Archive for category: Global Poverty

Key articles and information on global poverty.

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Akon Lighting Africa Project

akon_lighting_africa_project
Every day, 600 million Africans live in the dark with no access to electricity, which is making it difficult for students to read, clinics to properly store vaccines and businesses to operate outside of natural light hours.

The energy crisis in Africa, particularly in the Sub-Saharan countries, leaves many people in poverty. In a place where work stops when the sun goes down, it is hard to advance in the workplace, which is making employment opportunities scarce. And, when power is available, it is often unreliable and can cause power outages.

Senegalese pop-star Akon, in partnership with Give1 Project and Africa Development Solutions Global Corporation, aims to give electricity to one million households in nine West and Central African countries by the end of 2014.

The Akon Lighting Africa project involves installing solar equipment in rural households in Senegal, Mali, Guinea Conakry, Gambia, Burkina Faso, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Congo and the Ivory Coast.

Originally from Senegal, Akon, whose real name is Aliaune Badera Thiam, is on tour of the beneficiary countries to meet with presidents and leaders.

“We wanted to focus the project on rural areas because we often forget that our parents in these remote areas need electricity,” Akon was quoted saying after meeting Burkinabe President Blaise Campore.

The project also aims to improve education quality and sustainable infrastructure. Improved electricity would lengthen hours of education, allowing students the opportunity to succeed.

Akon was born in St. Louis to two musician parents; he spent much of his childhood in Senegal. Despite living in the United States, Akon keeps his homeland in the forefront of his business ventures.

He started a charity in Africa that aims to empower youth by promoting health and education. The Konfidence Foundation concentrates its efforts in Senegal and West Africa, but Akon hopes the foundation will serve as an international platform to empower individuals, communities and nations.

Akon Lighting Africa is the pop star’s most recent project that aims to help Sub-Saharan African countries become self-sufficient. The sustainable energy project has a mission to help the infrastructure, education and economy of the beneficiary countries.

– Haley Sklut

Sources:  Africa Review, World Bank, Konfidence
Photo: Trace

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Establishment of Six Federal Regions in Yemen

Federal_Regions_in_Yemen
In recent years, the nation of Yemen has been mired in strife, partially due to the ousted president Ali Abdullah Saleh and Al-Qaeda factions within the country. The National Dialogue Conference established by the current president, President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, not only led to Saleh’s departure in 2012, but also aimed to eradicate the territorial strife created by a centralized government.

The establishment of six federal regions in Yemen (Aden, Hadramawt, Saba, Janad, Azal and Tahama) created a sense of equality.

With their own political autonomy and a fair distribution of the oil resources in Yemen, the southern states of Aden and Hadramawt can profess egalitarian footing with the other four northern regions. The former capital of Sana’a will remain neutral; the port city of Aden will maintain its own level of autonomy.

Despite agreement from all delegates to create the six federations, southern secessionists are still displeased.

The possibility of the north arresting the oil reserves instills fears among southern separatists. Yemen’s political past stems from Saleh’s forced centralization of both the southern and northern regions in 1994 despite an initial union with the north in 1990.

After independence from the British in 1967, the southern region of Yemen remained independent laced with Marxist ideology.

An impoverished nation, Yemen has a dearth of food supplies. The Global Food Fund donated $36 million in order to raise food initiatives ranging from livestock to agriculture. The four-year plan aims to change the lives of small-scale farmers in rural region: 31 percent of these rural farmers produce a mere 10 percent of the amount of food they need.

From research to supply to guidance to construction, the initiative proposed by the Yemeni Ministry of Agriculture aims to combat malnutrition.  The initiative includes better irrigation, high-quality seeds and land development to facilitate farming methods.

Among struggles with food security, Yemen reported that 2.5 million children do not continue their education. Beyond education,  the Yemeni population is vulnerable to high infant and maternal mortality rates as well as infectious diseases.

With a hopefully better political climate, the government can focus on the undernourished Yemeni population, with reports that 46 percent of the population survived on scarce food supply in 2012.

Whether the formation of the six federal regions will placate external political figures also remains to be seen.

