Archive for category: Global Poverty

Key articles and information on global poverty.

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4 Facts About Women’s Rights in Colombia

Women’s Rights in Colombia
Colombia is a South American country between the Caribbean Sea and the Andes Mountains that people know for its salsa dancing and its coffee. The country has come a long way in the past century in its advancement of women’s rights in Colombia.

Throughout the colonial era and the 19th century, Colombia operated under a patriarchal society, and many relegated women to being housewives. Few besides the wealthy had access to education, and it had limitations for those who did. However, by the 1930s, higher education schooling received legalization for women, and society began to recognize women as equal to men for their academic achievements. Around this time, Colombia offered full citizenship status to women as well.

In the present day, Colombia demonstrates greater gender equality due to the several measures that it previously took to support and protect women. Here are four facts about women’s rights in Colombia.

4 Facts About Women’s Rights in Colombia

  1. Colombia’s government has strong laws in favor of women’s rights and gender equity. For example, in 1991, the Political Constitution of Colombia replaced the 1986 Constitution and included several articles supporting women’s equality. Some articles expanded on women’s rights to participate in society, including freedom from discrimination and the right to participate in politics and public administration. Others improved gender equality in family life, establishing the possibility of divorce and special protection during pregnancy. Furthermore, in 2011, Colombia’s government passed Law 1475, which establishes a 30% quota of women candidates in all elections; the same percentage of women must also occupy the highest level of the government’s public service. The passing of this law has increased women’s participation in politics and government, therefore strengthening their influence over future legislation. In 2018, half of Colombia’s cabinet ministers were women, and for the first time in history, the country had a female minister of the interior. By comparison, the average for female representation in Latin American legislatures was 22% in 2010.
  2. The Colombian government actively combats violence and discrimination towards women. Domestic violence is a prevalent issue in Colombia, with nearly 38,000 reported cases of violence against women at the hands of an intimate partner in 2014. Therefore, legislation that supports women in vulnerable positions is even more crucial. Law 1257, passed in 2008, is one example, as it issued regulations to prevent and punish forms of violence and discrimination against women. Additionally, Law 1719, passed in 2014, ensures access to justice for victims of sexual violence. These recently-passed regulations protect women from abuse and provide them with greater autonomy in leaving harmful domestic relationships.
  3. Young women have access to schooling and education. In 2018, 83% of Colombian children aged 11 to 12 attended secondary school, with girls outnumbering boys by 5% – 80% attendance for girls versus 75% for boys. Young women are overall more educated than men in Colombia, providing them with more opportunities to enter high-earning careers. The technology sector is one industry that is expanding in its employment of women. Colombia is experiencing a boom in IT investment, and as a result, the country’s 1,800 software development companies are creating hundreds of thousands of new development and programming jobs. The Bogotá Chamber of Commerce has launched a World Bank pilot for women in IT, creating a scholarship program to train women in programming and web development at the Bogotá Institute of Technology. At present, women occupy 17% of IT jobs in Colombia; however, programs like these are helping women rapidly increase their participation in the industry and become high-wage earners. Furthermore, this is a valuable resource for the country’s long-term economic growth. Fostering gender equality in the labor market would improve efficiency, increase industry specialization and decrease unemployment rates, propelling Colombian industry and innovation forward.
  4. Colombia’s civil society has increased social mobilization for women. Efforts from community groups and activist organizations have increased awareness of women’s rights issues in Colombian society. For example, LIMPAL, the Colombian branch of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, works to protect women’s rights through advocacy and women’s political participation. The organization does much to increase women’s social autonomy, including providing women with training workshops and legal support to better defend their rights and improve quality of life. With greater representation in governmental roles and positions of authority, women have redirected political debates to include a feminist perspective. Women now have greater influence over legislation regarding sexual harassment, equal pay and domestic violence. This has increased national recognition and visibility of the pressing issues impacting women’s rights in Colombia, as well as creating new methods of addressing these issues. Claudia López, the current mayor of Colombia’s capital city, Bogotá, is one female politician who is paving the way for Colombian women, especially those pursuing governmental positions. Elected on October 27, 2019, López became both the first woman and the first openly gay mayor of Bogotá. In her victory, she pledged to fight the misogyny, racism and classism that is still present in Colombian society.

Women’s rights in Colombia continue to progress every year as women occupy more positions of authority and increase their influence over legislation and societal expectations. Colombia has moved away from its patriarchal past, providing women with greater opportunities for education and career success than what was previously available. Hopefully, more progress is in store as Colombia continues to move towards greater gender equality.

