Archive for category: Global Poverty

Key articles and information on global poverty.

African Growth and Opportunity Act’s Importance

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The Economist once labeled Africa “The Hopeless Continent.” The magazine determined that the widespread effects of disease, poverty, conflict and corruption rendered the continent economically unfavorable. That was in 2000, the same year that President Clinton signed into law the African Growth and Opportunity Act (“AGOA”). Today, the continent—and particularly sub-Saharan Africa—is home to several of the world’s fastest growing economies. In 2011, The Economist revised its moniker, referring to Africa as the “The Rising Continent.”

Many economists view AGOA as an integral element of growth in sub-Saharan Africa. The primary objective of AGOA is to expand the volume and variety of trade and investment between the United States and sub-Saharan Africa. According to government sources, AGOA’s trade provisions are responsible for 350,000 direct and 1 million indirect jobs in Africa as well as 100,000 jobs in the United States. Since the program’s inception, exports from AGOA nations to the U.S. have risen more than 300 percent.

AGOA is scheduled to expire in 2015, but President Obama has initiated an early campaign to extend the trade agreement. While praising the success of the program the President explained that, “The economies of sub-Saharan Africa are among the world’s fastest-growing, and this economic expansion, partly a result of our long-standing investment in Africa, provides an opportunity to lift millions out of poverty and foster long-term stability.”

Though oil and gas exports comprise more than 90 percent of African exports under the program, leaders hope to expand investment in other industries such as textile and apparel exports. Economists have stressed the importance of diversifying exports in trying to achieve long-term development and sustainable growth.

This month, leaders from the United States and participating African nations will meet in Ethiopia for the AGOA Forum. The theme of the event is Sustainable Transformation Through Trade and Technology. African representatives are hoping for a long-term extension of the trade agreement. Jas Bedi, chairman of the African Cotton and Textile Industries Federation, explained it simply, “You can’t do a $200 million deal if you don’t know what’s going to happen in three year’s time.”

Renewal of AGOA is crucial if the United States hopes to keep pace with China, which has recently overtaken the United States as sub-Saharan Africa’s largest trading partner. A recent report from the Brookings Institute criticizes the American business community for failing to capitalize on the continent’s emerging markets. As the region continues to grow, the United States hopes to accelerate trade and investment with its African partners. The renewal of AGOA will certainly be a good start.

– Daniel Bonasso

Sources: Financial Times, AGOA, Brookings Institute
Photo: It News Africa

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Definition of Poverty: What Is It, Exactly?

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In the vaguest sense of the word, Merriam-Webster will tell you that general poverty is “the state of one who lacks a usual or socially acceptable amount of money or material possessions.” This is just about as much as anyone with a context clue for the word poverty could define it as. But what is it really? What does it mean to live in poverty? There are different types and levels, in a sense, of poverty. Each country tends to have different cut off points that determine whether they are truly impoverished or not. But it is generally accepted that those living in such a way that it is difficult to make ends meet, are impoverished. So what are the different levels?

There are several million people living at or nearby the poverty line just in the United States, but even our poverty line is higher than that of the world’s poorest countries. A person living alone and unmarried is allotted just over $11,000 or less to meet the poverty requirements set by the government. And while survival in our country would be absolutely difficult on this meager income, many people are living on even less. In fact, there are 2.4 billion people living at the poverty line of $2 a day, this comes to less than $3,000 income in an entire year. That is two dollars every day to feed themselves and their families. All that money to have a place to live and water to drink and clothes to wear. Defining poverty means looking at the fact that people are going without the full education or access to good jobs that they so desperately need to pull themselves out of this way of life. People living this way often have to choose one necessity over another in order to make sure that at least some of the needs are met and taking any government assistance when possible, like food stamps and welfare. And it gets even worse than that.

