Archive for category: Global Poverty

Key articles and information on global poverty.

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Government Calls for Women’s Empowerment in Angola

Women's Empowerment in AngolaAs a country that experienced war until 2002, women’s empowerment in Angola was a neglected subject until recently. In 2009, the Angolan Executive began to implement the goals of the Beijing Platform for Action, which promotes gender equality and basic human rights.

Laws and Programs

In response to the Beijing Platform for Action and a desire to bridge the gender gap, Angola enforced several new laws. The Labour Code, the Family Code, the HIV/AIDS laws and the Nationality Law were all designed specifically to end the disparities in employment, land ownership, health and basic human rights between genders.

Following the laws, the National Development Plan for 2013-2017 was implemented in Angola to ensure equal opportunities were extended to men and women economically, socially, culturally and politically.

The government of Angola designed the Programme of Support to Gender and Women Promotion, Support to Victims of Violence, Valorization of the Family and Community Development and Rural Women Promotion. All programs are meant to target specific areas that act as barriers to women’s empowerment in Angola.

Literacy

Furthermore, beginning in 2013, USAID aided Angola through a project called Basic Education – Triumphant Women and Youth Project, which teaches literacy and strives to eliminate all illiteracy in Angola by 2025. USAID designated $1.2 million to the project, promoting Angolan’s access to the project’s classes.

In 2015 alone, around 500 Angolan women earned their two-year literacy diplomas. The Women and Youth Project has provided 5,600 women with adult courses, while also increasing the enrollment rates of students in primary schools. The project also supplies students with textbooks and other school materials.

Through literacy and education, women become much closer to ending gendered discrimination.

Ensuring Jobs

Since 2015, Africa has sought to include more females in the workplace. Through a project called Power Africa, female participation in the power and energy sectors has increased.

Women gain skills in business, electrical engineering, communication or salesman services. Power Africa is providing women with networking opportunities and a chance to rise to higher positions. Ending gender discrimination in the workplace throughout all of Africa is key to Angolan economic success.

Combining the equality efforts of the government, organizations like USAID and Africa’s overall influence, there has been a kickstart to the country’s goals of achieving gender equality and women’s empowerment in Angola.

– Brianna White

Photo: Flickr

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Women’s Empowerment in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Women's Empowerment in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Located in Central Africa, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has experienced several decades of war, rebellions and civil strife between communities. While peace has been established throughout the majority of the country, the eastern provinces of the DRC remain areas in which gender-based violence frequently occurs. Recent nationwide surveys have indicated that 57 percent of Congolese women have suffered extreme physical or sexual violence, including rape. The issue continues to be exacerbated by a culture of impunity and gender-based violence; highlighting the need for women’s empowerment in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The issue of gender-based violence continues to be perpetuated through several key factors:

  1. Women care for an average of four children
  2. The average daily income of a woman in the DRC is $0.74
  3. 57 percent of women have no formal education
  4. Congolese culture perpetuates harmful gender discrimination

These factors place women at heightened risk for gender-based violence and exploitation as a result of their socioeconomic position and cultural norms.

What is being done to help

Women for Women International is an organization that works in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to empower women through a yearlong program. Since 2004, the organization has served 91,000 women ranging in ages 31-40. Throughout the course of the program, Congolese women are taught skills in a wide range of fields including agribusiness, basket-making, restaurant and catering and small business. By teaching women these skills, Women for Women International saw an increase from $0.74 to $1.22 in the average daily earnings of women. While this is a small improvement, the organization is actively trying to improve the livelihood of the Congolese women they serve through skill building, education of their rights as women and advocacy.

The organization also attempts to engage Congolese men as part of the widespread social change that is occurring across the country. The team that works in the DRC has developed a program for men by providing them with knowledge about health, and social and economic issues that can negatively affect women. To date, they have had close to 10,000 men participate.

