Archive for category: Global Poverty

Key articles and information on global poverty.

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Lead Poisoning in Kenya

Kenya has had quite the year. From a recent plane crash to a raid by al-Shaabab earlier in June, the citizens are looking for some good news. Unfortunately, Human Rights Watch cannot offer such consolation, but their news does show Kenyans that someone is on their side.

A low-income area outside of Mombasa is facing a serious health threat: lead poisoning originating from the toxic waste of a nearby battery recycling plant. The Human Rights Watch has released a film entitled “Kenya: Factory Poisons Community,” which details the resulting health and environmental damage and calls for change.

The plant in question opened in the Owino Uhuru district in 2007. The plant has been in operation almost continuously for seven years. There are no precautions to protect the surrounding local community from contamination, and as a result, the waste that leaks out of the plant has infected the water sources. In addition, workers inside the lead smelter receive no protection and are often left to handle the toxic batteries with bare hands. The result? Massive exposure in the workers and community at large to seriously dangerous toxic lead.

Toxic poisoning is no light matter. It affects some 125 million people worldwide each year, usually in the form of waste from various industries. According to the WHO, high levels of lead exposure can cause damage in vital organs including the brain, liver and kidneys, as well as intellectual and developmental disabilities for the next generation.

So far, three workers in the plant in Owino Uhura have died due to exposure to unhealthy amounts of lead, and the community of 3,000 is also showing signs of ill health. Blood tests performed on children back in 2009 showed unsafe and unusually high levels of lead in the blood, and children often suffer from fainting spells, seizures and intense chronic pain.

Little has been done to stop this tragedy. The plant was briefly shut down in 2009, but allowed to reopen shortly after, despite the health and environmental report that showed significant risk to the local community. However, since the smelter project was intended to stimulate foreign investment, officials are reluctant to end it completely.

That being said, some progress has been made, and the smelter was successfully moved from Owino Uhura earlier this year. However, this does little to alleviate the damage it has already caused and will only serve to infect another community with the same levels of lead poisoning. No citizens of the Owino Uhura district have received medical treatment or further testing. Compensation has not been given to the workers or patients either.

Phyllis Omido is a local within the community and a former employee of the smelter. When her son fell ill in 2009, she began a campaign to rally her fellow citizens and call for government action. Phyllis has organized letter drives and peaceful rallies. Although she has been arrested for her efforts, she does not plan to stop until the government helps her community. “We want them to clean up and to help remove the lead from the blood of our children,” says Phyllis.

The Human Rights Watch blames government inaction for the tragedy, but it is not the laws that are the problem. The Environmental Management and Coordination Act was ratified in 1999 and states that it is illegal for industry to release toxic substances into the air or water. Kenyan law also requires an environmental impact assessment before plants like the Owino Uhura smelter can open, but the plant in question did not go through the process. In short, the laws are in place, but are rarely followed.

Kenya is also a member of several esteemed communities that advocate for human rights and the environment. These range from the African Commission on the Human and People’s Rights, the Convention on the Rights of Children and the International Labor Organization. Kenya’s association with such groups means that it is obligated to take care of its people.

However, even though these laws are on the books and Kenya attends conferences on human rights, this obligation is often ignored. This illuminates not a flaw in the country’s laws, but in its government. The Human Rights Watch holds the Kenyan government accountable for the health tragedy in Owino Uhura and calls on it to remedy its toxic lead problem. Jane Cohen of the Human Rights Watch says, “This is an urgent and on-going crisis that needs immediate government action.”

So far, the Kenyan government has not released a statement, but is in attendance at the 2014 Environmental Assembly meeting, which has toxic poisoning on the agenda.

How Kenya will react to this recent call for action remains to be seen, but the seriousness of the situation is clear. Kenyan citizens are being put at risk by their government’s failure to abide by its own laws and protect its people. It is time for the Kenyan government to be held accountable for the health issues of its people caused by its industry.

