Mapuche Oppression

Mapuche Oppression
An indigenous group of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina, the Mapuche live in the heart of oppression. Despite a long history of war on culture and tradition, the Mapuche have remained dedicated to irreplaceable ancestral lands, recently taking to protests for expression against Mapuche oppression.

Enduring unforgiving Spanish colonialism and Pinochet’s dehumanizing regime of the late 1990s, the indigenous group fell under harsh marginalization, their resistance ultimately criminalized. Moreover, with deep-seeded enmity rooted in the expropriation of ancestral lands by big forestry corporations, the Mapuche now stand tall to defend their rights with no sign of giving up.

The Mapuche Are Vocal

The array of indigenous groups that populate the state of Chile make up about 10 percent of the national population. Small, in comparison, but these groups preserve what remains of the once prominent inhabitation of tribes that traversed the length of the country.

The Mapuche, being the largest of the remaining indigenous groups, remain relevant. From historical anecdotes detailing their resistance to the reign of the Incas and the invading Spaniards to their modern day revolution for justice, the Mapuche are neither silent nor invisible, but rather stoic warriors.

Desperate to literally strike gold, riches drove the Spanish into Chile — yet the Spaniards were never able to fully defeat the Mapuche presence in this area. Enter: modern day. Vocal and politically involved, the Mapuche struggle against oppression has led to national and international visibility.

Their Land is Their Livelihood

From the rebellion against the Spanish to modern-day protesting, Mapuche oppression has remained consistent. Victimized by violence and poverty, indigenous independence has been compromised, especially through the campaign know as “Pacification of the Araucanía Region.” This program was designed to legally integrate much of the Mapuche land into Chilean territory.

Without land – a fundamental foundation for cohesion and tradition – self-sustainability becomes almost impossible. Without self-sustainability, a vital encompassment of Mapuche identity, they had no other choice but to migrate to the urban populace, an unfortunate move to foreign scenery and lifestyles. Consequently, employment obstacles prompted poverty and, subsequently, the forced construction of informal housing settlements.

Mapuche oppression only escalated during the reign of dictator Augosto Pincohet. Under the “Law of Community Division,” devised by Pinochet himself, any remains of communal Mapuche land was rendered privatized. Wholehearted resistance to such targeted and deliberate injustice led to the disappearance of many indigenous peoples by the government.

With restored democracy, efforts have been made to mend the relationship between indigenous groups and the Chilean government. The establishment of CONADI, or the National Corporation for Indigenous Development (Corporación Nacional de Desarrollo Indígena), and the reallocation of ancestral land for self-sustainability are steps in the right direction.

Mapuche Resistance: A Force To Be Reckoned With

Police occupation has heavily increased in Araucanía, a region dense with dwellers of Mapuche ancestry. The militarization of the region surfaces as a direct result of Mapuche defiance.

Recently, Mapuche resistance has taken to aggressive tactics. Determined to both reclaim ancestral lands and gain political sovereignty, the indigenous group has turned to direct action. The Coordinadora Arauco-Malleco (CAM), an anti-capitalist organization, is just but one part of the rebellion.

“The government practices and respects Catholicism but it discriminates against Mapuche spiritual beliefs,” an indigenous Mapuche stated. “The Mapuche have been impoverished spiritually, culturally and economically by Chile. I’m willing to sacrifice my life for my people.”

Mapuche Hope For Restoration Is Indestructible

Not looking for cushy legislation that holds no ground or legitimate benefit, the Mapuche simply request the return of autonomy to their populace and land. The citizens of Araucanía, the region with the worst poverty and unemployment rates in the country, have no intention of quieting down.

“When we recover lands we plant crops, breed animals and reconstruct our cultural world,” says Llaitul, a spokesperson for CAM. “We will build houses but our first priority is a spiritual center, the rewe.”

With tensions still thin, the center-left president Michelle Bachelet proposed a project to Congress: an Indigenous Peoples’ Ministry.

Furthermore, Bachelet proposed future dedication to infrastructure, including road construction, clean drinking water and programs to reallocate ancestral land back to the indigenous Mapuche.

“We’ve failed as a country,” Bachelet stated from La Moneda presidential palace in metropolitan Santiago. But, with Mapuche prowess, their dedication to full restoration is a force to be reckoned with.

