Archive for category: Global Poverty

Key articles and information on global poverty.

Off Grid: Affordable Energy in Sub-Saharan Africa

Affordable Energy in Sub-Saharan AfricaFor decades, the notion of affordable energy in sub-Saharan Africa has been a pipe dream. The region is extremely poor, with the majority of the population simply unable to pay for the energy that could offer opportunities to raise them out of poverty. This may be changing, however, with recent technological developments offering the potential to turn this dream into a reality.

More than 600 million people in sub-Saharan Africa do not have access to electricity, with estimates suggesting that even by 2040, that figure is expected to remain at more than half a billion. The energy infrastructure across the region is chronically underdeveloped, meaning that even those who do have access to power are unable to rely on it. For instance, in 2013, Tanzanian business owners were suggested to lose 15 percent of their business as a result of the frequent power outages. Issues such as this have led many to believe that the electrification of Africa may be the largest development challenge facing our world.

Despite this, numerous suggestions have been made as to how to tackle the problem. While it has limited natural resources in many areas, sub-Saharan Africa has great potential for renewable energy. The most commonly suggested method of taking advantage of this is through solar power, something that has become more and more appealing as the associated costs have decreased in recent years. This being the case, a number of companies have entered the market, offering solar power as a solution to the energy crisis facing the region.

Off Grid Electric is one of these companies, with operations in Tanzania and Rwanda and soon in the Ivory Coast. At the moment, it powers 125,000 homes, gaining an estimated 10,000 new customers per month, and employs around 1,000 people. Although packages may differ, customers generally receive a solar panel, which will be installed on their roof, and a battery-pack that allows them electricity to power lights and small electronics. For customers it is affordable, with basic packages costing near the same per month as a supply of kerosene would, but with more utility and without the health risks.

Access to this type of energy source can completely change the lives of those who use it. In schools, the power sources offer the possibility of getting computers to assist with learning, while lighting at home allows children to study after dark. Farmers are able to receive accurate weather warnings, allowing them to protect for their livestock and crops. Business owners can earn more, whether through being able to stay open longer or being able to communicate with customers by being able to charge their phones. The opportunities that electricity offers for development appear to be almost limitless.

Due to its low costs and easy installation, solar power would seem to be the way forward in providing affordable energy in sub-Saharan Africa. Off Grid Electric, and similar companies, may not be able to solve the problem on their own; however, the initial progress made is promising. With future active investment from the developed world, electrification of the continent seems more a reality than a dream.

– Gavin Callander
Photo: Flickr

The Five Main Causes of Poverty in Cuba

Causes of Poverty in CubaCuba is a unique island nation whose economy has been the subject of contention for decades. It is also a poor country that struggles to provide housing, transportation and other necessities. The Borgen Project outlines five of the main causes of poverty in Cuba.

Top 5 Causes of Poverty in Cuba

1. U.S. Embargo

Following Fidel Castro’s assumption of power in 1961, the U.S. imposed an embargo that abruptly deprived Cuban exporters of the recipient of 95 percent of their exports. Since then, the embargo has strictly restricted Cubans’ access to American products, contributing to shortages of everything from food, to electronics and internet access. The legislation of the embargo even includes sanctions against other countries that do business with Cuba. In this way, the embargo significantly limits Cubans’ access to products, partners and the means to climb out of poverty.

2. Agriculture

Like many developing countries across the world, Cuba has historically depended on agriculture as its main industry. Agricultural dependence often limits countries’ abilities to develop infrastructure and establish economic stability. Until the 1990s, the primary economic driver in Cuba was sugar. Because of this historical reliance on a single crop, Cuba has been ill-prepared to deal with changes in the global economy and to diversify beyond its agricultural roots.

3. Allies

For more than thirty years, Cuba was allied with the former Soviet Union. This relationship created special trading conditions which benefited the Cuban economy. Cuba traded sugar to the USSR for much-needed goods and economic support; but when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, Cuba experienced a 35 percent contraction of its GDP. In a country of only 11 million people, this financial crash was more extreme than the American Great Depression. Cuba has yet to fully recover from this economic blow.