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) understands the need for women’s empowerment in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The UNFPA helps to aid survivors of sexual violence by providing them with medical care, economic and social rehabilitation and legal assistance. They also have trained thousands of armed forces on how to protect and care for survivors. Since the UNFPA arrived in the DRC, over 15,000 sexual violence survivors have received basic medical care.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) also did a tremendous amount of work in 2014 and 2015 to encourage women’s empowerment in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. They provided medical treatment, psychosocial support and life skills training to over 9,000 survivors of sexual violence. They also provided economic programming to improve economic capabilities for close to 16,000 women.

The work of these organizations and agencies have had profound implications for women’s empowerment in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Their efforts have helped to shift cultural norms and provide women with the necessary skills and services to overcome the violence they have experienced.

– Sarah Jane Fraser

Photo: Flickr

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The Success of Humanitarian Aid to Burundi

Humanitarian Aid to Burundi
The 10.4 million people living in Burundi suffered through civil war conflict that began in 1994 and lasted for 12 years. Ongoing violence has since kept Burundi one of the poorest and hungriest countries in the world. In 2015, the political and social unrest reached a tipping point when a contested presidential election plunged the country into its worst crisis yet. Humanitarian aid to Burundi was threatened after donors suspended funding to the government following human rights violations and negligent use of funds. Fortunately, organizations have been focused on finding other ways to aid Burundi citizens and refugees.

After suspending governmental aid in 2016, the European Union has been redirecting humanitarian aid to Burundi by concentrating its efforts on local populations and civil society. Over 90 percent of Burundi’s population depends on agriculture, based mainly on subsistence farming, one of the main contributors to its GDP. The European Development Fund has allocated $500 million in aid. The funding will be used to support sustainable rural development, benefiting nutrition, health and energy, and helping Burundi citizens support themselves.

The U.N. Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has partnered with singer Beyoncé to launch BEYGOOD4BURUNDI, a partnership dedicated to providing safe water in Burundi. Over the next few years, the program will improve water sanitation facilities in schools, provide hygiene education and construct new wells equipped with hand pumps. Access to clean water will prevent transmission of water-borne diseases, one of the leading causes of death of children in Burundi. The risk of attack on young girls will also be lowered, as they will no longer have to travel for miles to find water.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has released an extensive regional response plan to organize global humanitarian aid to Burundi. After receiving aid from countries all over the world, the humanitarian response plan is already about 88 percent funded and is focusing its efforts on providing education, food, safety and economic growth in Burundi.

While providing humanitarian aid to Burundi without the full cooperation of their government is a challenge, organizations have found ways to directly help villages sustain themselves, help more children receive education, improve health and hygiene to help prevent disease, and give access to safe water.

– Jenae Atwell

Photo: Flickr

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Five Development Projects in Indonesia

Development Projects in Indonesia
Indonesia, a country known for its large economy and diverse population, is home to 243 million people. Previously, the country dealt with an autocratic leader and has had many issues with corruption. However, the country’s newest president, Joko Widodo, wants to make the country more democratic. With poverty affecting 11 percent of the population and many people living in “near poverty”, several development projects in Indonesia have been working toward solutions.

Here are five development projects in Indonesia that are addressing different issues in order to make the country better for its citizens.

The National Program for Community Empowerment (PNPM Mandiri)

PNPM Mandiri works within the poorest communities in Indonesia to help develop villages. By engaging in these projects, community members have access to employment and help their community’s infrastructure. It is a flagship community organization for the government. The program also teaches others how to plan communities and apply the practices elsewhere in Indonesia. The program is now operational in 70,000 communities throughout 33 provinces.

Asian Development Bank’s Microfinance Program

As a way to invest in communities, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) started a microfinance program to help small businesses in North Sumatra. The program was originally intended to help businesses after the 2004 earthquake and tsunami. Instead of having a bank, representatives visit communities and give presentations where business owners can get loans. This enables businesses to expand and allows people to get loans that they thought they could not have gotten before. The microfinance program provides “finance that changes lives.”

Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) in Jakarta

The MRT is an infrastructure development project aimed to relieve traffic congestion. It is being built by the Jakarta government and it will be completed in 2027 with a construction cost of over $1 billion. This project is going to impact almost 500,000 people daily so they can travel efficiently to their jobs and improve the economy.