What about extreme poverty? This is recognized as living on less that $1.25 a day as defined by the World bank in 2008 and there are over 1 billion people living in this state. This level is decided by a lack of clean water, housing, food, health care and education. Some of the countries most beset by this issue include Africa, Afghanistan, and Haiti. Most things that other people take for granted, those living in extreme poverty must go without. People living in extreme poverty suffer much higher rates of infant and maternal mortality. 22,000 children around the world die every day in the poorest countries due to unchecked illness and succumbing to malnourishment. In fact 1 billion out of 2.2 billion children in the world are living in poverty conditions such as these. At this point every aspect of survival becomes a struggle. It is not simply a matter of going without health care to ensure that there is enough food in the house. It is instead going without reasonable amounts of anything at all and living a day by day existence.

What about social poverty, or social exclusion? Poverty is not only defined in a monetary fashion. Income poverty is the most commonly looked at, but there is such a thing as social poverty. This is defined as lacking cultural inclusion due to the inability to conform to society’s ideal norms due to a lack of education, skills, money, health care, child care, and a certain type of living condition. This multidimensional measurement of poverty brings all these into consideration to define itself as the inability to participate in the community socially whether on that national, local, or even familial level. While it is much more difficult to measure than what is called absolute poverty, it is still considered to be an important aspect of poverty by many in the world. It is thought that a quality of life should also be applied to standards of living.

All in all, while poverty is defined much in the same way that any word is, it is a constantly adjusting thing as it is an active part of life itself. It fluctuates regularly and changes to meet the times. Hopefully, with the right amount of work and education, it will also become a part of our past as opposed an all too realistic part of our present.

– Chelsea Evans

Sources: Merriam-Webster, Families USA, Global Issues, UNESCO, One Day’s Wages
Photo: Photo Brazil

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How to Prevent Poverty

How to Prevent Poverty
Understanding how to prevent poverty has been an issue of great concern both in the United States and across the globe. Countries like the U.S., in a position to prevent poverty in less developed nations, are particularly interested in determining the causes of poverty in order to effectively alleviate poverty at home and abroad. By understanding what it is that leads to impoverishment in specific communities and countries, poverty reduction efforts are more likely to prevent poverty all over the world.

Though poverty and extreme poverty, as terms, have been defined as living under a certain dollar amount per day, what causes poverty is often much more complicated. The World Bank defines global poverty as a pronounced and multidimensional deprivation in wellbeing. That is, what it is to be considered poor or impoverished depends on a number of different conditions and factors that vary from community to community. For example, one family may have the dollar amount sufficient to feed itself but lack adequate access to education or water.

Because poverty represents such a wide variety of conditions, how to prevent poverty is an issue that requires a complex understanding of the circumstances in which one is working. Not only that, effective poverty prevention and reduction strategies will necessarily include either a multidimensional approach or take place in a network of projects that strive to prevent or reduce poverty on various levels. For instance, Plan Canada, a Canadian-based charity organization founded in 1937, takes a five-step approach in its strategy to prevent poverty worldwide.

 

Plan Canada’s Tools for How to Prevent Poverty

 

  • Education – Providing a quality education to children will create positive change in a child’s life.
  • Healthcare – Adequate access to healthcare is essential to ensuring health and wellness.
  • Water and Sanitation – Prevention of disease in communities is largely dependent on adequate facilities.
  • Economic Security – Though economic growth is not required, economic security provides families with sufficient stability to count on a consistent family income.
  • Child Participation – Helping children learn their rights and engage in civic duties sets the foundation for a strong community.

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) reports that slower population growth and investments in reproductive health and HIV prevention, as well as women’s empowerment and gender equality are also important steps toward preventing poverty. In fact, the UNFPA considers universal access to reproductive health information and services to be an “essential” condition to achieve the U.N. Millennium Development Goals by 2015.

How to end poverty is a complicated question, but significant research like that taken to synthesize the reports discussed above suggests that it is not an impossible question to answer. Quite the contrary, there are thousands of organizations across the globe working on just that question every day. Collaborative and coordinated efforts, in recognition of the diverse causes of poverty, will no doubt win the day. In the meantime, these strategies continue to develop in scope and sophistication.

