Archive for category: Global Poverty

Key articles and information on global poverty.

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5 Safety Risks That Child Poverty in Paraguay Causes

Child Poverty in Paraguay
The child population in Paraguay is 2.5 million, making it 35% of the total population. Paraguay has a population of 7.3 million, with nearly 63% living in urban areas and 37% living in rural areas. Child poverty in Paraguay creates an entry point of multiple issues that risk the safety and well-being of Paraguayan children. Here are five safety risks that child poverty in Paraguay causes.

1. Child Labor

According to the Encuesta Permanente de Hogares Continua (EPHC), in 2020, 53% of children living in rural areas worked as child laborers in farmlands. Children in Paraguay experience the worst forms of labor. According to the United States Department of Labor, in rural areas, children work as child laborers on farms against their will to produce corn, beans, manioc, peanuts, peppers, sesame, sugarcane, tomatoes, lettuce, melons, sweet potato, onions, carrots, cabbages and many more crops. 

On top of producing and picking crops, children raise cattle, poultry, hogs, sheep and goats and are responsible for milk production. Children also fish using hooks and harpoons and prepare bait, exposing themselves to multiple diseases and harsh weather. 

In rural areas, children work on construction sites, exposing them to hazardous materials without any protection and dangerous conditions. Employers order children to handle heavy loads of materials and equipment, even in producing bricks.

2. Street Children

In more populated areas like the capital city, Asunción, there is a different type of child labor in street children. Impoverished children tend not to complete their education because they must provide for their families. In 2021, 75% of children enrolled in primary school and 60% enrolled in middle school, according to UNICEF and the Ministry of Education. With only 54% of students enrolled in upper secondary school. 

The children who do not attend school are working on the streets as street vendors or street performers. Parents or family members exploit their children to make money. Other street work includes sanitation, shoe shinning, newspaper vendor and begging. 

3. Child Marriages

Children of Paraguay are often subject to child marriages, which the high levels of child poverty cause. In 2020, 4% of girls 15 or younger experienced marriage or a union, according to GirlsNotBrides. 

Marriage at such a young age has severe physical and mental health issues because children are unprepared for such a commitment. Paraguay has no national plan or security in place to prevent child marriages. The main drive of child marriages is gender inequality and wealth. About 37% of women living in poor households marry at a young age. 

4. Child Exploitation

The main reason children enter marriage is the sexual exploitation of girls. In 2021, UNICEF recorded about 1,500 cases of sexual abuse. Both boys and girls are victims of sex tourism and they are often sold or given away and exploited for sexual, domestic and commercial services. 

According to UNICEF, data from Fono Ayuda 147 calculated almost 7,400 calls for cases of sexual and physical abuse from children. The organization does not know if the calls are from exploited children. Child exploitation occurs mainly through traffickers’ use of social media to recruit victims who end up on boats where others exploit them for prostitution and child pornography. 

5. Children Trafficking

Paraguay is a big contributor to child trafficking in the continent. Paraguay is a transit and destination country in the Tri-Border Area, comprising Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay. Children from rural-impoverished areas are often trafficked to cities and other countries. 

The U.S. Department of State recorded 166 trafficked victims, in the 2022 Trafficking in Persons Report. The report found  72 women, 46 girls, nine men and 33 boys in the victim group. Of that number, 74 victims reported being trafficked for sexual purposes and another 86 reported others forcing them into labor. 

Solutions

Ultimately, it would seem that the safety of children in Paraguay is severely lacking. However, programs and legislation are being enforced to slow down and protect the children of Paraguay. The program, Dispositivo de Respuesta Inmediata, responds to tips from a hotline and provides support for children on the streets. The program employs social workers and authorities to call for sexual abuse, sexual exploitation and routes of street employment in children. 

The government also passed the National Plan for Childhood and Adolescence 2022-2024, which will foresee the protection of children’s rights and highlight child labor as a violation of those rights. Paraguay is a member of the Organization of American States. As a member, Paraguay is working to strengthen its response to sexual and physical violence and the obliteration of early marriage in children. This means there is support and answers to the security of children in Paraguay.

– Sebastian Llerena
Photo: Flickr

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The Mona Foundation: Education and Opportunities for Women

The Mona FoundationEducation is a proven pathway out of poverty, which is why several organizations center their missions around helping disadvantaged children attain access to quality education. The Mona Foundation is one of many organizations that realize the value of education as a tool for poverty reduction. This work is essential considering that after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 700 million people lived in extreme poverty in 2020.