— Caitlin Thompson

Sources: Huffington Post, Human Rights Watch, NCBI, Think Progress, RTT News, International News
Photo: Human Rights Watch

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Bangladesh Uses Mobiles to Protect Mothers

Bangladesh uses mobiles
“It’s time for the second tetanus toxoid vaccine. Just one more and your baby will be protected against tetanus. Go to your clinic now,” reads one mobile message from Mobile Alliance for Maternal Action (MAMA).

Bangladesh is hard at work trying to meet Millennium Goals 4 and 5. In partnership with MAMA, the country has implemented a project to reduce mother and child deaths. Over 500,000 women already subscribe to the service. Named Aponjon, meaning “dear one,” the project sends over 350 free text and voice messages to expectant and new parents. The messages contain information about a range of pregnancy and childcare-related subjects, such as nutrition, vaccinations and when to go to the doctor. They can even be selected by topic, so mothers can request messages about preventing HIV transmission to their children, or post-partum family planning, if they require it. The messages are not just for mothers, either. There are some tailored for fathers and mothers-in-law, as well.

The goal of Aponjon is to reach mothers who do not have as much access to medical care. This is particularly relevant in rural areas, where Bangladesh’s dropping maternal mortality rate has made a smaller impact. While Bangladesh has reduced its maternal mortality rate by 66 percent, this change has been strongest in urban areas, under private medical care.

Aponjon allows women who cannot make it to clinic or who are nervous to talk to doctors, to understand how to take care of themselves and their babies. Since the adult female literacy rate is only 57.7 percent, messages are sent vocally as well as through SMS text.

The mobile company Telenor is also trying to expand health services, now that Bangladesh uses mobiles, to other countries as well. It currently offers a service where physicians answer health questions by phone at any time of day. It is also working on using video conferencing for doctor-patient interactions.

Bangladesh is also working to increase mothers’ health in other ways. Female education is increasing in the country, and currently more girls are educated than boys. Increased education leads people to seek more healthcare, as well as to have fewer children. There is also more education in medical-related fields. Also, the Bangladesh government, WHO, and the UN Population Fund introduced a program to train 3,000 midwives by 2015. Since only a third of Bangladeshi women have a skilled physician with them as they give birth, the program is designed to increase maternal health. Over 1,000 people have already completed the first stage of training.

All of these goals put Bangladesh well on the way to meeting and exceeding the Millennium Goals, in addition to creating a happier and healthier population for the country.

– Monica Roth

Sources: IRIN, Daily Star, MAMA, WHO, The Hindu, Htxt
Photo: MAMA

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Fistula Surgery Success in Kenya

There is hope for the more than two million women worldwide who are affected by obstetric fistula, the medical condition in which a hole tears between the vagina and either the rectum or the bladder as the result of a prolonged and difficult childbirth. A string of successful fistula correction surgeries in Kenya proves that treatment is becoming more accessible to women in developing countries who suffer from what is widely known as “the most devastating of all childbirth injuries.”

Dr. Hillary Mabeya of the Gynocare Fistula Centre recently completed – with success – his 1,000th fistula correction surgery at the surgical hospital located in Eldoret, Kenya. Gynocare, which serves a region accessible to approximately 10 million people, performs all surgeries pro bono, allowing its patients to worry about nothing more than their own recovery.

In developing countries, surgical centers of this type are necessary to treat fistula, which often throws women even further into poverty as they become socially withdrawn because of constant bowel or bladder leakage. Although it is estimated that there are 100,000 new cases of obstetric fistula every year, the international treatment capability still hovers around just 6,500 cases annually.

Yet giving women access to this surgery is not the only challenge fistula presents: many women, especially those who reside in rural areas, do not even know that their condition can be corrected via surgical means. It is crucial to let childbearing women in low-income countries know that there are options should complications arise in their deliveries. They do not have to live with the indignity of obstetric fistula.

Considering that fistula correction surgeries have the potential to transform so many lives, it is disappointing that H.R. 2888, the Obstetric Fistula Prevention, Treatment, Hope and Dignity Act of 2013, which was assigned a Congressional committee nearly a year ago, was never introduced to the entire Senate or the House of Representatives. Foreign aid could be especially helpful in establishing surgical hospitals like Gynocare in other developing nations, many of which lack fistula treatment centers, as well as promoting fistula education.