– Herman Watson

Sources: The Borgen Project, Plan Canada, United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Population Fund
Photo: Soda Head

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The UMCOR Organization Makes a Difference

UMCOR
The United Methodist Committee on Relief, also know as UMCOR, is a humanitarian relief and development organization which aims transform and strengthen individual’s lives and their communities by providing humanitarian relief in the United States and abroad.

UMCOR helps communities which have been effected by natural disasters, war, or conflict. Although UMCOR is not a first response organization, its volunteers are always on high alert to help those in need. The United Methodist Committee on Relief aims to establish a “new normal” for the communities they are helping, and help each individual return to their everyday lives.

The organization empowers local businesses, hospitals, schools, and churches in Third world countries. UMCOR travels to different areas of the world visiting communities and addressing health, sanitation, poverty, sustainable agriculture, and food security issues.

UMCOR has helped millions around the world and believes that each and every individual has God given worth and dignity, which is why the organization does not discriminate against race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation.

The organization helps communities recover from disaster and sustain their improvement. Volunteers remain in the communities after recovery has occurred to provide individuals with an education, training, and support. UMCOR also works towards preventing the spread of malaria and other health issues such as HIV/AIDS, maternal and child survival, water and sanitation, congressional health, and hospital strengthening.

UMCOR also partners with other organizations to address issues, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the U.N. Foundation. A representative from the U.N. Foundation stated that UMCOR is making a big difference in numerous individual’s lives by not wishing for a difference, but instead is going out there and is making a difference.

The United Methodist Committee on Relief is an organization which is making great strides in global development and international aid. By working in over 80 countries, and providing individuals with an education, training, and support, UMCOR has become a leading organization in humanitarian relief.

– Grace Elizabeth Beal

Sources: UMCOR, Imagine No Malaria, UN Foundation

UNICEF Steps Up to Aid Namibia as Drought Worsens

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Namibia is currently facing its worst drought in three decades. Located in southwest Africa, Namibia is one of the driest countries in the world. All 13 regions of Namibia have been affected by the drought with major shortages of food and water, but the north has been hit the worst. In order to compensate, many families are forced to sell livestock, reduce the number of meals per day, or migrate to the cities in search of work. Angola has also been affected by the drought. With migrants from both Angola and Namibia flooding into nearby countries in search of food, the crisis is beginning to take on a regional dimension.

In Namibia’s northwestern Kunene region, agriculture is limited by the area’s dry and sandy soil. Local populations are semi-nomadic and rely heavily on livestock. In search of fresh pasture, these local populations have been forced from their villages and their traditional way of life. The young men are visibly absent from the region, as many of them have left their villages to find the distant stretches of pasture for their livestock.

Typically, Namibia experiences only light and erratic seasonal rains. For the last thirty years, the country has experienced low seasonal rainfall. But after a second year of failed rains, the country is now in a state of emergency. Because of the prolonged dry season, the Government estimates that 2013 crop yields will be 42 percent lower than those of 2012. With only one harvest per year, the country will not see another harvest season until March 2014. Namibia’s cereal crop output is expected to be 50 percent below average. A third of the population, some 780,000 people, are at risk of malnutrition – this includes 110,000 children under the age of five.

When declaring a state of emergency, Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohama said, “It has now been established that climate change is here to stay and humanity must find ways and means of mitigating its effect.” The Namibian government has committed $20.7 million in assistance to affected people, but aid so far has been insufficient.The Namibian government has warned that there might not be enough water for its people, which puts livestock at risk, further prolonging the crisis. Many families have applied for food aid, but few have received anything.

In order to help the 110,000 children at risk of malnutrition in Namibia, UNICEF has pledged $7.4 million to the country. According to Micaela Marques De Sousa, UNICEF’s Namibia representative, “Shortages of food and water are increasing the immediate threat of disease and malnutrition…But anecdotal reports already indicate children are dropping out of school, a clear sign of stress and vulnerability in families.” In addition, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies has issued an appeal for $1.45 million, in hopes of helping 55,000 people in Northern Namibia.