IFAD in Indonesia

Similar to the ADB microfinance program, IFAD invests in the rural sector. IFAD focuses on investing in remote and vulnerable areas. It has invested over $400 million into Indonesia since 1980 and helps establish public-private partnerships. It places an emphasis on smallholders in these communities.

The Legal Empowerment and Assistance for the Disadvantaged (LEAD) Project

This program works to ensure that the most marginalized in Indonesia are given the proper rights and treatment. The LEAD Project aims to spread awareness of legal rights regarding government services and legal claims. As a result, policies have been strengthened and government officials have been more responsive to marginalized communities claiming rights and bringing up legal issues.

Indonesia has issues that span the rural and urban areas as well as in the spheres of legal and human rights. These 5 development projects in Indonesia will benefit the people as the country continues to progress.

– Emilia Beuger

Photo: Flickr

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Drought Affecting Water Quality in Somalia

water quality in SomaliaFor a country whose entire eastern border is an ocean, water quality in Somalia is a longstanding worry for the nation’s citizens. According to UNICEF Somalia’s Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) studies, of the nearly 15 million people living in Somalia, only 45 percent of them have access to clean water. Only one in four people have access to adequate sanitation facilities within a reasonable distance of their homes.

WASH has linked the lack of clean water and sanitation facilities to the rising disease rates in Somalia, most notably, the widespread prevalence of widespread waterborne diseases such as diarrhea that account for more than 20 percent of deaths of children under five. Additionally, the lack of clean water is heavily correlated to malnourishment, which over 300,000 children in Somalia are currently suffering from.

While having clean drinking water is imperative to survival, the disposal of wastewater (water used for cooking, bathing, sewage and other uses) is nearly as important to providing a safe and clean environment for Somalians to live in. Considering that the infrastructure to dispose of wastewater is severely lacking in Somalia, and the fact that most Somalians rely on rivers and rainwater for water (natural sources which are highly prone to contamination by wastewater), it is little surprise that so many Somalians lack adequate drinking water.

Estimates indicate that it would cost $1.5 billion to provide clean water to all Somalians that would not be dependent on weather patterns, droughts or possible contamination by wastewater. While by no means a small sum, it is also not an outrageous one, and one that is being decreased by efforts to improve Somalian irrigation techniques, harvesting and storing cleaner rainwater, as well as other methods to help Somalia use less water more efficiently.

These efforts, however, are only made tougher due to the twofold threat of the terrorist organization al-Shabaab, which controls much of rural Somalia, where the lack of clean water is felt most severely, and the harsh drought and famine that is currently sweeping the country. While food and water supplies are already running low, al-Shabaab puts up blockades and refuses to let aid workers assist the starving and thirsty people. In March, the Somali prime minister reported that over a hundred people had died as a result of the drought, and that number has likely only continued to worsen as concerns over the water quality in Somalia continue to linger.

Organizations such as UNICEF have stepped up to combat the water shortages by providing medical services and other necessities. Most pressingly, UNICEF was providing over 400,000 people with daily water as of early 2017. Members of the group hope and plan to increase that number fourfold and provide water vouches to well over a million people.

USAID has already committed more than $300 million towards humanitarian assistance in Somalia for 2017. Much of that money is devoted to assisting the UNICEF WASH programs and activities already underway; however, the Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance has involved itself in an attempt to address the emergency caused by the drought through other initiatives. This assistance is key to helping those affected survive the droughts and allow time for more sustainable solutions to be put in place to improve the water quality in Somalia.

– Erik Halberg

Photo: Flickr

Poverty in France Divides Rich and Poor

poverty in FrancePoverty in France is rising once again, creating a larger financial gap between citizens. The poverty rate in France is around 14 percent, totaling 8.7 million people, according to a COMPAS study in 2012. Border towns are seeing percentages closer to 49 percent, while wealthier cities have rates as low as 7 percent.

In 2012, some metropolitan areas saw higher rates of poverty. The inequality gaps were most obvious in Paris, Hauts-de-Seine and Haute-Savoie. Single parents, large families and young family households had the highest rates of poverty in France.