4. Dependence

Cuba’s troubles with the USSR are part of a larger pattern of centralization. For the majority of the country’s history, Cuba depended on a single trading partner for over 90 percent of its foreign trade. Cuba’s exclusive relationship with first the U.S. and then the USSR caused big problems when these partners suddenly disappeared. Cuba also traditionally focused industrially on sugar production; this centralization further limits Cuba’s ability to find sources of revenue to meet the country’s needs.

5. Social Services

Cubans enjoy free health care and education, as well as subsidized housing and food rations. These social benefits form a safety net rare to the developing world and even many developed countries; but these social services come at a cost. Spending on social services can limit the amount of money available to the Cuban government and the Cuban people especially in times of economic crisis.

The causes of poverty in Cuba are similar to those in the rest of Latin America, but Cuba’s unique position also presents the country with some unique challenges. Still, thanks to Cuba’s vigorous social services, many Cubans can count themselves lucky compared to other impoverished nations.

– Bret Anne Serbin

Photo: Pixabay

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How to Help People in Burundi: 3 of the Most Vital Programs

How to Help People in BurundiCitizens of the Republic of Burundi are plagued by malnutrition, unclean water, unsanitary conditions, poor hygiene, low quality education, food scarcity, overpopulation, sexual and gender based violence and child labor. And the question is: why is this crisis prevalent and how can everyday people help? The long-term solution to helping people in Burundi is to fix how monetary resources are allocated by its government.

Seeing as that task is daunting for the layman, the following paragraphs provide information on how to help people in Burundi.

Helping people in Burundi is frankly, difficult. This is because the European Union, Belgium, United States and other western countries have decided to suspend all bilateral aid (when one country’s government gives financial aid to another’s country’s government) to Burundi’s government because of human rights violations and an unwillingness to engage in sincere negotiations for peace.

Prior to the freeze, bilateral aid accounted for about half of Burundi’s overall budget. Lack of bilateral aid will only further hurt the country’s economy, and Burundi’s economy was already one of the least developed in the world.

While bilateral aid has been suspended, humanitarian aid has not. Here are three humanitarian organizations you can donate to in order to help people in Burundi:

1. World Food Programme

People in Burundi need food. The World Food Programme (WFP), the leading humanitarian organization fighting hunger worldwide to help them get that food, needs donations. In Burundi, only 28 percent of the population are food-secure and as many as 58 percent are chronically malnourished. WFP provides hot meals to primary school aged children in food insecure areas to encourage school attendance. Two hundred thousand children currently receive assistance from this program.

WFP also offers food assistance to 70,000 pregnant and nursing women who are underweight 6 months before birth and for up to 3 months after birthing. In addition, WFP provides food to refugees and people living with HIV and AIDS. Finally, WFP teaches locals in Burundi how to be more efficient in agriculture through its Food-for-Training/Food for Assets program.

Three hundred and fifty thousand people are being taught infrastructure development, how to rehabilitate deforested areas, agro-forestry and micro-economic training.

2. BeyGOOD

People in Burundi need access to clean water. Donate to Beyonce’s organization, BeyGOOD. BeyGOOD is working with UNICEF to supply safe water to people in Burundi. A statement on Beyonce’s website states: “With your help, nearly half a million people will gain access to safe water, as BEYGOOD4BURUNDI and UNICEF will support building water supply systems for healthcare facilities and schools, and the drilling of boreholes, wells and springs to bring safe water to districts.”

Donation gifts range from $3.11 for a collapsible 68-ounce water container for one person to $1,430.06 for a water tank kit for 1,000 people.

3. The Burundi Education Fund 

People in Burundi need better quality education. Poverty and hunger have made it difficult for students to obtain an education. After the 6th grade, the Burundi Educational System simply does not have the room or resources to place children in schools. This results in students having to compete to be selected for the next grade by taking difficult placement tests. In some cases even if the student passes the test, he or she cannot move further in education due to the inability to afford tuition fees or school supplies.

The Burundi Education Fund, Inc. is a charitable Christian organization formed to provide materials and financial support to students and schools in extreme poverty in Burundi, Africa.

Specific successes of the organization that have helped students obtain their education include building a 26-bed dormitory safe house for the girls of Muramba High School, a running water fountain that provides clean drinking water to more than 1,900 students in the Mubimbi district and supporting a transfer student program.

The highly selective transfer program offers high school students a chance to continue their education in the U.S.