– Kelsey Ziomek

Sources: Reuters, The Guardian, OCHA, UN News Centre, The Washington Post, IOL News, IRIN Africa, ReliefWeb, UNICEF
Photo: Thomson Reuters Foundation

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Irrigation Could End Poverty

Irrigation_Poverty
By now, it is a well known fact that clean water is necessary for drinking and hygiene. About 1.1 billion people go without clean water every day and must rely on polluted or infected supplies to survive. Even more than that go without basic sanitation. But, water is not just for human consumption and cleanliness. Access to good water can be the difference between eating and starving for rural farmers throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. In order to grow sufficient crops, farmers need water and frequently must rely on sparse rains and transporting water on their own to provide for the plants they are attempting to grow.

Only four percent of rural farmland is irrigated, even though up to 40 million hectares are proven to be appropriate for irrigation. Farming in Africa has proven to be a difficult endeavor at the best of times. Rainfall has become unpredictable and crop yield is often too low to feed a family, let alone to sell in a market. The frustrating part is that there is plenty of water available underground, but the farmers lack an affordable way to actually obtain it.

Large, centralized irrigation schemes are usually built around a major dam and were very successful, especially during the so-called Green Revolution. Millions of people were brought out of hunger as a result. But they often proved to be environmentally destructive and tend to be very expensive to build and use, especially for those living in Africa.

The answer to providing access to crop irrigation for poor rural farmers in Africa could be much smaller, like the treadle pump. The pump is used by stepping up and down with the long poles, or treadles, that activate the suction and pump water out of the ground. One family told Sandra Postel, who of the National Geographic Freshwater Initiative, that their $35 investment brought them $100 in revenue the first year they used it.

The downfall of a pump like this is that it requires a lot of physical work to use and ends up taking time away from other important activities like schooling and harvesting. Nonetheless, several companies such as KickStart have created variations of the treadle pump to help spread the use of irrigation. With their affordable irrigation pumps, KickStart has been able to help 750,000 Africans pull themselves out of poverty. Groups like FarmAfrica have gone in and taught the farmers how to use the pumps and what crops to grow to get the best yield. Until small motorized pumps are more universally available and affordable, the benefits of being able to grow enough food to eat and sell seriously outweigh the issue of having to operate to pump manually.

– Chelsea Evans

Sources: Global Issues, National Geographic, FarmAfrica, KickStart
Photo: Indiegogo

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Tourism in the Philippines to Help the Poor

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USAID and the Philippines Department of Tourism and Department of Social Welfare and Development recently announced a program to include pro-poor tourism activities in areas of high poverty in the country. The Departments and USAID signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) August 5th. Tourism in the Philippines has significant potential to boost the economy and alleviate poverty.

The program, dubbed “The One-Step Project,” will seek to incorporate pro-poor aspects in the tourism trade in five pilot areas characterized by high poverty and high tourism. These five areas are chosen from the 78 tourism development areas designated by the Department of Tourism. Regional and provincial officers in the five areas will be consulted by a central technical working group. While a project amount has not yet been set, The One-Step Project will take place over four years and will focus on infrastructure, job creation through community-based projects, and private sector engagement.

In 2010, the Philippines received 3.5 million visitors, generating US$2.4 billion from tourism. The Philippine government has focused on the tourism industry in recent years, but, despite its many natural attractions the Philippines, still trails other regional countries in tourism numbers.

A variety of factors contribute to this sluggishness: remote location, susceptibility to natural disasters, and unrest often resulting in kidnappings. However, tourism does hold the potential for new job creation. Including the poor in tourism strategies and job creation is an important development opportunity within this sector. While the Department of Tourism has included these strategies in the past, this will be their first partnership with USAID.

This will not be the first time the Philippine Department of Tourism has focused on pro-poor tourism actions. In 2000, the Department’s regional branch helped villagers in Sta. Juliana organize in order to take advantage of a new influx of tourism.