– Mary Grace Miller
Photo: Flickr

Top 10 Facts about Poverty in Cyprus

top 10 facts about poverty in Cyprus
The small, Mediterranean island nation of Cyprus has undergone development and overall economic growth despite conflicts within the country. Although the economy has grown, the financial situation in Cyprus has fluctuated in recent years, causing more issues of poverty. In order to gain a better understanding of poverty and how it’s changing in Cyprus, below are the top 10 facts about poverty in this country.

Top 10 Facts about Poverty in Cyprus

  1. Cyprus’s economy has grown overall but fluctuated since the development of the service sector, offering citizens job opportunities to increase the standard of living. In 1980, Cyprus had a GDP of $2.15 billion. As of 2017, the country’s economy has risen to an estimated $21.65 billion. Cyprus has undergone a decrease since 2008 in its GDP, worsened by the 2012-13 financial crisis in the country, but has begun increasing since then.
  2. Although GDP has certainly increased in recent years, the rate of economic growth in Cyprus has fluctuated. In some years since faster development, Cyprus experienced as much as a 2 percent decrease in GDP due to political instability and global economic decline. Most recently, however, Cyprus maintains around 2 percent economic growth rate.
  3. The service industry is Cyprus’s largest economic sector, with specialized jobs and tourism services continuing to increase. This industry accounts for a significant majority of the GDP in Cyprus at an estimated 86.8 percent, while industry and agriculture comprise 11.2 percent and 2.3 percent of the GDP, respectively.
  4. The unemployment rate in Cyprus is relatively high due to financial and political issues in the country, with an estimated 11.8 percent unemployment rate in 2017. While economic opportunity has been improved for the citizens, this number has decreased since the 2012-13 crisis, as the unemployment rate in 2016 was 13 percent.
  5. Poverty rates in Cyprus have also steadily dropped as the economy of the country grows, although poverty in North (Turkish) Cyprus is somewhat higher than South (Greek) Cyprus. Despite decreased poverty rates and low child poverty rates throughout the country, the risk of falling in poverty increased after the financial crisis and is at 27.7 percent.
  6. Life expectancy in Cyprus raised significantly catalyzed by rapid development throughout the country. In 1960, the average lifetime of people in the country was 69.6 years and has increased to 80.5 years by 2016.
  7. School enrollment and persistence to finish school in Cyprus has risen and maintained high levels since increased development. In 1974, only 64.63 percent of primary school students completed their full studies, while this number has increased to 97.61 percent in 2016. This increase in academic persistence is likely attributed to more opportunity for skilled labor and decreased levels in poverty.
  8. Along with high primary school enrollment in Cyprus, the adult literacy rate in the country is quite high, with an overall 98.68 percent literacy rate. In young adults ages 15-24, the literacy rate is even higher at 99.82 percent, and the male and female literacy rates are relatively equal with 99.80 percent and 99.84 percent, respectively.
  9. The income per capita between the North and South is very different due to political and financial ties between the allies of both regions. South Cyprus had a higher per capita income of around $24,976 in 2017, while North Cyprus only had a per capita income of around $15,109 in the same year.
  10. Economy differences between North and South Cyprus are largely tied to Turkey and the European Union’s economic situations. The Eurozone crisis largely affected Southern Cyprus, while Turkish financial difficulties prevented economic growth in Northern Cyprus. Due to this starkly contrasted economic and political situation, reunification between the two sides would be the most stable and financially beneficial for both sides.

These top 10 facts about poverty in Cyprus underscore the government’s commitment to improving the economy and offering more opportunities for its people. A strong focus on the service and skilled industry, along with industrial and agricultural growth, has allowed the country to improve its already high standard of living. Although the economy has developed significantly, poverty for some people still continues, and with possible reunification between the North and South, poverty would continue to decrease in Cyprus.

– Matthew Cline

Photo: Flick

Improving Access to Water and Sanitation in Zambia

Sanitation in Zambia
Five years ago, the government of Zambia partnered with The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) in a $355 million push to improve water and sanitation in Zambia. MCC, a U.S. foreign aid agency, has been providing aid and oversight to this Southern African nation since 2012. The expectation was to improve the living conditions of as many as 1.2 million Zambians.

MCC’s investment in Zambia is coming to an end soon, though. With the compact set to expire in November of this year, the government will have to forge its own path to ensure that the progress made since 2013 will continue to be maintained and built upon.