The Mona Foundation

The Mona Foundation is an organization that believes “Education is key to alleviating poverty, hunger, inequality, and most other social ills.” The Mona Foundation supports grassroots organizations worldwide in their efforts to educate children, focusing on empowering girls and women to transform communities. The president and founder of the organization, Mahnaz Aflatooni Javid, is based out of the United States. The Mona Foundation has operated since 1999 and has donated over $17 million to its 53 partner organizations. The foundation has the support of famous American celebrity Rainn Wilson or Dwight Schrute from the American version of the series “The Office”. The story of Mona Mahmudnizhad, a young Iranian female human rights activist, inspired the organization’s name. Mona was arrested by Iranian authorities in 1983 for her outspoken nature and support for fundamental human rights and for being a member of the minority Baháʼí faith. Nine months later, at the age of 17, she was executed.

Arriba Las Manos

One of the education organizations the Mona Foundation supports is the Arriba Las Manos organization based out of Colombia. Arabia Las Manos allows children to access educational tools like toys, Legos and other things. According to the OECD, 37% of Columbian adults aged 25-64 who attended school up to upper secondary school earned less than half the average earnings in 2019. Hence, education at an early age is so important. Both organizations work to increase access to education.

The focus on education, and girls’ education in particular, is essential, considering that more than 100 million girls are out of school worldwide, according to UNICEF. Access to education can provide girls and women with the skills and knowledge required to rise out of poverty, uplift their families and empower their communities. With girls and women being a marginalized group, it is vital for all humanitarian efforts to keep girls and women at the center of their aid efforts. 

 A report was published in 2020 by the ERIC Institute on Education Sciences on education development in the Huaping Girls High School in Yunnan Province in China. Establishing the High School itself was a way to help the women living there leave one of the poorest areas in the Yunnan Province. By providing girls from that area in extreme poverty a chance to get an easily accessible education, over 1,800 girls from that school attended universities across China, helping them realize their dreams of getting out of poverty and into the world. Giving these struggling women opportunities to thrive and lift themselves out of poverty through education helped them leave one of the poorest regions in China. The School shows that giving access to education to those who otherwise would not have it can lead to success. In this case, women end up at university, thus underscoring the importance of education access to ending poverty.

Women’s Empowerment

The Mona Foundation’s efforts have had a significant impact so far. The organization’s sponsorship programs in 2023 have supported over 2,000 children. Its teacher training programs in 2022 trained over 8,000 teachers and its women’s empowerment program teaches women to think critically about their upbringing and develop skills to help them lift themselves out of poverty. In 2022, over 100,000 girls were empowered through the Mona Foundation. This organization has a significant impact on women and children in need. 

The Mona Foundation has helped many people through its programs and partnerships. Through sponsorships and teaching drills to partnering with organizations that share their values and goals, this organization plays an essential role in the fight against poverty.

– Calder Miller
Photo: Flickr

Broadening Internet Connectivity in Kenya

Internet Connectivity in KenyaKenya’s government is set to begin constructing 100,000km of fiber-optic cable throughout the country as part of a nationwide project to broaden internet connectivity in Kenya. Their approach implements a unique blend of private- and public-sector construction that has caught the eye of many experts in the field.

Internet Access in Kenya

According to the World Bank, less than a third of Kenyans had internet access in 2021. The largest data service provider in Kenya, Safaricom, still remains largely inactive in most rural areas. Internet connectivity in Kenya is strongest in Nairobi.  
 

To address Kenya’s internet deficiency, the government has begun Phase 1 of the multi-phase Kenya Digital Economy Acceleration Project, a plan to broaden internet connectivity in Kenya. From this year to 2028, 100,000km of fiber-optic cable will be built across all 1450 wards in the country, targeting areas outside major cities. Furthermore, this cable network will be connected to 25,000 public “Digital Village Smart Hubs,” ensuring more citizens living in rural communities can access internet services. 