This escalation of poverty in France is concerning in regards to the percentage of children that are living under the poverty line. 8.8 percent of children are living in a household that makes less than 50 percent of the national median income. This is an increase to three million children in France living under the poverty line.

Education, health and social and professional integration are areas of concern regarding children in France. Migrant children are deprived of most of these basic rights, living in slums and experiencing more severe discrimination and no ability to gain French aid. Children in these impoverished households in France lack a way out of poverty, leaving it up to the state to provide aid.

In 1989, France adopted the Human Rights Council’s (HRC) resolution which drew a link between extreme poverty and human rights. Through this council, principles were adopted to reduce and eradicate extreme poverty by looking at how to respect, protect and realize the human rights of people living in extreme poverty.

While the HRC exists, many of the French aid programs do not specifically target poverty and the need to reduce domestic poverty. France participates in foreign aid policies and programs, such as the Development Assistance Committee of OECD, but domestic aid by the state is left mainly to the Human Rights Council and a few other organizations.

The organizations that are combating poverty in France are mainly grassroots foundations. One foundation is the Action Contre La Faim, or Action Against Hunger, founded in 1979 by French intellectuals to eradicate hunger worldwide after seeing the issues caused by the emergency in Afghanistan. Another French charity, Antenna Technologies, works locally and internationally to simplify technologies to make them more accessible to the most underprivileged populations, while also fighting malnutrition and supplying access to drinking water.

People within France are taking action through organizations to fight poverty. Through these efforts, malnourishment, water scarcity, sanitation and education are being addressed and progress is being made. Their continued work can help improve the lives of those most in need in France.

– Bronti DeRoche

Photo: Flickr

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Five Development Projects in the Dominican Republic

Development Projects in the Dominican RepublicThe Dominican Republic has many ongoing development projects occurring throughout the country. Some projects are government-funded, while others are funded by nonprofits or international organizations, like the World Bank. In a country with 10.2 million people, there are still many living in poverty and many who are underprivileged. The tourist economy does a lot to benefit the nation, but more needs to be done to meet the needs of the people. Here are five development projects in the Dominican Republic that aim to help the people of the country. 

The World Bank’s Dominican Republic Youth Development Program

The stated goal of the program is to “[improve] the employability of poor, at-risk youth by building their work experience and life skills and expanding second chance education programs to complete their formal education.” The program aims to improve job opportunities, access to education and social protections.

Through participating in the project, youth learn basic workforce skills and attain an education. The program has been fairly successful as it has met most of the intermediate result indicators. Thus far, not all the goals have been met: one goal is that 70 percent of students obtain a new degree, but so far only 63 percent have. However, the initial results indicate that the program has had a positive impact on youth and has taken a significant step forward to bolstering the job force in the Dominican Republic.

The Peace Corps’ Education Program

The Peace Corps has been working on improving Spanish among children in the Dominican Republic. This program has led to the collaboration between teachers and Peace Corps volunteers to help students succeed. Specifically, the project aims to address Spanish literacy, with a primary goal to involve the community so that students can learn to read and write in their language.

The DREAM Project

The DREAM Project was founded in order to make up for the lack of resources in schools of the Dominican Republic. Their programs consist of working with children in early childhood education and primary school education, as well as contributing to a holistic youth development. They also have summer camps and vocational training. According to the DREAM Project’s website, the organization “provides more than 800,000 hours of quality education to more than 7,500 children through 14 different programs across 27 communities in the Dominican Republic.”

USAID’s Dominican Republic Sustainable Tourism Alliance

Although the Dominican Republic has a large tourism industry, the industry has had negative impacts on the local community and environment of the island. In order to combat poverty and environmental issues, USAID created the Dominican Republic Sustainable Tourism Alliance (DSTA) to develop a more sustainable tourism industry.

The DSTA works to improve environmental management capabilities as well as stimulating tourism efforts through sustainable operations and the development of marketing and sales strategies. The “all-inclusive” model that the tourism industry currently has is changing quickly under this development project.

Project HOPE

Project HOPE works to combat the high maternal and infant mortality rates in the Dominican Republic. The organization just opened its third maternal child health clinic in 2017. The organization regularly works with the Dominican Association of the Order of Malta to train workers to care for mothers and children.