The Need for WASH

Access to proper water, sanitation and hygiene (often referred to together as WASH) is vitally important to the development of any nation. Contaminated water and poor sewage facilities can lead to outbreaks of diseases like cholera and diarrhea, which can be crippling or even fatal. Lack of access to a convenient water supply can also force caregivers (often women) to spend hours each day drawing water from crude wells.

These concerns and others continue to be relevant in Zambia. Cholera outbreaks have spiked in the country this year due to a lack of WASH facilities. According to UNICEF, only 19 percent of rural populations have access to basic sanitation services. In urban areas, the number increases to a still shockingly low 49 percent.

Zambia’s population is growing rapidly. Following the trend of increasing African urbanization, nearly half of Zambians live in cities like the capital of Lusaka. The majority of those urban citizens live in low-income areas, most of which do not have developed sewer systems.

The Impact of MCC

MCC’s compact with the Zambian government was designed to address these problems head-on. The money it provided was put toward several major infrastructure projects, many of which are focused in Lusaka. The key focus has been improvements to the city’s sewers and a new drainage system, which will protect a million citizens from flooding.

In the long run, these investments should improve access to clean water and sanitation in Zambia. Beyond the personal quality of life benefits these improvements provide, they will also protect businesses from the danger of floods and help reduce the time needed to gather water. Reductions in sicknesses like cholera will also benefit both public health and economic productivity.

Safeguarding the Future

While MCC’s compact with the Zambian government is coming to an end, there are signs that its success may be carried forward after November. To begin with, MCC only invests in governments that show a genuine desire to better the lives of their citizens and the ability to properly use funding.

MCC’s goal is always to work in close collaboration with governments in order to ensure that they pass along the know-how to keep improvements running long after they leave. They have done just that in Zambia—training local water and sewage companies how to better manage their operations, consider environmental impacts and educate the public.

The projects started by MCC will not all be finished in November, but government workers and companies in Lusaka and around the country will be better equipped to continue making progress toward improved sanitation in Zambia.

It’s also important to note that Zambia will not be alone in pressing forward. Organizations like Water & Sanitation for the Urban Poor (WSUP), The World Bank and The African Development Bank are all providing funding and expertise for further WASH projects.

Zambia faces many challenges, but the government is taking ambitious steps toward bringing improved WASH standards to the entire country. The government will continue to focus on Lusaka, where they hope to provide city-wide sanitation services by 2035.

– Joshua Henreckson

Photo: Flickr

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5 Factors That Lead to Poverty

Contributory Factors That Lead to Poverty

The issue of global poverty has been around for a long time and it gets more serious every day. Today, individuals are not only suffering from global poverty but also from the contributory factors that lead to poverty.

Approaching the issue with numbers, it can be seen that approximately half of the people in the world today are surviving on nothing more than $2.5 per day. By looking deeper, it can also be seen that more than 1.3 billion people live in extreme poverty, which corresponds to nothing more than $1.25 per day.

In order to take action on the issue of global poverty, one must analyze the issue from all aspects because the existence of poverty has its very own contributory factors. Understanding the factors that lead to poverty may enable the prevention of the issue before its existence in the future. 

5 Factors That Lead to Poverty

  1. One of the many factors leading to global poverty is having no access to clean drinking water. More than 750 million people do not have the access to clean water, which can cause a number of illnesses such as Diarrhea. In this regard, the fair distribution of clean water is crucial in order to improve the sanitation and health of the population.
  2. There are also some political factors that lead to poverty. The idea of equal distribution on what is taken from the planet is not exactly equal between countries. There are two crucial facts to highlight this very issue. One is that the world could put every child into school if only one percent of what is spent on weapons were spent on those in need.
  3. The other heartbreaking fact is that the world’s richest seven people combined are wealthier than the GDP of 41 poor countries combined. These two facts should highlight one solution that would eliminate the factors that lead to poverty: the stronger countries should help those in need. Greed and apathy are two of the most wounding contributory factors of global poverty
  4. Having no access to earn a proper living or livelihood is another contributing factor. The idea here is simple, without a proper job, one has no other way to earn money. It can be argued that finding a job or at least a way of making money is not the hardest thing out there and depends heavily on the individual, yet the case is not similar in every country. There are numerous countries out there facing serious conflicts that inhibit access to a normal life where one can have a job and make money. Overpopulation, war and climate change are factors that can have a serious impact on the issue of global poverty.
  5. Lack of infrastructure is another contributing factor. An entire population cannot live in the city, and sometimes getting from one place to another can be a serious issue. Going to school or work from more rural areas depends heavily on infrastructure. The issue of infrastructure is also highlighted as an issue of resource availability and proper governmental control since rural areas often lack basic necessities like electricity and clean water. This can be a large part of the factors that lead to poverty.