Rather than working alongside the private sector in a joint national venture The ITC, Kenya’s Ministry of Technology and Communication, has commissioned private-sector companies like Safaricom to construct about half of the cable network itself, while the government oversees construction of the remaining 50%. Though structurally complex, experts believe this approach could speed up construction, lower costs and create over 1.5 million jobs. Additionally, the fiber-optic cable uses quartz fiber, which is lightweight, resilient and loses 100 million times less transmit power than traditional cables. 

Safaricom has already completed 27% of its share of the construction. Moreover, the World Bank has committed nearly $400 million of the $600 million needed to complete the network. 

All Africa Digital Economy Moonshot (Bigger Plans for Africa)

A broader conduit for funding is the joint All Africa Digital Economy Moonshot of the World Bank and African Union. This is a broad goal of bringing Africa online, as well as a digital overhaul of African financial and public services by 2030. 

Phase 2 of the KDEAP will run from 2026–2030 and involve building the infrastructure and digital environments to digitize government services. By 2030, the Kenyan government should be able to offer e-services like 3-minute digital credit lines and digitized fingerprint/photo records of citizens, enabling secure, speedy access to thousands of planned public services. 

Economic Benefits

About a quarter of Kenya’s population currently lives in extreme poverty. Increasing internet connectivity in Kenya could reduce poverty by improving education and expanding job opportunities. Furthermore, many African leaders note that there is a strong desire amongst African countries to strengthen trade between each other, not just internationally. However, the lack of digital payment systems, credit lines, speedy internet connection and other information technologies has hampered efforts to build trade networks on the continent. Hopefully, as more countries are brought online this decade, they will be able to reap the economic benefits of improved trade and production.

The push for greater internet connectivity in Kenya looks to be going well. Hopefully, the government and its private-sector partners will continue to be successful in the future.

– Finneas Sensiba
Photo: Pixabay

Fog Nets Capture Hope

Fog NetsOne of the biggest challenges that many remote and impoverished communities face is access to food and water. Fog nets, in some places, have become the solution to both of those problems. Strung up across hillsides, these nets collect water for crops and people in places like Peru, Morocco, Bolivia, Columbia, Mexico and the South African Kalahari Desert, among others. 

The Nets

Fog nets are made out of a dense mesh material and put in the air between two poles. They collect the microscopic water droplets that are in fog and condense them. They drip down the net and are siphoned into pipes, which all usually congregate into one large container for all of the nets in an area. Depending on the climate and net type, each fog net can catch up to 400 liters of fresh water per day. 

Some nets are less durable than others, and there has been some struggle to find affordable and durable nets. Many have used nets made of grocery packaging, but they break easily in extreme weather and do not collect as much water as more expensive ones. However, there is academic work being done to increase the strength and productivity of fog nets. A net called the Kirigami fog net is a perfect balance between affordable and strong, and produces optimal water from low-hanging fog. 

The Communities

Different communities are able to use this water for different purposes. Many use it for crops and animals. In Lima, Peru, which has dry land but high fog coverage, these nets are used for people who live on the outskirts of the city, who would otherwise need water driven to them in trucks. However, the water that they are able to get from the nets is not fit for human consumption, as Lima is one of the capitals of pollution. Because of that, Lima is one of the cities that uses fog nets to water their crops, but does not drink it. With only slightly over half of Peru’s population having access to clean drinking water as of 2018, this new way of collecting water for crops frees up resources to transport more potable water to communities that need it.

In Morocco, a remote Amazigh community has begun using fog nets. At first, the women were wary of this new method. As it was the women’s responsibility in this community to collect and watch over the water and its distribution, it seemed like the water coming from fog nets might take away some of their power. They also feared that it would eliminate time that was essential to the young Amazigh girls; time for women to talk about ways of life, and teach each other. Despite their misgivings, the wells were far away and drying up. Now, though, they are able to take advantage of their extra time, and they still have the power over water distribution and taking care of the nets. The nets have empowered local women, and the water can now be used in schools and agriculture.

These fog nets are used extensively for drinking water and agriculture, producing many crops in areas across the world that would otherwise be devoid of fruit. One in four people in the world does not have access to clean drinking water, but these nets could help to change that for many communities. In a time when potable water is becoming harder to come by, and weather is becoming more extreme, this adaptation is a hopeful sign for many.

– Ren Pratt
Photo: Unsplash

The Diabetes Epidemic in India

The Diabetes Epidemic in IndiaLike many low-income countries, India has struggled to battle its diabetes epidemic, particularly over the last decade, with some areas in India such as Goa having an alarming prevalence of 26.4% in 2021. 