Until more foreign aid is designated for this purpose, humanitarian organizations should look to the 1,000 women who have been freed from fistula in Kenya as inspiration for the future.

– Elise L. Riley

Sources: Gynocare, Fistula Foundation, Al Jazeera
Photo: Flickr

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MNS Disorders in Developing Countries

When discussing health in developing countries, the diseases that come to mind are often exotic, tropical diseases that–although tragic–strangely spark our curiousity. We think of tropical disease such as malaria, dengue fever or parasitic diseases from which we in the developed world are completely safe. Tackling diseases such as these is incredibly important, but we often forget about other types of diseases that may be more familiar to us.

Rather than diseases that afflict the body physically, attention to mental, neurological and substance use (MNS) disorders is usually overlooked when addressing health issues in developing countries. MNS disorders are the leading cause of Disability Adjusted Life Years globally and account for 14 percent of the global burden of disease.

Although usually forgotten, three-fourths of the people worldwide suffering from mental illnesses are in developing countries. Worse, eighty-five percent of the people afflicted by severe mental illnesses in developing countries will not receive the care they need and deserve.

Mental illnesses are surrounded by stigma in many developing countries, which results in social exclusion, discrimination and in many cases isolation by means of being tied to trees or locked in rooms.

Addressing mental health conditions in developing countries is particularly important because widespread poverty increases vulnerability for developing MNS disorders. In addition to this, chronic conditions and mental disorders mutually reinforce each other. Other chronic conditions can increase the risk of developing mental illnesses and vice versa.

MNS disorders directly affect an individual’s ability to have stable relationships with family members and other members of the community and essentially prevent them from being able to fully contribute to society.

A 2010 report by the World Economic Forum and the Harvard School of Public Health showed that indirect costs of mental health conditions in low- and middle-income countries were estimated to be $583 billion and estimated to more than double by 2030 to $1.4 trillion. Along with cardiovascular disease, mental health conditions are the main economic burden of non-communicable disease, accounting for almost 70 percent of lost output.

A study in Nigeria asked 250 people about their primary reactions to mental illness and their responses included fear, avoidance and anger. It is extremely rare that those suffering from mental diseases in Nigeria receive treatment.

In Kaduna, there is an effort to help those suffering and reduce stigma. Through hard work, counseling and prayer, this treatment center that is half prison, half hospital helps its patients treat their mental illnesses. Men learn skills such as welding, sales and learn to build an array of sellable items ranging from pots to sofas. Women learn skills such as sewing and making baby clothes. Stalls are available for patients to sell their goods and gain income.

Despite the small size of this program, it is a testament of the success that can come from helping those dealing with MNS disorders to receive treatment and learn employable skills so that they can earn income.

More programs such as these are necessary to address mental health disorders and reduce stigma in developing countries, but funding is often a main roadblock. Low- and middle-income countries spend less than one percent of their already small health budget on addressing mental health.

Some organizations have begun funding these programs, which is a great first step to addressing and drawing the necessary attention to mental health disorders. Grand Challenges Canada, funded by the Canadian government, has already invested $31.5 million to date in “funding for bold, transformational proposals to improve mental health treatment, expand access to care and reduce the stigma in developing countries.”

There is scientific evidence to prove that moderate additional cost is needed to effectively address and treat mental illnesses and can even come with economic benefits, all while helping those suffering to live productive, healthy lives.

– Kimberly Tierney 

Sources: World Economic Forum, Nature, Youtube, Global Mental Health, Voice of America, The Agenda, WHO
Photo: The Guardian

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A Look at Solar Cookers International

Solar Cookers International aims to provide thermal cooking technologies to those who most need them. Over three billion people eat food cooked over an open fire, and burning organic matter instead of returning it to the land causes soil erosion and a decline in crop production.