The process of any country or community falling into poverty is not immediate. There are numerous factors that lead to poverty, and those factors can be used as indicators of what is yet to come in developing countries. It is important to approach the issue of global poverty from several angles to eliminate it sustainably and start working to erase the factors that lead to it. Only then can the issue of global poverty be solved.

– Orçun Doğmazer

Photo: Pixabay

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The Past and Future of Poverty Reduction in India

Poverty Reduction in India
Just this May, India was reported to have stepped down in the ranking of the largest number of poor people in one country when Nigeria took its previous place. India has increasingly been acknowledged for its poverty reduction efforts and results in the last 10 years. According to The World Bank, poverty in India has dropped from 38.9 percent to 21.2 percent in less than a decade since 2004.

However, despite the fact that there has been a lot of success in poverty reduction in India, there are still quite a few challenges ahead. This article will first discuss the driving force for success in the past and future strategies for further improvements.

Lessons from the Past—the Urban v. Rural Lens

Poverty reduction in India has been largely consistent with its patterns of economic growth since the 1980s. In other words, as India’s economy picked up its per capita income growth rate from 1.8 percent to 4.3 percent per year in around three decades, the rate of people climbing out of poverty has increased as well.

Before economic reforms of the 1990s, economic growth in rural areas was especially conducive for poverty reduction in India. Compared to growth in the manufacturing sector, growth in the agricultural and service sectors have shown better outcomes in alleviating poverty overall. Urban growth and manufacturing growth did not necessarily benefit the rural poor and its benefits in the urban population were far from consistent.

After the 1990s reforms, the patterns of poverty reduction shifted significantly. Urban growth came to be the key driver of poverty reduction in both urban and rural areas. The agricultural, service, as well as the manufacturing factors all accelerated poverty decline. Ultimately, urban growth is less favorable than rural growth in terms of distributional effects when trying to decrease poverty.

Uneven Growth

Poverty reduction advances at very different paces in different geographical areas in India. States including Kerala are decreasing poverty at a much faster rate than states like Bihar and Rajasthan. More strikingly, one’s gender, social status, and ethnicity are important factors when it comes to getting rid of poverty. Gaps of economic improvement across such identities are significantly wider.

The economic elites are also taking a larger share of economic advancement. Every year, the top 10 percent get more than half of the national income, which has increased significantly from the 1980s when the number was closer to a third. At the same time, the bottom 50 percent take a mere 15 percent.

To be Addressed

While the rate of extreme poverty has dropped, many are still living in “poverty” in India when factors like education and healthcare are considered. Therefore, stronger and more capable state services are in need in order for people’s living standards to continue to improve.

Specific social groups, including women and scheduled tribes, need to have to better access to participation in the country’s economic growth. As historically disadvantaged groups, their advancement will be beneficial to not only themselves but society at large. Participation among these groups needs to be encoraged and facilitated.

Like many countries in East and Southeast Asia, India is also facing an aging population—the workforce will likely shrink, the demand for elderly care will be overwhelming for the nation’s current welfare services, and there will be increasing concerns for poverty among the elderly.

Seemingly, India’s economy will continue to grow at its current rate. In order for India’s economic growth to have a significant impact on reducing poverty, a restructuring and rethinking of economic distribution need to happen. As some studies have shown, what works in urban areas doesn’t necessarily work in rural areas. The nation still has a lot to do to secure the lives of those who only recently struggled out of poverty and to work to bring the rest of its population out of poverty for good.

– Feng Ye
Photo: Flickr

The Bangladesh Safety Accord: Ensuring a Better Life

Bangladesh
Bangladesh’s $28 billion garment industry is massive and accounts for 12 percent of the country’s GDP. The industry has provided paid employment to millions of women who flock to the capital of Dhaka as well as to other centers of production in Bangladesh. But, even as it provides the hope of improved living standards, the Bangladesh garment industry threatens the health, safety and even lives of the people it employs. As such, the Bangladesh Safety Accord aims to protect and ensure a better life for Bangladeshi garment workers.