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 77 million people are suffering from diabetes. About 12.1 million of these individuals are 65 or younger, which should rise to a figure of 27.5 million by 2045. Therefore, meaning India has the second highest prevalence of diabetes, lagging just behind China. 

As its population continues to grow, the diabetes epidemic across India’s 1.42 billion population remains a concern. With this in mind, the government of India and other organizations have developed initiatives to alleviate the diabetes epidemic in India and create better health outcomes in the country. 

Defining Diabetes

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), diabetes is defined as a chronic, metabolic disease, which is characterized by higher levels of blood sugar. Diabetes prevents or restricts the pancreas from producing the hormone insulin. 

Insulin maintains the human body’s blood sugar level, which is important for human processes, such as metabolism, to ensure the body has enough energy. The pancreas produces insulin to regulate the amount of sugar, or glucose, the body requires; the body stores the remaining amounts of glucose.  

Without the pancreas producing insulin or becoming resistant to insulin, excess amounts of glucose remain in the bloodstream. This can lead to significant damage to the heart, blood vessels, eyes, kidneys and nerves over time. 

Diabetes in India

According to a 2017 report by the Indian Council for Medical Research, diabetes prevalence has rocketed by 64% over the last 25 years. The cause for this diabetes epidemic in India may be perhaps due to a lack of awareness surrounding lifestyle choices and optimal diets. 

The increase in diabetes incidence is not only indicative of an aging population, it also represents lifestyle changes that are linked to increased wealth which impacts every age group. Those on higher incomes have more accessibility in terms of incorporating processed food, containing high levels of salt into their diets. 

A 2023 report published by Nature highlights that diabetes prevalence significantly increased in richer areas, such as Goa with a 26.4% prevalence, in comparison to poorer states like Uttar Pradesh with a 4.8% prevalence. 

The article also touches on increased prevalence when going from those without formal education to those with higher levels of education; those from urban areas are more likely to have diabetes than those from rural areas.

An analysis reveals that awareness, treatment and control of diabetes are lower among the impoverished and less educated people in India. For those living with diabetes, access to affordable treatment and health care is essential to manage the disease. Logistics issues, lack of diabetic medications and sub-optimal public health care systems can also contribute to the unknown diabetes ratio in rural areas. 

Those from lower-income backgrounds also have trouble controlling and managing diabetes, due to a lack of awareness surrounding symptoms linked to diabetes, notes leading diabetologist V Mohan in an interview from July 2017.

“Before knowledge and awareness levels improve across India, the disease is likely to spread across these communities,” he said.

Furthermore, the current trends in India show that the diabetes epidemic will continue to grow, however, this is preventable through dietary adaptations and education. Treatments such as insulin and other anti-diabetic medications are costly, therefore it is crucial that emphasis is placed on prevention. 

The Impact of Diabetes Continues Across Generations 

Studies have recognized that Indians have higher insulin resistance due to an inherent genetic predisposition, increased disease incidence and lower body mass index. Despite healthier behaviors in terms of smoking and exercise, a higher prevalence of diabetes is reported among Indians living in the United States due to higher levels of obesity. 

A 20-year longitudinal study based in the United Kingdom notes that diabetes prevalence is three times higher in Indians compared to their European counterparts. Likewise, a high prevalence of diabetes in immigrant Indians was reported in a study investigating diabetes among communities living in Singapore.  

These studies suggest a growing challenge and represent a public health challenge to tackle insulin resistance and the diabetes epidemic in many Indians globally.

Organizations Addressing Diabetes in India

One organization helping alleviate the diabetes epidemic in India is the Nityaasha Foundation. The organization was established in 2013 and focuses on individuals from lower-income backgrounds who are suffering from diabetes. Most families they provide support to are illiterate and daily wage workers. 

The Niytaasha Foundation has a mission to “bestow healthy life by fulfilling the medical needs of the underprivileged through holistic support.” One way the Foundation meets this mission is by providing free medical aid, such as insulin and glucose meters, along with diet and social counseling. They also monitor health on a regular basis as well as aiming to provide educational sessions. 

Currently, the Niytaasha Foundation helps 130 type 1 children, of which 70% of children come from rural areas. 