Residents of the village, suffering from a decade of neglect, struggle to make ends meet. They are hampered by lack of appropriate infrastructure to get their agriculture goods to market and a lack of telecommunications. The regional Tourism department helped the villagers form the Sta. Juliana Tourism Council, Inc. which has educated residents on the trade’s benefits. New jobs and livelihoods evolved to capitalize on this influx.

The One-Step Project falls under USAID’s Partnership for Growth program, running until 2016. Additional projects in the Philippines will be implemented by USAID focusing on tourism. Most of these projects will take the form of technical assistance and policy reform. The USAID Philippine budget reached $102 million for fiscal year 2011. This is distributed across USAID’s four focus areas: democracy and governance, economic growth, health and education, and energy and environment. The US government is the Philippines largest grant donor. The collaborative One-Step Project has great potential to continue tourism-focused aid to the poorest communities in the Philippines.

– Callie D. Coleman

Sources: Business Mirror, CNN, The Philippine Department of Tourism , USAID
Photo: AUSTRONESIA

Top Three Recipients of U.S. Foreign Aid in 2012

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With global economic hegemony, many believe it is the inherent responsibility of the United States to project its wealth out unto those who are less fortunate. As the purported “City upon the Hill”, the United States has employed various forms of foreign aid aimed at bringing up less fortunate global actors. As we will see, foreign aid takes on many forms and is directed towards not only the poorer nations. More often than not, foreign aid is funneled to promote American interests, rather than humanitarian ones. The earliest incantation of foreign aid, the 1948 Marshall Plan, is largely responsible for bringing Europe out of the destruction of World War II, yet its inspiration was to stem the spread of communism throughout Europe. Today, foreign aid has proven to be a valuable arrow in our diplomatic quiver in both humanitarian and geopolitical senses. The following list represents the top three recipients of U.S. foreign aid in 2012, and, perhaps, provides some insight into the varying purposive goals of U.S. foreign aid.

1. Israel ($3.075 Billion)

If you pay any attention whatsoever to American politics, it is no secret that the subject of Israel is a weighty one when it comes to U.S. international and domestic political considerations. Moreover, Israel’s yearly position as the top recipient of U.S foreign aid sheds light on the nature of foreign aid. Israel is by no means a developing nation. In fact, the private Israeli sector is spearheading a new age of scientific and technological advancements. Without any doubt, the lion’s share of this aid goes towards beefing up defense and military resources. For example, Israel’s Iron Dome technology, aimed at intercepting incoming missiles, comes with an exceedingly high price tag. The position of Israel on this list sheds light on the subject and nature of USAID. It is clear that the abundance of aid towards Israel serves as a means of protecting US interests in the Middle East and against increasingly aggressive posturing from Russia and Iran.

2. Afghanistan ($2.327 Billion)

Not surprisingly, Afghanistan has come in second on this list. After years of war attempting to stem the tide of terrorism in the region, the U.S. has directed foreign aid to the region to fund both the Afghan military as well as for the purposes of General Chrystal’s Counterinsurgency (COIN) ideology. After funding the Afghan military and police, the remaining aid is funneled towards aspects of soft power. Through building schools and hospitals, the United States hopes to win the hearts and minds of the Afghan people, which in turn, is hoped to be effective in preventing further insurgency.

3. Pakistan ($2.102 Billion)

Aid channeled towards Pakistan represents a unique form of Foreign Aid. It is no secret that Pakistan is one of the most potentially volatile regions on the planet. With a seemingly never ending dispute with India and rising Islamic extremism, the prospect of instability is one that must be avoided at all costs. Unlike Afghanistan, Pakistan has nuclear weapons; the prospect of these falling into the hands of the wrong people is something the global community cannot allow. With this understanding the brunt of USAID to Pakistan has gone towards building up a governmental infrastructure suited to international cooperation. With the ever-present possibility of corruption, foreign aid is the proverbial “carrot”, as opposed to the “stick” levied against Afghanistan. After sustained efforts to battle extremism, it is entirely against US foreign interests for the Taliban to gain a political foothold in Pakistan. Through creating an infrastructure not suitable to their political ideology, foreign aid dollars can go much further than they would battling symptoms of terrorism and extremism.