Solar Cookers International has already distributed 155,000 units worldwide.  They teach individuals how to cook during sunny weather, at night and during severe weather. They also educate the users on how to use a water pasteurization indicator so that they may produce safe water to drink.  Moreover, Solar Cookers International has recently made it their goal to provide 20 percent of families with access to solar cooking technology by 2030.

Projects to distribute the cookers in Chad, Haiti, Kenya and Madagascar have been successfully implemented.  Solar Cookers International provided cookers in four refugee camps in Chad where many of the women have been teaching each other how to use the technology. Cookers were distributed in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake in an attempt to help preserve more of the forests.

Cookers were also distributed to refugee camps in Kenya and now provide food for over 15,000 families.  Cookers were distributed in Madagascar, also to help preserve the forests, and as a region that averages 330 sunny days per year, the cookers have become an extremely common means of cooking. Over 50,000 cookers are in use; as a result, deforestation has been reduced by around 65  percent.

Solar Cookers International operates on four basic principles: visibility, technology, training and conferences.  The goals are to “increase awareness about the life and earth saving power of solar cooking, to improve solar cooking designs, to promote and provide training in how to use solar cookers, and to expand [their] role in regional and international conferences on solar cooking and other fuel efficient cooking methods.”

Solar Cookers International’s ultimate goal, however, is to “change and save lives with solar cooking thermal technology.”

– Jordyn Horowitz

Sources: Solar Cookers International, SCInet Wiki
Photo: EPA

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Poor Quality of Education in South Asia

According to a report released by the World Bank on June 30, 2014, the poor quality of education in South Asia is holding the region back. Weak education systems act as a snare, keeping many young people in poverty and preventing economic growth.

The World Bank performed its first comprehensive study to assess the effectiveness of the education in South Asia. It found low levels of student learning in the region despite the increase in enrollment.

In South Asia, a region which includes Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sir Lanka, countries have committed significant resources to increasing access to education. The recent push to raise enrollment comes in an effort to achieve the Millennium Development Goal of universal education for primary education by 2015.

The effort has been largely successful, as the enrollment rate in the region has grown from 75 percent in 2000 to 89 percent in 2010. The percentages, however, are just an average, and education access varies greatly from country to country. For example, Sri Lanka achieved almost complete universal education over 10 years ago while Afghanistan and Pakistan are considerably behind.

Despite the increased enrollment, the systems of education in South Asia prove to be achieving below the standards. The World Bank concluded this after measuring the student learning in each country. Part of the problem is that many children who attend primary school do not complete the final grade. For example, in Bangladesh only 55 out of 100 students complete the last grade of primary education. Gender inequality is also a contributing factor as evidenced by the fact that over half of world’s illiterate women reside in South Asia.

The poor quality of education is, according to the organization, also due in part to the large increase of first-generation students in the classroom. The curriculums lack important lessons on measurement, problem-solving and writing. More than one quarter of students who complete primary school do not have fundamental number and literacy skills. This deficit severely impairs their ability to complete secondary school and to secure higher paying jobs.

The World Bank surveyed employers in the region and the results supported the findings that students lack many skills essential for the work place. As a result of the poor education systems, there is a lack of a skilled and qualified labor force.

To help address the issue, the World Bank presented a multi-faceted strategy in order to improve the quality of education. One factor calls for the countries to ensure that children receive proper nutrition. South Asia has one of the highest rates of malnutrition, which inhibits children’s ability to learn. Another aspect includes improving the quality of teachers by establishing and upholding academic standards that every educator must achieve. Additionally, more investments should be focused on improving the learning goals for students and not simply expanding facilities and raising teacher salaries.

Part of the World Bank’s strategy also includes bringing in the private sector to help. The governments of South Asia have very little money, and companies could provide a source of capital to improve education. In addition, the strategy calls for and improvement in the measurement of student progress by bettering the quality of student assessments.