Diabetes in India is a persistent, ongoing issue impacting many Indians around the globe. Despite there being a need for better public health care systems in India, organizations such as the Niytaasha Foundation aim to improve the health outcomes for many patients suffering from diabetes in India.

– Rupinder Kaur
Photo: Rawpixel

AI for Development? That is What the UK thinks

AI for Development
At the latest meeting of the United Nations General Assembly, the U.K. Foreign Secretary announced a partnership with Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC), to launch a programme called ‘AI for Development’. The goal of the program is to build local skills in AI, initially in Africa, to help combat the causes and symptoms of poverty. The program will launch around the U.K.-hosted AI Safety Summit in November.

A Credible Record

The IDRC has already enjoyed significant success in using AI for Development in Africa. In 2020, it launched the Artificial Intelligence for Development in Africa (AI4D Africa) program in partnership with Sweden’s government agency for development cooperation (Sida). This four-year, $20 million CAD partnership has dedicated itself to a future where Africans across all regions create and use AI to lead healthier and happier lives. The program promotes excellence in applied research and using AI technologies to solve development challenges and improve the livelihoods of those living in poverty. It invests in Africa’s existing science and policy communities to enable them to maximize their research and development opportunities in the AI field. Its track record in this area makes it an excellent partner for the U.K. government’s new project. 

It has already run six calls for funding and invested in several organizations, including the African Centre for Technology Studies, Research ICT Africa and Strathmore University.

One of the main challenges that those below the global poverty line face is poor access to health care. For example, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), annual out-of-pocket health care expenditure is only $15. 

To respond to this challenge, the IDRC launched ‘Artificial Intelligence for Global Health,’ an $15.5 million CAD investment to strengthen health care systems in the Global South. National health care systems in the Global South can work with Artificial Intelligence to identify threats and formulate effective responses, allowing them to use the limited resources they have more efficiently. 

Meeting Africa’s Needs

As the initial target of the project, Africa is an area where people will feel the benefits of this technology the most. Currently, its 33 million smallholder farms contribute up to 70% of the continent’s food supply. These farms are severely exposed to droughts and shortages. Experiences in Ghana by the nonprofit AGRI-WEB have shown that AI can model these fluctuations, allowing farmers to plan their seasons more effectively. This can reduce shortfalls in both farmers’ incomes and food for local populations, lifting both groups out of poverty. 

Lack of education in Africa is another cause of poverty, which artificial intelligence might be able to help. Currently, there are still countries in sub-Saharan Africa with literacy rates below 50% among their youth population. AI can help to change that. It can help translate educational programs into local languages, removing a key barrier in education. In Tanzania, ed-tech startup Mtabe is using AI to analyze students’ learning styles and progress, to generate personalized learning content that is tailored to each student’s individual needs. 

Looking Ahead

The U.K.’s Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly, hopes to build on achievements of this kind with this new program. While AI is currently enjoying significant growth in high-income countries, Cleverly wants the project to ensure that “the fulfillment of (AI’s) enormous potential is shared globally.” That will start by bringing cutting-edge technologies to the regions of the world where they will have the biggest impact on the lives of people living in poverty.

– Jack Arrowsmith
Photo: Wikipedia Commons

Updates on SDG 8 in Lebanon: Employment and Gender Equality

SDG 8 in LebanonLebanon is currently facing a severe crisis. COVID-19 and the Beirut Port Explosion have worsened years of political and economic mismanagement. The country is now in a financial downturn that the World Bank has described as “the worst since the mid-19th Century.”

As a result, many Lebanese and Syrian Refugee women are unable to find enough decent work to meet their basic needs. However, via important interventions such as Cash for Work programs development organizations are collaborating with the government to provide important funds to empower them and secure their futures. 

What Are the Issues in Lebanon?

Sustainable Development Goal 8 (SDG 8) calls for countries to “promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all.” SDG 8 is crucial because through decent work governments can eradicate poverty and help address social issues like gender inequality. However, because of prevailing sociocultural norms that have been worsened by the crisis, many women in Lebanon suffer labor market marginalization and cannot access decent work to support their needs. For example, traditional gender norms dictate that women should be responsible for childcare and domestic work.