– Thomas van der List

Sources: Washington Post, USAID, ABC News
Photo: The National

Poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa – The Full Story

Poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa
The World Bank estimates that more than 69 percent of the population of Sub-Saharan Africa lives on less than $2 per day, making it one of the poorest regions in the world. Though the region has experienced strong economic growth during the last two decades, poverty alleviation remains a pressing issue for African leaders.

The numbers appear promising. In its latest African Pulse analysis, the World Bank says that Sub-Saharan Africa’s economic growth should grow to more than 5 percent over the next three years. Foreign investment, rising commodity prices and global economic recovery will all contribute to the region’s rapid development.

Punam Chuhan-Pole, a lead economist in the Bank’s Africa department, said: “If properly harnessed to unleash their full potential, these trends hold the promise of more growth, much less poverty, and accelerating shared prosperity for African countries.”

But questions remain as to whether the region’s economic growth will help mitigate poverty. Statistically, economic growth does not automatically reduce poverty; many resource-rich countries, such as Gabon and Nigeria, have fared worse in terms of poverty reduction than neighboring nations with fewer resources. So, how can Sub-Saharan Africa convert economic gains into poverty reduction?

According the World Bank report, “Better governance will need to underpin efforts to make growth more poverty reducing.” Better governance means more efficient mineral and wealth management, agricultural development and methods for controlling urbanization. It must also include strategies to deal with the region’s growing income inequality, which likely stems from systemic government corruption and a weak middle class.

In 2010, six of the ten most inequitable countries in the world were in Sub-Saharan Africa. In Mozambique, the poorest 20 percent of the population earns 5 percent of total income while the richest 20 percent take home more than 50 percent. The World Bank points out that Mozambique’s oil and gas reserves will be huge economic drivers over the next few years, but, as it stands now, the neediest will benefit the least from any economic gains.

It is difficult to cast economic growth in a negative light. However, Sub-Saharan Africa’s recent expansion has done little to improve poverty and income inequality in the region. Without responsible government and a strong, participatory middle class, economic gains will continue to enrich a small segment of the population. The rest of the people will continue finding ways to subsist on $2 dollars a day.

– Daniel Bonasso

Sources: World Bank, UNDP, Overseas Development Institute

FLOW-AID – Maximizing ‘Crop Per Drop’

Flow_Aid
As the world population continues to shoot upwards, pressure increases on the environment and farmers across the globe to provide enough food and water to support the growing population. With droughts becoming more common, efficient methods of utilizing water in agriculture could make a significant impact in the access to food and water for the world.

The Farm Level Optimal Water Management Assistant for Irrigation Under Deficit, or FLOW-AID, brings researchers, engineers, and scientists together together to develop innovative new technologies to improve irrigation methods with the purpose of saving water. Their latest project maximizes water usage by decreasing the need for water use by up to 60 percent and simultaneously lessening fertilizer usage up to 30 percent.

FLOW-AID provides water-saving technology, which uses inexpensive wireless detectors that run on solar energy and give data to farmers about which areas of the crops need more or less water. This practice not only maximizes the efficiency of irrigation, but also improves plant health by producing the exact amount of water needed.

Farmers in Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, Italy, Spain, and the Netherlands currently utilize FLOW-AID technology. These test countries were chosen partially based off the varying natures of their climates, to determine how to adapt FLOW-AID to meet the different environmental needs of varying regions. Developers of FLOW-AID state that the technology is prepared to handle even the dryer climate of many nations in Africa. They have also pledged to keep the cost of the technology low enough for developing countries to adopt.

According to the United Nations, over 780 million people exist without any access to clean water, and 2.5 billion lack properly sanitized water. The number or people suffering from hunger and undernourishment falls around 870 million people based off the United Nation’s data, mirror the number of people without access to water. With creative technology, such as FLOW-AID, the world could maximize its resources and gain access to more food and water, working to reduce the strains on society from the world’s burgeoning population.

– Allison Meade

Sources: Treehugger, Cespevi, United Nations
Photo: Gizmag