These are the most vital examples on how to help people in Burundi. The organizations above are addressing key needs of Burundian people’s lives that help them to obtain their basic human rights. While helping the people of Burundi may seem daunting, to be a responsible global citizen one must not turn a blind eye to tactics that can help others improve their quality of life.

Take action today and help one of the world’s poorest and hungriest nations become food and wealth secure.

– Jeanine Thomas

Photo: Flickr

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The Five Most Common Diseases in the Netherlands

Common Diseases in the NetherlandsThe Netherlands is located in Northwestern Europe and has a population of about 17 million. Non-communicable diseases, like in many other parts of the world, increasingly affect the Dutch and cause about 90 percent of deaths in the country. The following are the most common diseases in the Netherlands.

1. Neoplasms

The Netherlands has the 12th highest rate of cancer in the world, in part due to increased awareness and diagnosis. Thirty-three percent of deaths in the country are due to cancer. Lung cancer is the most prevalent, followed by breast cancer and intestinal cancer. Skin cancer and pancreatic cancer cases also are increasing, and, between 2005 and 2015, the mortality rate of pancreatic cancer increased by 12 percent.

During that same period, the mortality rate of lung cancer, which is especially common because of smoking, increased by six percent. The premature death rates and prevalence of lung cancer, pancreatic cancer and breast cancer are significantly higher in the Netherlands than in similar countries.

2. Cardiovascular Disease (CVD)

CVD causes 29 percent of deaths in the Netherlands. Although the mortality rate of CVD has declined since the second half of the 20th century, the burden remains. Ischemic heart disease is especially crippling to the country. In 2007, it was estimated that about 730,400 people were living with ischemic heart disease.

3. Chronic Respiratory Diseases

Chronic respiratory diseases cause six percent of deaths. Lung diseases in the Netherlands are especially prevalent because of the high percentage of smokers. About 28 percent of people in the country smoke. Because of this, there are roughly 23,000 lung related deaths per year and over one million lung patients.

In addition to lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is also prevalent in the county. Between 2005 and 2015, the mortality rate of COPD increased by 9.5 percent. The premature death rate is significantly higher in the Netherlands compared to similar countries. COPD can lead to emphysema and chronic bronchitis.

4. Mental and Behavioral Disorders

Mental health is important to recognize in the Netherlands. Depressive disorders are a leading cause of death and disability in the country. In 2014, about eight percent of the population claimed to be suffering from depression, accounting for more than one million people.

5. Alzheimer’s Disease

Dementia affects 1.47 percent of the Dutch population. In 2012, about 245,568 people lived with dementia. Alzheimer’s disease is especially common as the mortality rate increased by 18.6 percent between 2005 and 2015. Risk factors of Alzheimer’s include age, genetics, traumatic brain injury and mild cognitive impairment. Research also suggests that cardiovascular disease and education level may be linked to the disease.

Poor lifestyle choices are commonly associated to many of these diseases. Smoking, for example, is a major risk factor and something that should be recognized when addressing rates of diseases such as lung cancer and COPD. Improving health education is one step in helping decrease the rates of these common diseases in the Netherlands.

– Francesca Montalto

Photo: Flickr

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Increasing Political Participation for Women in Iran

Women in IranOn May 19th this year, Iranians held presidential and local elections in their country. This particular election saw an increase in registered women candidates, along with the number of elected women officials, bringing hope and giving voice to women in Iran at both the national and local level.

In some parts of the country, there was a 34 percent decrease in the number of women elected compared to 2013; however, although the number decreased in 16 provincial capitals, 3 remained the same, while 11, including Tehran, saw increases in women being elected to councils. Iran’s Sistan-Balochistan province—an underdeveloped and impoverished area in the southeast of Iran with the highest percentage of illiterate girls and women in the country—saw a total of 415 women elected to office. In a village called Afzalabad located in the province’s Khash district, all of the 10 elected candidates were women.

Some of the concerns that women in Iran campaigned on included women’s civic engagement, citizens’ rights, employment, education, health and social security and welfare.

Recently, Iran’s newly reelected president Hassan Rouhani has been under pressure to appoint female ministers to his cabinet. During his last term, his all-male list of ministers disappointed his followers, even though he appointed a number of women to vice-president positions. Despite this, Shahindokht Molaverdi, Rouhani’s vice-president for women and family affairs, has won support among women’s rights advocates in Iran.