– Natasha Cornelissen
Photo: Unsplash

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China’s Poverty Reduction and the Millennium Campaign

China's Poverty Reduction and the Millennium CampaignThe fight against poverty is a massive undertaking. While China’s poverty reduction has helped the United Nations (U.N.) reach its goals, there is still a ways to go. For real and lasting progress to be made on the task of lifting millions above the poverty line, the global community has no recourse but to rely on the collective efforts and data of the global community. However, by synergizing the work of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the private sector and governmental institutions, the uphill battle of poverty reduction remains fierce but not insurmountable.

The United Nations Millennium Declaration

In September 2000, following a three-day diplomatic marathon of deal-making and goal-setting, the U.N. General Assembly approved the United Nations Millennium Declaration. With this agreement, the U.N. adopted more than 60 goals. These goals included improving the environment, encouraging peace and development, promoting human rights, combating hunger and pursuing global poverty reduction. Following this daring declaration, the United Nations Millennium Campaign was put into effect. More than 180 member states agreed to the campaign as a means of achieving these goals by 2015.

Moving The Goalpost

The U.N. claims to have not merely achieved its goals but achieved them ahead of schedule. However, a closer look will reveal how this celebration may have been premature. Yale professor and development watchdog Thomas Pogge pointed out that following the signing of the original declaration, the U.N. rewrote it to reduce only the proportion of the world’s population living on less than $1 a day. Previously, the U.N. had planned to decrease the overall total number of people living in poverty.

It is estimated that this change reduced the goal by 167 million due to population growth. Also, the campaign shifted the focus of what constitutes “poverty” to be based solely on income levels. The World Bank determines extreme poverty by the number of people living on less than $1.90 a day. Changing the variables made it easier to achieve the goal. Additionally, according to the World Bank, the number of people living in extreme poverty is still more than 4 billion.

With the Millennium Campaign’s goals, moving the finish line and still declaring victory makes it more difficult to establish the current standing of global development and progress. This is especially true when it comes to China’s poverty reduction rate. It also, as an unintended consequence, has the potential to dwindle the severity of the current state of global poverty.

In an attempt to show a more impressive poverty decrease, the Millennium Campaign retroactively included data stretching back to 1990. By doing this, the impressive dip in poverty was mainly due to China’s poverty reduction progress during those 10 years.

China’s Efforts

Also, numeric data aside, one cannot underestimate the role semantics plays in perceived poverty reduction. China’s state-run media has proclaimed, “China has lifted 700 million people out of poverty through more than 30 years of reform and opening-up.” And China declares its intention to “lift” even more out of abject poverty.

Skeptics have pointed to the phrase, “lifted out of poverty,” as a purely Westernized regurgitation. China’s preferred usage of “fupin kaifa” (扶贫开发) translates as “assist the poor and develop.” So, while China’s poverty reduction accomplishments are commendable, the translation conveys a larger achievement than what it actually is. However, China does deserve credit for achieving no small feat in raising millions above the poverty line.

The global community has much to be proud of considering how far the world has come in the work of bettering lives. If the mammoth task of combating poverty and promoting development is going to be successful, the goals needs to acknowledge the truth about the current situation.

– Connor Dobson
Photo: Flickr

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The Progress of Women’s Rights in Finland

Women’s Rights in Finland
Finland has a long history with gender equality, being the world’s first country to offer full political rights to women in 1906. Here are five facts about women’s rights in Finland, including landmark developments and where it needs to improve.