The hope is that with the World Bank’s model for improvement, children will be able to receive better education. Literacy and mathematical skills are key for accessing skilled labors jobs. With more young people getting these jobs, individuals will be able to escape poverty. And an increase in the skilled labor force will also help the individual countries prosper as the country will be able to produce more and have more potential consumers. In starting with education, the World Bank hopes to help the entire region grow.

– Kathleen Egan

Sources: World Bank, UNICEF, UNESCO
Photo: World Bank

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Trickle Up Program Empowers People in Poverty

The Trickle Up Program empowers people living on less than $1.25 a day to take the first steps out of poverty.

Trickle Up does this by providing those less fortunate with the resources to build sustainable livelihoods for a better quality of life. They use their partnerships with local agencies in order to provide training and use capital grants to launch or expand microenterprises to support and build assets.

There are an estimated 1.4 billion people living in extreme poverty, which means there is an immense need for economic development programs that can produce sustainable change in the lives of the poorest people.

The Trickle Up Program was founded in 1979 to ensure that the poorest people in any nation could have a chance to build a better life for themselves. In three decades, the program has successfully increased income levels of extremely poor households around the world.

Three years ago, Trickle Up served nearly 8,000 participants with an average of five people benefiting from each Trickle Up-supported enterprise.  This means over 41,000 people will improve their quality of life as a result of the program’s work this year alone.

Trickle Up aims to serve people at the very bottom of the socioeconomic scale. The program’s unique approach is designed for households whose per capita income is less than $1.25 a day.  Households living at this level of poverty lack the security to qualify for formal credit services and are not in a position to benefit from any strategy that carries a risk to plunge them further into debt.

This is where the Trickle Up Program comes into play.  Their poverty reduction strategy includes a one-time capital grant, called a Trickle Up Spark Grant.  This provides the participants with the necessary startup capital to launch or expand microenterprises.

This, in conjunction with highly structured business and livelihood training can facilitate the formation of community-based savings and effectively boost household incomes to make continued progress out of poverty.

Their end goal is to empower the world’s poorest people so that they can develop their potential and strengthen their communities from within. Trickle Up pursues this goal in a way that encourages innovation and leadership while promoting communication and cooperation among all their communities.

– Cara Morgan

Sources: Ford Foundation, Trickle Up
Photo: Trickle Up

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How Mobile Banking is Changing Africa

More often than not, adopting a pre-existing idea is easier than creating a brand new one. The mobile phone is an example of this. In recent years, there has been an explosion in the adoption of mobile phones among people living throughout Africa. The impact of mobile phones includes paving a more secure form of mobile banking, and ultimately creating a shift in African culture.

Over the past decade, the use of mobile phones has increased in both developed and developing countries. According to the World Bank, mobile subscriptions have been increasing around the world every year – and African countries have made the biggest gains. In 2009, the US had 89 cellphones per 100 people, and 96 in 2013. Nigeria had 48 per 100 people in 2009, with 73 in 2013. South Africa had 91 cellphones per 100 people in 2009, and 147 in 2013. The greatest strides were made by African states.

According to The Economist, three phones exist for every four people, which describes the accessibility of these products. While mobile devices were initially created to function as telephones, Africans do not use them solely for communication. Just like people with iPhone’s in developed nation, Africans have access to a whole range of activities via their phones, including secure banking and e-payments.

According to Paul Edwards, the CEO of Emerging Markets Payments (EMP), only 15 to 20 percent of Africans have bank accounts. This number contrasts sharply with developed countries, where almost everyone has or is expected to manage a bank account as an adult.

Mobile banking has created a shift. Africa has a different banking culture than that of developed nations.

Furthermore, making e-payments and using mobile banking allows for less corruption. As all money transfers are electrically handled, transactions are instant and, therefore, significantly reduce the number of delays in payments.

Many Africans have used cash to fuel their informal sector jobs, but using less cash and more e-payments allows governments to track tax-able profits. Ultimately this creates a more regulated, tax-paying economy that will generate revenues for the state and further establish self-sufficiency.