Ghonchech Ghavami, a leading women’s rights activist based out of Tehran, has said that “this structure has eliminated women on the excuse of meritocracy and experience but it looks like that main criteria for them is being male. That’s why appointing female ministers is symbolically important and would send a powerful signal in a country where politics still originates from men.”

One may find it surprising, though, that Iran as a whole has near-universal female literacy: women make up the majority (60 percent) of university students, as well as the majority of graduates earning degrees in science (68 percent). Furthermore, women in Iran are consistently outperforming their male counterparts.

Workplace biases in general are very much alive for women in Iran, and these biases often compel employers to hire male workers that are of identical or even lesser qualifications than their female counterparts. Although women in Iran have been as whole increasing their political participation within their government, they clearly still have a long way to go before achieving true gender equality.

– Sara Venusti

Photo: Flickr/span>

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Five Facts About Period Poverty

Period PovertyOftentimes when we think of poverty, food insecurity and homelessness come to mind. What we don’t necessarily think about is the inability to afford toiletries and items such as tampons and pads – and, the reality is, people are often too ashamed or embarrassed to bring up the topic of menstrual cycles. Forty million women and girls around the world are affected by period poverty, and the silence must come to an end. Here are five facts about period poverty that are important to talk about:

  1. A year’s supply of sanitary products in the United States costs more than $70. In the U.K., there is a five percent tax on period products – in total, sanitary products cost over 5,000 pounds in a lifetime.
  2. Lack of affordability and information have led many young women to use only one tampon per day or one pad for multiple days. When proper products are not available or affordable, women are often forced to use alternatives such as socks, dishrags and newspapers during their cycles.
  3. Lack of menstrual hygiene can lead to very serious health risks such as Toxic Shock Syndrome, a life-threatening illness. In Bangladesh, India and many other countries, infections and cervical cancer are also results of poor hygiene.
  4. Many girls from low-income families around the world are skipping school because they cannot afford tampons or pads. Missing school during menstrual cycles has been a well-known pattern in developing countries, like Kenya, for years. Now, the reality is setting in that this is a trend for low-income girls everywhere, including the Western world.
  5. The stigma surrounding periods has been shown to directly affect a girl’s potential to succeed. If a girl misses school every time she has her period, she is set 145 days behind her fellow male students. Even then, most girls in the developing world choose to drop out of school altogether rather than face the embarrassment and shame of being unprepared for their periods.

Unfortunately, many people fail to recognize the effects that period poverty have on young women and girls. In times of uncertainty, sanitary needs come secondary, or even tertiary, to finding food and shelter. While this is understandable, a few organizations such as Freedom4Girls and Bloody Good Period, and many others, are fighting back against period poverty.

One of the biggest defenses against period poverty is to start a conversation and stop the stigma.

– Madeline Boeding

Photo: Flickr

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Solar-Powered Lanterns Boost Grades for Kenyan Students

Solar Powered LanternsMore than one billion people around the world do not have access to electricity, as is the case in northern Kenya. When the sun sets, many families and health facilities rely on kerosene lamps as a source of light. These, however, are a major hazard, especially for young students who need to be able to study late into the night. Not only do they cause a fire hazard but they can also cause a strain on vision and respiratory problems.

The Panasonic Corporation began The Solar Lantern Project to provide a safer alternative for light in northern Kenya. The company donated more than 2,000 solar-powered lanterns to schools and clinics in the counties of Samburu and Isiolo.

The solar-powered lanterns have become a huge success in the schools of northern Kenya. They are recharged there during the day and are taken home by students at night to allow them to study and complete their homework. Students are not risking their health when they use the lamps.

Parents of students in northern Kenya can save almost two percent of their monthly expenses when their child brings home the solar-powered lanterns. In an interview conducted by Medium, a Kenyan mother stated that she “had to spend 20 shillings on kerosene every day.” Thanks to the solar-powered lanterns, she saves “around 1,000 shillings a month.”

Solar energy has become a popular alternative to electricity in many poor countries. It is accessible anywhere and an alternative source that is sustainable. According to research conducted by the International Energy Agency, “enough solar energy falls on the surface of the earth every 90 minutes to meet the entire planet’s energy needs for a year.”