5 Facts About Women’s Rights in Finland

  1. Finland offers one of the most generous parental leave policies in all of Europe. A February 2020 policy granted seven months of paid leave for new mothers as well as one month of pregnancy allowance prior to their official leave. Non-biological parents have access to the same parental leave privileges while single parents receive a full 14 months of paid leave. This updated policy also extends the seven months of parental leave to fathers and allows parents to transfer up to 69 days from their seven-month allotment to the other parent. Gender-neutral parental leave policies are a crucial step toward gender equality by leveling the gap between conventionally male and female roles in society and relieving women of the tradition of them solely raising their children.
  2. Women in Finland enjoy high-quality education. In fact, Finland ranked first in the world in leveling the gender gap in educational attainment in 2018. The consistently high levels of education among women show this. Among those obtaining a university-level or post-graduate in 2012, the proportion of women was 60% and 50%, respectively. Moreover, the rate of female educational attainment is increasing rapidly and significantly outpacing that of men, as the share of women earning post-graduate degrees jumped from 15% in 1975 to 54% in 2012.
  3. Political institutions provide equal representation. Finland’s government has a history of pioneering gender equality, being the first parliament in the world to include female members of parliament. Finland elected its first female prime minister in 2003, and its third female prime minister, Sanna Marin, assumed office in December 2019. Marin leads a coalition government consisting of five parties, all of which have women under the age of 35 at the helm. Female representation in the nation’s 2019 election was especially notable, with a record number of women winning parliamentary seats, amounting to 47% of the parliament. As a result, Finland ranked sixth globally in political empowerment for women in 2018.
  4. Women dominate the labor market. Finland enjoys the highest labor participation rate of women worldwide and ranks among the best nations for working women. Moreover, the employment rate for Finnish women is higher than the European Union average. However, Finland needs to still make improvements, as women in the public and private sectors receive only 80% to 85% of their male counterparts’ earnings. Nonetheless, the gender pay gap has been steadily decreasing over the last two decades and expectations have determined that it should continue to decrease as a result of social welfare policies that allow women to reconcile family and work life.
  5. Finland is a victim of the “Nordic Paradox,” the trend where Scandinavian nations experience high rates of domestic violence despite promoting gender equality in economic and political life. The 2013 rate of intimate partner violence in Finland was nearly double the European average. Domestic violence rose 7% in 2019 with over 10,000 reported victims, more than half of which were between married couples. Finland has taken steps at the national level to address this trend, having adopted a National Gender Action Plan and trained about 200 federal judges in prosecuting cases involving violence against women. Moreover, crisis shelters and a free 24/7 helpline are available, with specialized investigators and law enforcement officials to address reports of violence. The Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare oversees these shelters, which also provide professional counseling and health services to customers.
  6. Migrant women are a major part of Finland’s equal rights agenda. Immigrant women with children experience an employment rate that is nearly 50% lower than that of their native-born counterparts, and social integration has posed a challenge for these communities. To address this issue, the Social Impact Bond emerged through institutional and private investment to assist immigrant women in finding employment within four months. Moreover, the national government finances public language programs to offer support to recent migrants learning the Finnish language.

Despite being a pioneer for women’s rights in Finland, the country still experiences its fair share of women’s issues. However, with a female-led government and strong social welfare policies, Finland’s progress is effectively ongoing and still serves as a model for the rest of the developed world.

– Neval Mulaomerovic
Photo: Pixabay

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The Chinese Classroom: Updates on SDG 4 in China

Updates on SDG 4 in China
The United Nations defines SDG 4 as the attainment of inclusive and equitable quality education and promotion of lifelong learning opportunities for all. According to ​the 2020 reports from UNESCO​, SDG 4 in China has already experienced achievement. UNESCO ​awarded China a nearly perfect score of 99.8 for literacy and 99.5 for lower secondary completion rate. However, not all the data is there. The percentage of children of the official school-age population who are enrolled in primary education remains unknown.

The hole in the data also points to a larger issue – the flexibility of interpretation of SDG 4 in China. What some define as a “quality education,” others see as an unhealthy culture of a rigid, score-driven curriculum.

As China rises as a global superpower, its students bear its weight. Giona Gao, 38, was once a student in Beijing. She has provided The Borgen Project with information about her experiences with the rigorous curriculum that characterizes the Chinese education system.

Unattainable Standards

Gao attended primary school through college in China. She moved to Seattle, Washington in 2013 and now works as an accountant.

When she was in high school, her classmates fretted the day that teachers would evaluate their skills. In Beijing’s elite schools, parents receive sheets with the test scores of each student, including their own child. “The parents are all in the room together and pass it around,” Gao said, “Everyone sees.”

The system places extreme pressure on students to succeed and come out on top. Many students work into the early morning to study for standardized tests.

China Daily declared suicide as the leading cause of death for young people in China. Further research by the South China Morning Post investigated 79 suicides in 2013. Almost 93% of suicides happened following arguments between the pupils and their teachers, or after the students experienced heavy pressure with their studies.

Years have passed since Gao has lived in China, but she remains close with some friends. Her friends have told her that the school system is becoming even more competitive. “They teach faster,” she said. “Even in Kindergarten, Chinese kids’ English is better than American kids,” Gao pointed out.

While it was not her favorite subject, Gao recalls some history classes focusing on relations between the U.S and China. “They wash out our brains,” Gao said. “They really try to teach how great the communist party is.”

Gao stayed in China to earn her bachelor’s degree, but it was not rare for kids to want to apply to international universities in English speaking countries. “Lots of Chinese kids want to go abroad for study. America might be their number one choice,” she explained. “They want to open their eyes and see the difference.”

A Lack of Critical Thinking

Zhiquan Zhu is a Chair of the Department of International Relations at Bucknell University and the author of multiple books on Chinese Affairs, including “​The People’s Republic of China: Internal and External Challenges.”

Zhu describes himself as a product of the traditional Chinese educational system. He taught at Shanghai International Studies University and was the Senior Assistant to Consul for Press and Cultural Affairs at the American Consulate General in Shanghai.