Syrian migrants and refugees also experience oppression, as many of them, under the oppressive kafala system, must live with their employers with no legal protections. As a result, they regularly suffer from exploitation and abuse. As indicated by the latest reports on SDG 8 in Lebanon, the unemployment rate among women could rise. This, in turn, puts an increasing number of women at risk of experiencing poverty.

Potential Solutions: Cash for Work

In recent years, the U.N. in partnership with NGOs and national governments has sought to address the work issues in Lebanon by advocating for economic empowerment. Economic empowerment is critical to achieving poverty reduction, gender equality and the country’s sustainable development goals more broadly. As part of economic empowerment, the central tool for making this happen is the idea of Cash for Work (CfW). CfW interventions play a crucial role. They create chances to enhance the economy by giving people short-term job opportunities. Moreover, these programs provide valuable on-the-job learning and skill development, improving one’s chances of finding employment in the future.

In times of crisis, these interventions are also effective at delivering humanitarian aid and supporting local authorities where they provide basic key services such as urban waste management and road maintenance. 

Why Are Cash-For-Work Programs Effective in Helping Women?

Specifically, cash-for-work programs are good at helping marginalized women in Lebanon because well-devised and gender-sensitive CfW interventions can provide a valuable opportunity to overcome the traditional sociocultural barriers to employment that many women face. For example, according to updates on SDG 8 in Lebanon from the Economic Development Policy Unit, many women have been excluded from the labor market because they are expected to take care of domestic tasks like childcare.

However, through flexible CfW programs, women work when it suits them and earn money based on their productive output rather than by a traditional hourly rate. Moreover, aside from providing them with vital entrepreneurial skills and useful business acumen, CfW can also empower them with a stable currency like the US Dollars. This can significantly boost a household’s income due to the devaluation of the Lebanese Pound. 

Efforts From Organizations

In updates on SDG 8 in Lebanon from UNICEF, the restaurant industry shows CfW in effect. UNICEF, in collaboration with the German Development Bank and the Government of Norway, is funding CfW programs in Lebanon. These initiatives are equipping young Lebanese women with professional cooking skills. These programs are essential as they provide these women with valuable skills, enhancing their employability and enabling them to earn income to meet their basic needs. For instance, Iman, a 21-year-old participant, shared that a CfW program at a local restaurant not only granted her access to employment in a traditionally male-dominated field but also equipped her with the knowledge and skills to prepare specialty Lebanese food items like Labneh and aged cheese. Importantly, this experience empowered her, giving her the freedom and knowledge to consider future self-employment or starting her own business.

Looking Ahead

Therefore, while the restoration of Lebanon’s economy looks to be a slow and painful one, updates on SDG 8 in Lebanon suggest there are reasons to be positive. As has been shown, newly formed partnerships between non-governmental organizations and national governments can provide the necessary training and cash benefits to ensure that vulnerable groups disproportionately affected by the ongoing crisis get the specialist support they require. It is through innovative CfW programs such as those in the Lebanese restaurant industry that women can obtain decent work and help the country progress toward achieving Sustainable Development Goal 8.

– Cameron Mason
Photo: Unsplash

3 Ways the NGO SAI Improves Venezuelan Lives

NGO SAIIn Venezuela, many challenges persist, mainly political instability and hyperinflation. These issues have hurt most Venezuelans, resulting in many other challenges. Extreme poverty is common, affecting three out of every four citizens, and if citizens aren’t in extreme poverty, they are on the brink. Many daily struggles Venezuelans face include inadequate health care infrastructure, limited food access and economic instability.

Many products are scarce in the country, including necessities like essential medicines, clean water and affordable food. Approximately 76% of Venezuela’s population lives on $1.90 per day. This economic climate has led an estimated 5 million citizens to relocate.

The South American Initiative (SAI), a non-governmental organization (NGO), is doing much groundwork for the Venezuelan community. SAI’s mission is to help assist the country’s Venezuela’s vulnerable, including mothers, orphans, children, seniors and even dogs.

Addressing Health Care Challenges

SAI’s commitment to the Venezuelan people is to provide adequate health care. Over the past three months, SAI has provided more than 800 citizens with medical care through their free clinics. The services include specialized care in gynecology and obstetrics, EKGs, ultrasounds, nutrition counseling, regular monthly checkups and medicines. SAI’s mission to help the community continues as they have partnered with five orphanages since 2022. The orphanages receive their health care services, too. 