The environment also benefits from using the Panasonic solar-powered lanterns instead of kerosene lamps. The fumes that come from burning kerosene contaminate the air and only further global warming. If one million lamps are in use by the end of 2018, they are “expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by over 30,000 tonnes between 2014 and 2018.”

Panasonic’s solar-powered lanterns may seem like a small solution, but they are allowing students to learn better and more safely outside of the classroom. The benefits of these lamps will continue to improve poverty in Kenya, slowly, but at least in the right direction.

– Mackenzie Fielder

Photo: Flickr

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Cash on Delivery Could Be the Future of Foreign Aid

Cash on DeliveryCash on Delivery is a new approach to foreign aid that incentivizes turning laws and legislation into action. It works to strengthen government accountability to its citizens rather than the donor. It is a way that donors can pay for progress rather than set the platform for it.

Cash on Delivery works to provide funding for measurable development so that foreign aid can be more focused on results rather than disbursements. It is this type of results-based aid that is arising from the wonder of why money is being spent overseas rather than on local hospitals if results aren’t the main goal.

In the case of health funding, many developing countries such as Rwanda and Burundi are adopting this type of approach by setting a health standard and receiving, for example, $100 for every child at or above that standard.

Cash on Delivery aid (COD), named after a mail delivery option where you pay for the package upon delivery, is being crowned as the most refined form of results-based aid. It fosters a hands-off approach to development, providing the incentive to progress where the country can use all tools at it needs as long as results are generated.

As many believe foreign aid has long been plagued by micromanagement and transparent contracts, this hands-off approach encourages countries to make their own process decisions and remain independent both culturally and politically.

No more is the time when countries are forced to take fees for basic health services or resources for schools. By giving the decision-making power to the country, aid will be in service of the citizens rather than the donors.

The criticisms of this program lie in the potential risk and short-term feel, but the advantages lie with a more self-sustaining approach to progress. Providing the incentive and the tools to progress may prove just as valuable as the funding itself. Cash on Delivery may just be the future of aid.

– Tucker Hallowell

Photo: Flickr

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In Happiness and in Health: Causes of Poverty in Nicaragua

Causes of Poverty in NicaraguaNicaragua is the second poorest country in Latin America, behind only Haiti. Recently, the World Bank cautioned that poverty is still rampant in Nicaragua and that it “is still one of the least developed nations in Latin America, a country where access to essential services is still a daily struggle.”

Indeed, as of 2014, the national poverty rate was at 29.6 percent. What’s more, though overall poverty in Nicaragua has dropped significantly in the past 12 years, extreme poverty (earning less than $1 a day) is reported to be on the rise, going from 7.6 to 9.5 percent between 2012 and 2013. What are the causes of poverty in Nicaragua? Why does an already struggling country only seem to be getting worse, according to international studies and statistics?

According to a survey cited by the Tico Times, one reason for recent rises in poverty could be lowered export prices on agricultural goods. Much of the country is dependent on temporary farm work and agricultural products such as coffee, and as prices dip, jobs are lost and people struggle to gain a foothold as labor opportunities become harder to find.

Another reason may be stagnant enrollment in education. UNICEF estimates that around 500,000 children between the ages of three and 17 are not enrolled in any formal education. To add to the problem, the number of school-aged children in Nicaragua is at roughly two million, equal to a third of the country’s total population.

However, the causes of poverty in Nicaragua are beginning to be addressed. According to the Tico Times, “the government earmarked $1.3 billion – more than half its official budget – to finance anti-poverty programs and free health and education services. Venezuelan aid also has helped fund programs for the distribution of roof sheeting, financial credits, low-cost housing and food packages for the poor.”

What’s more, the 2017 World Happiness Report noted that Nicaragua had made the largest gains in overall happiness out of 155 countries analyzed.

To trace all the causes of poverty in Nicaragua is a complicated job. As the government continues to fund anti-poverty programs and foreign aid continues to pour in, it seems Nicaragua is on the precipice of moving away from the abysmal poverty rate it now has.

It will take more than mere happiness to combat poverty, but the groundwork has been laid. As global poverty rates continue to fall and markets continue to rise, Nicaragua just may be able to pull itself out of poverty.