 – Miles Abadilla

Sources: Al-Jazeera, Al-Shorfa, BBC, Thomson Reuters
Photo: Alarabiya

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6 Gates Foundation End of Poverty Quotes

end of poverty
At the beginning of this year, there was a huge reaction to the 2014 Annual Gates Foundation letter as Bill Gates predicted the end of poverty by focusing on three myths about poverty. With that in mind, here is a look back at six end of poverty quotes from the foundation. Each quote demonstrates the hope and passion the Gates Foundation has in their mission to make the world a better place and demonstrates how tirelessly they will continue to work for the cause in the future.

1. In 2009, Gates states the observations he has made regarding the world’s economic crisis and his opinion about the wealth gap. In light of Oxfam’s recent report about the inequity between the rich and poor, it is clear that Gates believes the wealthy have a responsibility to help those who are less fortunate.

“I am impressed by individuals who continue to give generously even in these difficult times. I believe that the wealthy have a responsibility to invest in addressing inequity. This is especially true when the constraints on others are so great. Otherwise, we will come out of the economic downturn in a world that is even more unequal, with greater inequities in health and education. There is no reason to accept that, when we know how to make huge gains over the long term.”

2. In 2010, Gates highlights the importance of innovation as a way to help people out of poverty. He discusses the “bleak” outcomes that can be avoided when innovation becomes a priority and when people choose to believe in innovation as a solution.

“With vaccines, drugs and other improvements, health in poor countries will continue to get better, and people will choose to have smaller families. With better training, and access to markets, farmers in poor countries will be able to grow more food. The world will find clean ways to produce electricity at a lower cost, and more people will lift themselves out of poverty.”

3. In 2011, Gates made a compelling argument for the importance of foreign aid and the responsibility of society as a whole to take care of its people, as this will produce a more stable, healthier and better world. During the year, Gates focused on providing vaccines by working with pharmaceutical companies, like GAVI, who raised over $3 billion and saved millions of lives.

“I believe it is the rich world’s enlightened self-interest to continue investing in foreign aid. If societies can’t provide for people’s basic health, if they can’t feed and educate people, then their populations and problems will grow and the world will be a less stable place. Whether you believe it a moral imperative or in the rich world’s enlightened self-image, securing the conditions that will lead to a healthy, prosperous future for everyone is a goal I believe we all share.”

4. In 2012, Gates showed his dedication to helping the poor become self-sufficient, especially in terms of the foundation’s global development and global health programs.

“The world faces a clear choice. If we invest relatively modest amounts, many more poor farmers will be able to feed their families. If we don’t, one in seven people will continue living needlessly on the edge of starvation. My annual letter this year is an argument for making the choice to keep on helping extremely poor people build self-sufficiency.”

5. In 2013, Gates looked forward to the continued innovation and success in making the lives of the poor even better.

“The lives of the poorest have improved more rapidly in the last 15 years than ever before, yet I am optimistic that we will do even better in the next 15 years. After all, human knowledge is increasing.”

6. And finally in 2014, Gates calls all who want to join him in changing the world. He, furthermore, predicts that there will not be any more poor nations by 2035, the year that Gates will turn 80.

“We all have the chance to create a world where extreme poverty is the exception rather than the rule, and where all children have the same chance to thrive, no matter where they’re born. For those of us who believe in the value of every human life, there isn’t any more inspiring work under way in the world today.”

– Julie Guacci

Sources: Gates Foundation: Annual Letter 2009, Forbes: Gates’ Life’s Goal, Gates Foundation: Conclusion, Forbes: Gates’ Second Coming, Gates Foundation: Annual Letter 2013, Gates Foundation: Annual Letter 2012, Gates Foundation: Annual Letter 2011, Gates Foundation: Annual Letter 2010
Photo: Gates Foundation

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10 Facts for a School Report on Global Poverty

global poverty
Although it is true that poverty affects the United States, people often fail to notice how poverty ties the U.S. to the rest of the globe. Here are 10 facts about global poverty that will help you gain a better understanding of the specifics, and also earn you an A on your school report:

1. Poverty Does Not Just Affect Adults

People often overlook the fact that poverty affects a wide array of age groups, including both adults and in many cases, teens and adolescents. Children under the age of 18 are actually 60% more likely to be poor than adults. There are 2.2 billion children in the world, and approximately one billion of those children are currently living in poverty. Furthermore, 48% of the population in developing countries is comprised of impoverished children under the age of 18. In industrialized nations, the percentage of children living in poverty is 21%. Of this large population, approximately nine million children ages 5 and under will die each year from starvation, malnourishment and the inability to survive on $1.25 or less per day.