Alleviating Hunger

Unfortunately, many Venezuelans have to deal with hunger, particularly orphans and children. The Venezuelan government’s funding for children and orphans is shrinking due to hyperinflation and reallocation of funds. The NGO SAI has taken the initiative from November 2022 to February 2023 to provide food deliveries to orphanages. In those three months, they delivered 9,850 meals to children in need nationwide. These meals provide the nutritional requirements and assortment to meet daily dietary needs. Like food, SAI has also provided essential medicines and vitamins to boost children’s health. SAI’s adaptability remains vital as they have had challenges from the lockdowns and rising prices to deliver the meals. However, SAI has continued doing meal deliveries despite roadblocks.

Compassion for Canines

SAI’s mission extends not only to humans but also to animals’ lives. In the first quarter of this year, the organization distributed over 4,000 pounds of dog food at their SAI A&G Sanctuary, with an additional 1,000 pounds provided to neighboring shelters. The SAI A&G Sanctuary, in partnership with allied shelters, is on a mission to rescue malnourished, sick and abandoned dogs from the streets of Venezuela. These rescued dogs often arrive with parasites, malnutrition and other severe medical conditions. SAI provides many services for these dogs, such as food, clean water, vaccinations, spaying/neutering and medications. 

Venezuela is a country that needs hope, and the South American Initiative (SAI) provides it. Their commitment to alleviating the suffering of Venezuelans, both human and animal, offers relief for the population.

– Ariana Wauer
Photo: Unsplash

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USAID Programs in Iraq

USAID Programs in Iraq
Since 2003, Iraq has experienced displacement of its population and instability due to domestic and regional conflict. In January 2014, with the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) beginning to seize control of parts of Iraq, the conflict and displacement worsened, until ISIS was defeated in March 2019. The Ministry of Planning at the World Bank reports the poverty rate of Iraq at 24.8% in 2021. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) programs in Iraq, with funding received from the United States government, have played a pivotal role in improving the governance system, expanding economic opportunities, providing life-saving humanitarian assistance and promoting religious and ethnic pluralism to the citizens of Iraq. 

The Good News

As of September 2022, despite 1.2 million Iraqis remaining internally displaced and 5 million internally displaced population returning home, Iraq generously hosts 300,000 refugees and asylum-seekers. With Iraqis returning home, support from international organizations like the USAID has helped Iraq see positive growth in all aspects of society. USAID in collaboration with the Government of Iraq (GOI), provincial and local governments, and local communities has established a combination of short-, medium- and long-term efforts to stabilize areas that were formerly occupied by ISIS. 

The following is a brief that focuses on two of the many important USAID programs in Iraq initiatives whose overall objective is to pull households and communities out of poverty and to provide life-saving humanitarian assistance for the people of Iraq. 

Job Creation and Economic Diversification

According to USAID, job-creating initiatives and economic diversification in Iraq’s public and private sectors are vital for creating economic opportunity, helping households and communities out of poverty and long-term economic growth. Iraq is one of the most oil-dependent countries in the world. The over-reliance of its GDP on oil-related growth (7% in 2022 has stagnated the growth of its non-oil sectors such as agribusiness, service delivery processes (for example, technology and trade) and the industrial sector. Thus, USAID in collaboration with the GOI, economic and civil society leaders and vulnerable communities has set up projects and also funded initiatives like the Middle East and North Africa Investment Initiative (MENA II) to increase food production, improve water supply and ensure sustainable water and energy usage. 

The implementation of USAID programs in Iraq that focus on economic diversification has resulted in tremendous growth and a reduction in extreme poverty for the marginalized and displaced populations. These programs have also boosted the participation of women in Iraq’s workforce thereby, making an attempt to address gender-based violence and patriarchal norms — two issues starkly visible in Iraq. 

Since 2020, USAID programs have provided more than 10,000 entrepreneurs with business support services, of which approximately 50% of the entrepreneurs were women. In addition, USAID provided about 3,000 business grants and loans. This resulted in an increase in business revenue by 65%. According to USAID reports, the huge success of these programs has attracted $41 million in private investments to expand local businesses in technology, trade and the industrial sector.