– Joseph Dover

Photo: Google

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How to Help People in Iraq from the US

How to Help People in IraqWhile the people of Iraq certainly underwent extreme oppression under the former totalitarian leader Saddam Hussein, the United States’ stated mission to spread democracy by overthrowing Hussein and invading the country in 2003 has not proven to be a success by many standards.

While it has indisputably achieved important strategic military objectives, former President George W. Bush’s decision to do this has also cost U.S. taxpayers over $2 trillion thus far, resulted in approximately half a million civilian and combat casualties, devastated the quality of life for millions of Iraqi citizens and unfortunately, it does not appear to be a conflict that will be ending anytime soon.

Perhaps the two most damaging results of this conflict for Iraqi society have been the decline of education and widespread health problems and mental illness, both of which are byproducts of the violence taking place across the nation.

Fortunately, organizations and individuals across the globe have recognized these problems and have become actively involved determining how to help people in Iraq. Listed below are these two problems, the methods in which certain humanitarian organizations are seeking to combat them and also ways in which the average citizen can help to be a part of the solution.

Education
Education is necessary for the stability of any society, and, generally speaking, provides children with a safe and healthy socialization process, which is why it is important to consider the fact that roughly 3.5 million children in Iraq attend school infrequently, if at all.

From 2011 to 2013, the British Council and members of the European Union supported a project called the Support to Improving the Quality of Education in Iraq program, which was intended to improve educational conditions in Iraq. The project cost approximately $10 million and implemented programs designed to provide resources, improve teaching skills and develop high-quality curriculums. Overall, the project was a success, allowing 800,000 students of all ages in southern and central Iraq access to a quality education.

Another organization that fights for the improvement of education in Iraq, among other things, is the International Rescue Committee (IRC). Similarly to the British Council’s approach, the IRC is concerned with finding a long-term solution when trying to solve the problem of how to help people in Iraq get an education. They seek to do so by providing well-trained teachers, safe learning environments and reducing the problem of overcrowded schools. You can donate to their cause here.

Perhaps the largest organization that is making the largest strides for the improvement of Iraqi education is UNICEF. In 2016 alone, the organization helped to allow 682,000 children access to an education and provided over 520,000 children with school supplies such as backpacks and stationery. They have also created new ways of how to help people in Iraq by providing cash to families who are particularly vulnerable, offering summer classes to students who have fallen behind and even operating mobile schools in various parts of the nation. You can donate to their efforts here.

Healthcare
In a country where there an estimated 11 million people are speculated to need some form of humanitarian aid, there is no organization more noticeably devoted to providing adequate healthcare to Iraqi citizens in need than Doctors Without Borders (DWB). The organization currently has ongoing projects in almost the entire country with the exception of the southeastern region and works in five major cities or villages including Baghdad, the nation’s capital.

With many medical facilities and resources destroyed, medical care in Iraq is expensive and hard to come by. Millions of citizens have been displaced from their homes and others find themselves miles away from the nearest medical facility. While their mission is not over, DWB has effectively countered this negativity with tremendous success, providing healthcare and first aid to millions of people across the country, putting their own lives on the line to do so.

Currently, their main agenda is providing aid to those affected by the ongoing crisis in Mosul, the country’s second largest city. On the western side of the city, an estimated 60,000 civilians are trapped by the ongoing fighting, which has consistently produced large numbers of civilian casualties and severe displacement. To help solve this problem of displacement, DWB has created displacement camps in different areas of the country, camps who have seen dramatic influxes of people in the recent months.

In June 2017, DWB opened a project in western Mosul and reported a high number of patients needing life-saving treatments. In their June 2017 update, Jonathan Henry, the Emergency Coordinator for the DWB project in west Mosul, stated that “this influx of wounded patients is yet another example of the horrific suffering and indiscriminate violence suffered by civilians, including women and children, throughout the battle for Mosul.” You can donate to DWB here.

Above all, as an American, when asking the question of how to help people in Iraq, the quickest, easiest and best thing you can do is reach out to your congressional leaders and express to them a desire to increase the U.S. foreign aid budget. In doing so, you help to ensure that the wealthiest nation in the world will do more than it currently is to bring these atrocities to an end and allow the country and its neighboring regions to one day see an era of development and prosperity.

– Hunter Mcferrin

Photo: Google