Thousands of women and children have been positively affected by the care provided by the organization and its partners. In addition to its work with maternal mortality, the organization has worked on village health bank programs and provided HIV/AIDS education and counseling.

Many organizations are concerned with developing job opportunities for the citizens of the Dominican Republic. They aim to bolster the economy and train a future working class. These five development projects in the Dominican Republic operate across several sectors to help the nation achieve long-lasting self-sufficiency and prosperity.

– Emilia Beuger

Photo: Flickr

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U.S. Colleges Provide Education to Puerto Rican Students

Despite having occurred nearly two months ago, Hurricane Maria, a category five hurricane, wreaked havoc on Puerto Rico, with relief efforts unable to catch up with the severity of the storm. In the day after the storm, the entire island had lost power, five percent of the island had cell service and only 40 percent of gas stations were equipped with supplies. Forty-five days later, only 41 percent of the island has power, 92 percent has cell service and 84 percent of gas stations are up and running.

The catastrophic nature of the storm has also had implications for education. Three weeks after the storm, nearly half of all primary and secondary schools on the island remained closed. College students, too, have been displaced by the storm, making it impossible for them to gain access to education on the island. However, U.S. colleges have sought to ameliorate this problem by providing education to Puerto Rican students for the Spring 2018 semester.

In the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Maria, some students had already started classes by rerouting themselves to Florida, where tuition discounts were being offered to those whose home institutions were unable to reopen. For Puerto Rican and U.S. Virgin Islands students, the State University of New York system, which includes schools like Binghamton, Purchase and Geneseo, made the decision to reduce their tuition to the rate of New York state residents. Rather than pay nearly $40,000 a year to attend, student rates would be approximately $25,000, leaving more fluidity for family assets to go toward home reparation, water access, etc.

Other large U.S. universities have also offered to provide education to Puerto Rican students starting in the spring. Tulane University, Brown University, Cornell University and New York University each have opened their doors to students from Puerto Rico. New York University will provide 50 students with free tuition, housing, health insurance and a meal plan for the spring semester. Tulane opened its doors to Puerto Rican students tuition-free. Cornell offered up to 58 students from the University of Puerto Rico (UPR) free tuition, room and board. Finally, Brown University shared that they would offer similar amenities plus assistance with travel to students at UPR.

Liberal arts colleges, too, have offered Puerto Rican and U.S. Virgin Islands students the opportunity to attend for the spring semester. Amherst College—one of the top liberal arts colleges in the nation—has offered to cover tuition and fees, room and board, books, transportation, health insurance and students’ spring tuition at their home institutions. Though their program is similar to that offered by other institutions, Amherst’s is unique by paying the students’ home schools for their missed semesters so as not to financially detriment them, as well.

In looking to provide education to Puerto Ricans affected by Hurricane Maria, these programs will manage to accommodate a wide number of students who may otherwise not be able to gain access to education for the spring semester. With continued support to the island nation, by the end of the year, education to Puerto Rican students of all ages will be back on track.

– Emily Chazen

Photo: Flickr

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Treating Cardiovascular Diseases in Impoverished Countries

Cardiovascular diseases cause a large number of deaths around the world. Unfortunately, treating cardiovascular diseases in impoverished countries can be difficult. In the African country Cameroon, there are only about 50 cardiologists for about 20 million people. The Cardiopad is an innovative technology that aims to alleviate this problem.

The location of doctors throughout Cameroon tends to disadvantage those who live in rural areas. In the villages around the suburbs, there are general practitioners who treat the villagers. A large number of these practitioners do not have a specialization, so they cannot do much beyond recommending patients go see a specialist if they believe they need one.

If a patient is experiencing chest pains or shows symptoms of a cardiovascular disease, they make an appointment to see a cardiologist in the city. Because there are so few cardiologists, it can take months before they are seen, and many will die before seeing a specialist.