2. Cutting Global Poverty Will Positively Affect the U.S. as Well

Poverty is slowly wearing away the fabric of the U.S. society. The less the U.S. does to support developing nations, the less support we will receive in the future. Moreover, the differences in income are a threat to the level of investment in the U.S., the level of security and the nation’s profits. By investing resources in poverty stricken countries, we are also investing money in the overall security of Americans. Less money will be needed to support military forces because there will be a severe drop in hostile threats and attacks by other countries.

3. Investing in Other Countries Will Increase the Employment Rate in the U.S.

Building strong economies in developing countries will not only protect the U.S., it will also grow new economic markets. There will be an increase in market consumers as well as a rise in jobs needed to support American exports. This is especially the case since one out of five jobs in the U.S. involves exportation to growing nations. A bigger need for exports means there is a greater request for employment.

4. Heightening Employment Rates Means Lowering Overpopulation

By establishing a rich economy in other countries, the U.S. will also see a decline in overpopulation globally and domestically. Resources will become more immediate and people who were once unable to support their families medically will see a decrease in child mortality rates. It has been proven that countries with larger infant and child mortality rates also tend to be countries struggling with overpopulation.

5. A Lack of Education and Poverty Work Hand in Hand

Research shows that children who are from low-income families are more likely to not attend school. Often times, in low-income households, education takes a backseat to working and caring for family members, but education is also a key determinant for creating progress and pulling developing countries out of poverty. Some families are not able to afford school uniforms and some countries, such as Haiti, require a school fee, which disables children from gaining an education. Students ages 16 to 24 years old who are in low-income families are seven times more likely to drop out of school than students from average to high-income families.

6. Geography Relates to Poverty in the United States

Poverty takes on a geographical pattern in the U.S., with a significantly larger percentage of people living in poverty in the southern states than anywhere else in the U.S. In fact, 41% of those who live in poverty within the U.S. are located within the South; this is as opposed to 24% in the West, 19% in the Midwest and 16% in the Northeast.

7. Poverty Does Not Necessarily Cause Death

The cause of death within communities faced with extreme poverty is most often a lack of sanitation and clean drinking water. As it stands, clean drinking water and sanitary conditions can lower the likelihood of disease and illness and can also help keep communities hydrated; this lowers the risk of dehydration, which can jeopardize immune systems. A failing immune system and lack of sanitary conditions combined can cause very risky conditions for younger children and infants who are already susceptible to disease.

8. Nutrition

Living in poverty often makes it difficult to eat a well-balanced and nutritionally rich diet; foods that provide the necessary ingredients to form a nutrient full meal are usually hard to afford. As such, poor affordability of healthy foods can lead to diets that do not consist of fruits, vegetables, grains and especially meat. The lack of vitamins and minerals found in these foods can cause nutrient deficiencies, which can have a negative affect on mental and physical growth. Food insecurity, as it is called when someone does not know where his or her next meal will come from, is found to correlate directly with poor nutrition.

9. Foreign Aid

Though the public believes that Foreign Aid receives 25% of the Federal Budget, in actuality, only 1% of the Federal Budget is going to Foreign Aid. As it stands, only .5% of the Federal Budget is helping to improve poverty conditions.

10. Cost Comparisons

The U.S. annually spends $28 billion on assisting the world’s poor, but approximately $660 billion on the U.S. Military. This gap within the U.S. funding is a huge indicator of where the nation’s priorities lie. If one in 10 Americans donated their weekly coffee budget towards poverty reduction causes, it could end global poverty.

Poverty is a global issue, and in order for the U.S. to better its population internally it needs to form a positive relationship with other countries. Hopefully these 10 facts illuminate important factors that contribute to poverty and show ways to help eliminate poverty globally.

– Rebecca Felcon

Sources: Children’s Defense Fund,, Compassion, Food For the Poor, UC Davis Center for Poverty Research, The Washington Post, The Borgen Project, The Borgen Project
Photo: Mashable

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Young Migrants Focus of UN Report

young migrants
On February 14th, the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) released the 2013 World Youth Report, aimed at addressing the significant impact of young migrants on both origin and destination countries. The report also highlights the specific concerns, challenges and successes faced by migrants across the globe.