The growing popularity of mobile phones displays a tangible shift in Africa’s culture. A public relations company named Portland conducted a survey of Twitter in Africa. They used devices that allowed for geo-location; by examining the hashtags in Tweets, they were able to look into the interests of Africans. Subjects ranged from Nelson Mandela’s death to football to public dissatisfaction with the government.

As Africans continue to use mobile phones for various purposes, the rest of the world will watch to see what this will mean for the development of Africa.

– Christina Cho

Sources: Foreign Policy, The Economist 1, The Economist 2, World Bank, Foreign Policy 2
Photo: CNN

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Harmful Impact: Children Living in Poverty

Children living in poverty often have negative long-term emotional, educational, health and mental issues.

There are billions of children living in poverty throughout the world. Living in poverty directly impacts a child’s education. A child living in poverty is most likely to perform poorly in school and drop out of school at an early age.

Living in poverty also has a social and emotional impact on children. Children develop behavioral and emotional problems often acting on impulse. They are more prone to disobey rules and their elders and may develop problems getting along with their peers. Living in poverty also makes it hard for children to develop normal emotions and creates low self-esteem, making them feel powerless and voiceless. Living in poverty often creates stressful situations for children, which children often do not know how to deal with. Since they do not know how to deal with these situations, children often are led to be more physically violent in stressful situations.

Children living in poverty often carry an antisocial character that is psychologically described as a protection mechanism against their hostile environment.

Children living in poverty are also more likely to have health issues. Newborns are more likely to be underweight which most of the time leads to them be malnourished. They often suffer from poor nutrition because their families and communities do not have the proper resources to get nutritional foods. A lot of times children in developing countries also do not have correct medical care. Children with poor health often end up missing school or drop out of school because they are too sick. There are higher death rates in children living in poverty because of health issues that are curable, which is not okay. One of the most common curable diseases that children die from each year is diarrhea.

It is important to address child poverty at its early stages to stop the poverty cycle and the negative impacts it has on children.

— Priscilla Rodarte

Sources: Poverties.org, CPAG, U.S. News, Livestrong
Photo: Pixabay

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5 Myths about Global Poverty

1. Poor Countries Will Always Stay Poor
Once a country is deemed “poor,” it’s almost impossible for it to turn around, right? Wrong! Take Mexico City, for example. In 1987, when Bill Gates first visited, the conditions “reminded him of rural Africa,” proliferated with incredible smog and a lack of running water. Yet, 27 years later, the city gleams with high-rise buildings, cleaner air and new roads and bridges. Today the mostly middle class Mexico City is a prime example of a country’s ability to turn around from even the most drastic conditions.

2. The Eastern World is Mostly Impoverished
Per-person income in Turkey and Chile are where the US was in 1960. Malaysia and Gabon are almost there. China’s per-person income has gone up eightfold since 1960. India’s has quadrupled, Brazil’s has quintupled. Even tiny Botswana has seen a 30-fold increase due to its shrewd management of mineral resources.

3. All of Africa is Poor
While there are pockets of poverty in all areas of the world, our vision of Africa is incredibly tainted. Today, per-person income in Africa has climbed by two-thirds, and seven of the 10 fastest-growing economies in the past five years are in Africa.

4. If it weren’t for all the foreign aid we give, developing countries wouldn’t have access to AIDS treatments.
Foreign aid, while incredibly important, only funds less than half of global AIDS programs. In 2012, for the second year, low and middle income countries were responsible for funding more than half of these programs. South Africa, home to more HIV-positive people than anywhere else in the world, funds 80 percent of its AIDS treatments and is on track to take over full funding and management of the problem by 2017.

5. We Already Spend Way Too Much on Foreign Aid
On average, Americans believe we spend 20 percent of our federal budget on foreign aid. In reality, only .2 percent of the U.S. Gross National Income goes toward improving living conditions for the world’s poor. Compared to other wealthy countries, the United States ranks one of the lowest in foreign aid spending. Spending money on foreign aid is an investment. Alleviating poverty doesn’t just save lives, it lays the groundwork for long-term economic progress.

– Nick Magnanti

Sources: Real Clear World, Huffington Post, 
Photo: Big Think