Arthur Zang, the inventor of the Cardiopad, noticed this issue and set out to fix it. Zang understood that going to see a doctor from the Cameroon villages was difficult, so he invented a way to lessen the need to make a trip to the city. He created the Cardiopad, a tablet device with electrodes that can give a 97.5 percent accurate reading of the heart. Essentially, it is a mobile electrodiagram (ECG).

Although Zang provided general practitioners with the tools to perform a heart scan, they still do not have the proper training to interpret the scans themselves. The information gathered from the Cardiopad is actually sent to the national data center, and it is then received by the cardiologists in the city. Once the cardiologists receive the heart scan, they can interpret the results to see what kind of treatment is needed and can send treatment recommendations back to the general practitioner. The process that would ordinarily take many months can now be done within 20 minutes.

This is a phenomenal step forward for diagnosing and treating cardiovascular diseases in impoverished countries. Now, even in rural Cameroon, local practitioners can work with cardiologists and can properly diagnose and treat cardiovascular diseases.

Furthermore, the technology eases the economic burden of traveling and medical expenses for patients. The Cardiopad only costs $29 a year to use, compared to the staggering costs of going to see a specialist. In this way, the Cardiopad saves time and money for patients in need.

Treating cardiovascular diseases in impoverished countries has become much easier with the Cardiopad. It allows rural residents to get the proper diagnosis they may need in order to save their lives. The Cardiopad is being distributed in Cameroon, India, Gabon and Nepal, and more countries are sure to follow. The Cardiopad can potentially save millions of lives that would have been taken from cardiovascular diseases in impoverished countries.

– Daniel Borjas

Photo: Flickr

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Humanitarian Aid to North Korea After Typhoon Lionrock

In August of 2016, Typhoon Lionrock struck the northeast region of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea). The massive flooding washed away over 30,000 homes, took the lives of hundreds of people and destroyed thousands more lives. The aftermath of the typhoon also left food sources more depleted than they already were. Humanitarian aid to North Korea came in truck-loads, providing shelter relief, food, non-food items and health care supplies to residents.

According to the 2016 Global Hunger Index, 41 percent of North Korea’s residents are undernourished. Along with that, 70 percent of the population relies on food aid. The communist country, unfortunately, has a recurring issue with hunger. In the 1990s, North Korea faced its most deadly famine that resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths.

Since the decade-long famine, the United Nations has reported that humanitarian aid to North Korea has been able to relieve some of the hunger problems, yet natural disasters continue to jeopardize the progress. The flooding North Korea faced from Typhoon Lionrock was declared “the worst disaster” the country had seen since World War II. Without humanitarian aid, the affected parts of the country would be left in ruins.

The United Nations World Food Program was one of the first organizations to enter the country on an emergency food assistance operation. They delivered food to more than 140,000 survivors. The Red Cross also joined in the efforts by providing water purification supplies along with tools and tents to build shelters.

Altogether, the U.N. and NGOs contributed $43.78 million in funding in 2016. Almost $35 million was spent on nutrition and food while the remainder was spent on sanitation services and various other aid-functions.

In September of 2016, as a response to the recent catastrophe, the U.N. and the North Korean government came to an agreement called the United Nations Strategic Framework (UNSF). This framework’s strategy, which was officially put into place in January 2017, is to reduce the need for humanitarian aid by solidifying investments into communities to better prepare them in responding to disasters such as Typhoon Lionrock. This is a five-year plan prioritizing food and nutrition security, social development services, resilience and sustainability and data and development management.

The framework’s overall strategy theme is “sustainable and resilient human development.” It will develop a new kind of approach to recovery and rehabilitation of North Korea. Within the four priorities, UNSF seeks to pursue environmental sustainability, increase the resilience of North Korean people and localize new Sustainable Development Goals in accordance with what is currently happening in North Korea.

For example, there will be plans put in place to know how to respond if another typhoon strikes. As North Korean residents will be more prepared for future disasters, they will rely less on humanitarian aid.

According to the framework, humanitarian aid to North Korea will reduce by 2021. In the meantime, as the country now faces a serious drought jeopardizing its renewing crops, humanitarian aid to North Korea will continually be a hopeful source.

– Brianna Summ

Photo: Flickr