Whether it be for work, study or family reasons, voluntary migration continues to increase every year. The UN estimates that there are 232 million international migrants worldwide, representing 3.2% of the world’s total population. More than 30% of these migrants are considered youth migrants under the age of 29 and approximately half of these are female.

Youth migration has a significant impact on not only individual lives, but also global economies. Many young migrants leave their country of origin in search of better job opportunities and often send remittances home to benefit their families. These individuals improve their financial situations while engaging in economic transactions that will benefit their destination country.

However, countries of origin often suffer the negative effects of “brain drain,” or human capital flight. This is the process by which professionals, often in the fields of health or education, leave developing countries in search of a higher salary and better living conditions.

The report also goes into detail about the specific struggles and opportunities that young migrants can face.

In the preparatory stage, migrants cited the difficulties they faced in obtaining accurate information about their intended destination, as well as in obtaining needed documents and making travel accommodations.

On arrival, migrants noted experiencing both culture shock and loneliness. Often communication barriers had to be overcome and in the long term, many faced both stereotyping and discrimination.

The report notes some recommendations made by migrants to ease the transition from origin to destination country. Among these is the development of tools to assess the readiness of a migrant and to help facilitate decision-making and planning. They recommended peer-to-peer initiatives, pre-departure orientation programs, and awareness-raising campaigns.

Despite these challenges, many young migrants have become exemplary examples of what can be achieved in the face of adversity.

As the report notes, “their capacity as agents of social change and development should not be underestimated.”

– Mollie O’Brien

Sources: UN News Centre, United Nation Regional Information Centre for Western Europe
Photo: Caritas

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The Cost of Education

cost of education
How much does it actually cost to build and run a school in some of the world’s poorest countries?

Everything comes back to education: areas that are the most overpopulated are also the poorest and least educated. Children that don’t receive an education will most likely spend a lifetime in extreme poverty, and, chances are, they will not educate their own children. So how much is the actual cost of education?

1. Angola

Lynn Cole, a resident of Illinois, runs RISE International – an organization that builds schools for as little as $12,000. Fueled by donations, the residents of Angola construct and run the school themselves.

2. Kenya

In January 2003, as an attempt to raise school enrollment, Kenya’s government eliminated fees and wrote a policy that provides textbooks and notebooks to schools. While more children are in school now because of this new policy, the cost of school uniforms has sky-rocketed. Each school has its own uniform, and discharges students who are not wearing one.  The average cost of school uniforms in Kenya is now $5.59 for girls and $6.10 for boys.

3. Nigeria

Similar to Kenya, formal school fees are no longer levied. However, books and uniforms now cost much more than they did previously, jumping from $1.63 per uniform to $4.22.

4. Bangladesh

CO-ID (Co-Operation In Development Australia Inc.) led by Fred Hyde, builds schools in the poorest areas of Bangladesh. Donation-run, it costs $8,000 to build a charity school, and another $8,000 each year to keep it running.

5. Congo

In the village of Butembo, about 75% of the population live on less than $2 a day. The average annual school fee per child is $25-$35 for primary school and $30-$50 for secondary school, which means that for most children, school isn’t an option.

6. Liberia

A school without an educated teacher benefits no one, meaning that teachers are often a school’s largest expense. To sponsor a teacher through the basic Liberian Teacher Training costs $120. To provide latrines for a school costs $500. The cost of 3-days residential teacher training for 60 teachers is $1,000. Aside from their training, the materials used by teachers also cost more than what is used by students. The books to teach a child for one year cost $8; a mathematics or science text book for one teacher costs $15.

7. Cameroon

Through the organization Building Schools for Africa, ten sets of school uniforms cost about $67; the tools and seeds for a school farm run at about $225; textbooks for ten children cost $250; it takes $1,000 to build new toilets; installing drinking water is roughly $1,671; a new classroom costs an average of $6,686.

8. Madagascar

A school that can offer its students at least one meal a day had an increased likelihood of maintaining its enrollment because some students aren’t fed at home. Feeding a school of 580 for 60 days costs $730.

9. Pakistan

A month of education for a child is attained by $10; $120 educates a child for a year; $710 stocks a primary school library; $955 stocks a secondary school library; $1,340 educates a child from KG-Grade X (11 years); $7,775 equips a computer lab; $180,500 supports an entire school for a year.