Humanitarian Assistance for Producing Self-Reliant Citizens

For a nation riddled with conflict for more than a decade, USAID has targeted a substantial amount of funds, $3 billion, towards providing humanitarian assistance to the citizens of Iraq. These funds have been targeted towards the most vulnerable and hardest-to-reach people. USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance reports a positive trend in access to safe drinking water, improved health and hygiene supplies, meeting food and shelter needs and meeting critical nutritional needs. In addition, according to USAID, the funds have also helped in the prevention and quick response to gender-based violence and increasing access to psychological support. This support is particularly important for a country responding to natural disasters and complex crises. 

A Promising Future 

The programs and funds provided by USAID have come a long way in improving the economic condition and ensuring quality and dignified basic living conditions for the citizens of Iraq. USAID, through its programs and aid, paves the way for long-term development and the journey of self-reliance for the citizens of Iraq. This is an essential step. And, while there is still room for improvement, the country and its citizens’ commitment to solving the large human and economic capital needs bode positive signs for the future.

– Anshu Saha
Photo: Flickr

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Everything to Know About Hunger in Haiti

Hunger in Haiti
Throughout history, misfortune has plagued Haiti. Just between 2010 and today, natural disasters and political instability have rendered it the poorest country in the Americas. As a result, the issue of hunger in Haiti has carried an overbearing toll on the country, only worsening in recent years. Political instability, natural disasters and subsequent gang violence and economic difficulties have made hunger a central threat to the livelihood of the Haitian population, and a crucial focus of relief agencies. 

Decades of Instability 

In the past 10 years alone, Haiti has struggled with at least four major political and natural disasters. Between 2000 and 2019, Haiti was the third country most affected by extreme weather patterns. Most notably, the 2010 earthquake and 2016 hurricane resulted in countless casualties and the destruction of infrastructure. Politically, the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise has triggered a period of instability. As a result, gang activity has been at a high, seeing a surge in violence with negative spillover effects. Gangs have taken control over ports in the capital of Port-au-Prince, as well as agricultural areas, resulting in widespread hunger.

Economic Fall Out

Severe inflation has resulted in an exponential rise in hunger in Haiti. As Haiti is a country that is highly dependent on food imports given its agricultural struggles, inflation levels are volatile and particularly contingent on the global economy. Currently, inflation levels stand at 44%. This means that food prices are virtually unaffordable for much of the population, with the price of a food basket increasing by 88% in 2023 alone. The combination of gangs controlling ports and food-producing areas with the spike in food prices has left many in Haiti with limited options for survival.

Hunger Statistics

Haiti has one of the highest food insecurity levels in the world. As of 2021, its Human Development Index places it at 163 out of 191 countries. The past year has seen individuals continue to struggle at emergency levels. Almost 5 million people, half of the population, are in hunger and 1.8 million of them face severe starvation. Children are at particular risk, with 22% of Haiti’s children being malnourished, 10% underweight and 66% anemic. Experiencing hunger from such a young age places children in particularly vulnerable positions to a variety of health troubles that they are likely to experience into adulthood. 

Help is on the Way

The United Nations has identified Haiti as one of the most pressing hunger “hotspots” in the world Despite the levels of hunger in Haiti, UN relief agencies such as the World Food Programme (WFP) have plans in place to aid the country. The biggest food safety net in the country is in the form of school feeding plans, with approximately 300,000 children being fed a day in more than 1,000 schools. WFP has also provided emergency food assistance to more than 150,000 people, as well as cash transfers to allow for independent allocation of resources. On top of these more direct aid efforts, WFP collaborates with communities to develop emergency preparedness and new farming techniques that will allow for long-term resilience in the face of such uncertain times.

Despite the scale of this aid, funding and donations are crucial to its maintenance. Donations and an upscale of attention from governments around the world are central to developing these funds. For 2023, the WFP is helping 1.47 million people through its various aid techniques. So far, as a part of those techniques, the WFP’s emergency assistance has helped countless people on the verge of starvation. In 2022, the WFP delivered food to 723,000 people, as well as transferred $22.9 million in cash to those in need.

In addition to emergency assistance, resilience programs were successfully implemented. Such programs included road and canal building, as well as tree planting. In total, these resilience programs reached 113,000 people, and strive to reach more in the coming year. Reaching funding goals has been crucial to these successes and in the future can dramatically improve levels of hunger in Haiti, saving even more lives than before.

– Lucie Dumont
Photo: Flickr