Working Conditions

Working conditions for Bangladeshis in the garment industry have been terrible for decades ever since the 1980s when foreign investment in Bangladeshi garment production helped to fuel the “fast fashion” revolution in cheap, disposable clothing. Since the 1990s, thousands have been killed and maimed in factory fires and building collapses in the country.

When the Rana Plaza Factory collapsed on April 24th, 2013 and killed 1,134 workers and injured 2,500 more, it came as no surprise to the people working inside these buildings. Indeed, they had tried to warn the factory foremen about the cracks spreading in the walls of the unsafe factories, but were told to go to work or they would lose their jobs.

The 2013 Bangladesh Safety Accord

The Rana Plaza disaster caused a stir in the international community and forced consumers to weigh the moral and ethical costs of buying from their favorite brands — such as H & M, Wal-Mart, Gap, Sears, Primark and numerous others. Less than a month after Rana Plaza, these companies began to sign onto a new way of monitoring global garment supply chains: The Bangladesh Fire and Safety Accord. Some of these companies signed voluntarily, others under intense pressure from consumers and unions outraged by the negligence that led to the collapse.

Signatories of the Accord, a legally binding document, promised to ensure that:

  • Independent building fire and safety inspectors would be hired by the workers and their unions instead of hired by employers
  • Signatories would pay for remediation of any safety violations these inspectors found
  • That if brands don’t abide by the rules of the Accord they may face lawsuits in their home countries
  • That brands would support extensive worker training programs to teach workers their rights

The 2018 Bangladesh Safety Accord

The first Accord expired this year, and a second Accord is now seeking signatories. So far, brands such as H & M, Adidas and Primark have signed onto the accord.

Some retailers are noticeably missing from the new Accord. For example, Ikea, (which is included as part of the 2018 Accord because the textile industry is newly being held up to these standards) has expressed resistance to signing the accord, choosing instead to stick to IWAY, their company-wide code-of-conduct.

Abercrombie & Fitch and Sean Combs’ label Sean John are two other holdouts on the Accord.

These companies insist that corporate social responsibility codes will be sufficient to protect workers in their supply chains. But repeatedly, independent experts have found that only worker-driven corporate responsibility codes have brought real improvements in factory safety standards and other measures of good working conditions: limiting supervisor abuses of workers, beatings, sexual harassment etc.

What’s New in the 2018 Accord

According to the Bangladesh Safety Accord website, the new elements of the 2018 Accord are:

  • Safety Committee and Safety training in all covered factories (no tiers)
  • Training and Complaints Protocol to cover Freedom of Association rights (tbd) (In other words, workers must be allowed to organize and join unions.)
  • Workers’ severance payments when factories close or relocate (a common practice in the globalized garment industry. Corporations simply relocate–often failing to pay their workers–instead of raising wages, lowering hours or making safety repairs.)
  • It expands the scope of the Accord: for the first time including workers in home textiles; fabric and knit accessories; and there is talk of expanding further potentially to other industries (including consumer electronics)
  • It proposes to institutionalize Accord functions in a national regulatory body.

The Good News

The results of the Bangladesh Safety Accord have been momentous. In her book, “We Are All Fast-Food Workers Now” The Global Uprising Against Poverty Wages,” Annelise Orleck, author and History Professor at Dartmouth College, writes that “Before the accord, an average of two hundred workers were dying every year in Bangladesh garment factories. In 2013, the death toll was much higher. In 2016-2017, there were zero deaths.”

Orleck writes that in the four years since the Accord was signed, “1,600 factories were inspected, 100,000 safety improvements were made, and there were 7,000 follow-ups to monitor improvements.” 

While wage increases are not guaranteed in the Accord, the agreement is helping workers feel safer about speaking up in a country where the minimum wage is still just 32 cents an hour. It is hopeful that in the next few years, the Accord will continue to be successful, and that workers will no longer risk arrest for joining unions, negotiating better conditions and pay, and resisting sexual violence and sexual harassment in the workplace.

– Evann Orleck-Jetter
Photo: Flickr