This demonstrates how much can be done with just a little funding, and how much more complicated running a school is after the initial construction. Contrary to Oprah Winfrey’s extravagant donation-budget, it doesn’t take $40 million to build a school. Sometimes the school already exists and it’s the teacher or the pencils that are missing. Sometimes schooling is available, but children can’t attend because they haven’t been dewormed.

Building a school is the easy part. The hard part is getting parents to send their kids, getting materials like paper, chalk as well as textbooks out to rural areas and maintaining a level of education that prepares student to be future leaders in their community.

– Lydia Caswell

Sources: Young Lives, Global Giving, Illinois Review, Fred Hyde, IRIN News, Ethnics Daily, SIM, Schools for Africa
Photo: Huffington Post

The Adair Group Donates 60 T-shirts to The Borgen Project


The Borgen Project has recently gifted 60 T-shirts from The Adair Group, an Atlanta-based, family-owned clothing wholesaler. A gift like this will mean 60 walking, talking billboards for The Borgen Project.

An infographic informed me that it only takes a few trendy people to start wearing an article of clothing for it to take to the streets like wildfire (this is good for hipsters but also great for a small nonprofit trying to raise awareness about global poverty.) So not only has The Adair Group made possible a potentially amazing fashion trend, they have donated a most important ally in the fight against global poverty.

It turns out that it takes nearly 2,700 liters of water to make one T-shirt. That doesn’t even begin to measure how many liters of water it then takes to clean it every other week for the rest of its life.

Once you have this Borgen Project T-shirt, you simply don’t need any others and therefore you will be saving liters and liters of water. Not only will you be the trendiest fellow around, you’ll also be raising awareness about poverty-reducing programs and legislation all while saving water. You will have succeeded in life.

I want to say thank you to The Adair Group for initiating this Borgen revolution of sorts. Without great companies like it that buy truckloads of clothing that can be offered at the lowest prices imaginable, organizations like The Borgen Project would have to resort solely to word of mouth and face to face communicating to get our message out there and that is so not hip. So please, check out The Adair Group and buy your entire family matching hoodies or your hypothetical future offspring cute tie-dye onesies. It’s the right thing to do.

– Whitney Garrett

Sources: The Adair Group, National Geographic, Flavorwire
Photo: Flickr

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Wealth Gap is Largest in Rich U.S. Cities

wealth gap
According to a study by the the Brookings Institution, the gap between the rich and the poor is the largest in some of the richest American cities. The Associated Press quoted the Brookings study saying, “The economic divides in Atlanta, San Francisco, Washington, New York and Los Angeles are significantly greater than the national average.”

Senior fellow at Brookings Alan Berube said that a relationship exists between inequality and economic success since the aforementioned cities “are home to some of the highest paying industries and jobs in the country.”

Berube argues that many of these cities have a widening gap between rich and poor people due to their public housing and the services that attract low-wage workers. But according to the AP, “the findings come at a delicate moment for the country, still slogging through a weak recovery from the Great Recession.”

The United States is undoubtedly going through some tough times. But how is the country’s income inequality compared to other nations?

The Washington Post claims the way in which income inequality is measured is going through some changes. For many years, economists often relied on the Gini coefficient to measure the income distribution throughout nations. However, others argue the Palma ratio should be adopted instead. Unlike the Gini coefficient, this formula makes it easier to measure the gap between rich and poor people in societies.

The U.S. ranks “well below every other developed society measured,” the Post suggests after analyzing 86 nations with the Palma ratio. “It’s one spot below Nigeria, which has some of the worst political corruption in the world and in 2012 saw nationwide protests over perceived income inequality.

In other words, despite America’s having more economic equality than most of the world, it is still placed “at the bottom end of the developed world.” Nevertheless, of the 50 biggest cities in the U.S., the AP said only 18 of them experienced inequality that was statistically significant since the recession occurred. However, this was largely due to the declining incomes of the poorest residents of these cities.

Allowing this pattern to continue will be detrimental to American societies in the long run. Therefore, to prevent the wealth gap from expanding in prosperous U.S. cities and to avoid the potential dissent that such inequality caused in other global cities, Washington needs to come up with a plan to make America less unequal.

– Juan Campos

Sources: AP, The Washington Post

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Dr. King’s Poor Peoples’ Campaign

Poor peoples' campaign
There are few people in history that are recognized to the degree of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. His monumental work in activism defined the civil rights movement and was integral to establishing social equality.

King’s activism came in a time of extensive social unrest within the prime of the civil rights movement addressing racial segregation. Although he widely famous for his work in establishing racial justice and equality, King was also known as a strong advocate for the poor and an avid critic of capitalist society.

King was integral in planning a campaign for the impoverished to take place in the spring of 1968 in Washington, D.C. The campaign aimed to be a peaceful gathering of low-income individuals from across the United States, congregating with the goal of having anti-poverty legislation passed.

The Poor Peoples’ Campaign (PPC) advocated for prioritizing the impoverished by introducing “a $30 billion anti-poverty package that included a commitment to full employment, a guaranteed annual income measure and more low-income housing.”

To the shock and dismay of the world, King was assassinated weeks before the PPC was expected to take place. Although he was unable to be there for the campaign, the movement continued to pick up where King had left off.

On March 12, 1968, thousands of people came together in Washington, D.C. to protest American poverty and income inequality. The protesters camped out on the National Mall for six weeks and failed to make any substantial political or legislative accomplishments.

However, the Poor Peoples’ Campaign was ultimately considered far from failure and was even able to be very successful in some regards. On the day of action, 50,000 people showed up to march against the perpetuation of low-income society. The movement opened America’s eyes to its rapidly increasing impoverished population. After the campaign, the awareness also led to then-President Lyndon Johnson’s proclamation of waging war on poverty in 1964.

Although not much progress has been made to address poverty in the U.S. since the PPC, a movement towards income equality has sparked not only in America, but across the globe. Calls for minimum wage increases and lowering the gap between lower and upper socio-economic classes are now ringing as loudly as they were during King’s time.

In remembrance of King’s PPC and Johnson’s war on poverty, 2014 is shaping up to be a landmark year in addressing the expanding income inequality and the impoverished population of the world.

– Jugal Patel

Sources: American Friends Service Committee, NPR, The Huffington Post
Photo: Black Youth Project

Singapore’s Repatriation Companies Removing Workers

repatriation companies
Migrant workers are a common sight among the busy streets of Singapore; they have been essential to the growth of the impressive buildings that paint the skyline. But like many countries that rely on migrant workers, abuse does rear its ugly head.

Many workers who make their way to Singapore seek money that simply is not available in their home country. Typically, they sign a contract, allowing them to reside in the country for a specific period of time.

Workers who do not wish to leave are put in the hands of companies that specialize in corralling migrant workers and forcibly removing them from the country. Many of these companies have been known to use intimidating and sometimes violent tactics.

Bapari Jarkir, a Bangladeshi migrant worker, encountered the employees of a repatriation company at the point of a knife. His employer wanted to expel him off his job as a welder, but he refused due to the high amount of debt he incurred while moving to Singapore.

He was escorted to the office of a repatriation company, where he was forcibly detained for several hours until he agreed to sign a document saying he was responsible for paying his $3,900 bond that each construction firm must give up to the government for each migrant worker. The bond money is usually returned to the company once the migrant worker leaves the country.

Should a migrant worker fail to leave the country once their contract is up, the construction firm is levied with a sizeable fine. The bonds the companies hand over to the government combined with the risk of facing fines has resulted in a profitable market for repatriation companies. Horror stories have also been reported detailing the expulsion of workers from Singapore should any health issues occur.

Construction companies are typically responsible for insuring their workers and paying medical expenses should they arise. A Bangladeshi worker named Shagar faced deportation following a work related injury.

After he hurt his leg while carrying heavy tile, he pursued compensation through his employer. After being summoned to the foreman’s office, he encountered two large men who escorted him to the headquarters of a repatriation company. The company informed him he was being placed on a flight back to Bangladesh. Luckily, he was able to remember a lawyer’s assistant’s number and was provided assistance.

The issue of Singapore’s repatriation companies has even garnered the attention of the United States government. In its 2013 Report on Human Trafficking, it confirms the experience of Bapari and Shagar at the hands of repatriation companies. It notes instances of workers being “seized and confined” against their will and threatened into leaving the country.

While Singapore is a very modern and stable nation, it needs desperate reform of its labor laws concerning migrant workers; specifically the bonds the government requires from every firm employing migrant workers, which has created a market for these repatriation companies to flourish. Singapore experienced its first riot in 40 years involving disgruntled migrant workers; a clear sign that change is needed.

– Zachary Lindberg

Sources: CNN, Bloomberg
Photo: UNHCR