While Zhu believes that the Chinese education system gave him a solid foundation, he explains that he developed many of his critical and analytical skills later when he attended school in the U.S.

Zhu has seen some improvements in Chinese education, but he admits that “test scores still matter the most.” According to Zhu, the Chinese school system should adopt the American liberal arts education style. “China has a long way to go to reform its educational system so that students will become more creative with more independent thinking, entrepreneurial spirit, sense of community, and practical skills, not just focusing on achieving high scores in tests,” Zhu explained.

The Urban-Rural Divide

While China has technically met educational standards for SDG 4 in China, there is still much more that it needs to do to improve. China Quarterly published a study that found that 63% of students in rural China drop out by secondary school.

The urban-rural divide is largely due to Hukou, a household registration system that assigns rights to families based on their birth status. Through this system, better education and healthcare are reserved for those living in urban cities. The Rural Education Action Program reports that the government spent an average of 900 yuan more each year on a student in an urban middle school than on a rural student. The same report found that rural schools lack qualified teachers and adequate teaching facilities.

The ​Rural Chinese Education Foundation is a charitable organization fighting to improve education for rural Chinese students. RCEF​ is currently raising funds to bring better teachers to rural China, provide financial aid to students, and instill a more useful curriculum that students can apply to real life.

According to its website, RCEF believes “education should be practical, inclusive, and socially responsible.” Organizations like RCEF show the potential to fill the gap in Chinese education, securing SDG 4 in China on an even higher level.

– Miska Salemann
Photo: Flickr

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Understanding Hunger in Egypt

Hunger in Egypt
With more than 98 million people, Egypt remains the most populated country in North Africa. More than 32.5% of citizens live below the poverty line, making malnutrition and hunger in Egypt pressing issues. The current influx of poverty leaves children and adults without proper education, left to partake in dangerous and under-compensated work such as mining, quarrying and cement production.

The Situation

Although marketplaces are bustling and full, Egypt relies on imported foods. As the world’s largest wheat producer, Egypt is at risk of any drastic changes in commodity pricing and economies. While markets have more than enough fruits, vegetables and bread, most of the population cannot purchase essential grocery items. Without the capacity to control possible economic fluctuations, Egypt’s vulnerability leaves its hungriest citizens without a safety net from their government, let alone their savings.

Egypt’s hunger crisis is an accumulation of many setbacks, including global financial crises, food shortages and disease. Yet another economic or social misfortune has followed each attempted effort towards success. As a result, more than 1.3% of Egypt’s population was living with less than $1.90 to spend per day in 2015; the average American spends $164.55 per day.

How Did This Happen?

Since the early 2000s, Egypt has faced a series of difficulties including the 2006 avian influenza, food and fuel crisis of 2007, economic despair through 2009 and most recently, COVID-19. As a country treading between minor stability and complete poverty, each challenge, both global and local, has severe implications for Egypt and its people.

Hunger in Egypt has roots in food costs; a majority of the Egyptian population can only afford minimally nutritious meals. A 2011 UN World Health Organization study found that 31% of Egyptian children less than 5 years old suffer from stunted growth in comparison to 23% in 2005. Malnutrition not only affects brain development but also contributes to a cycle that perpetuates and exacerbates Egypt’s weaknesses.

Malnourished children cannot perform well in school; malnourished workers are incapable of providing for themselves and their families, making financial and cultural growth seemingly impossible.

Solutions

The prominent changes in Egypt’s condition are a result of the Egypt Vision 2030. As a roadmap to Egypt’s eventual security, Egypt Vision 2030 emerged to increase employment rates, begin food security initiatives, increase clean water access and generate accessible screening and treatment for malnourished individuals.

The mission is that by 2030, Egypt will rank within the top 30 countries for economy size, market competitiveness, human development, life quality and anti-corruption. With such improvements, eradicating hunger in Egypt becomes possible.

Within the economic and social dimensions of the plan, the sixth pillar outlines that by 2030, improvements in health conditions will occur through “early intervention, preventative coverage,” guaranteed protection for the vulnerable and prioritizing the satisfaction of health sector employees.

These extensive efforts have led to program and policy implementation, propelling Egypt to meet its targets. For instance, at the onset of the plan in 2015, the malnourishment rate was 4.5%. By 2030, Egypt hoped the rate would be below 3%. With 10 years until the 2030 deadline, 3.2% of the Egyptian population is malnourished. It is evident that the strategy behind Vision 2030 is effective.

Feeding Children Through Education

A vital pillar of the Egypt Vision 2030 is the National Strategic Plan for Pre-University Education. The World Food Programme (WFP) is spearheading the plan to increase school meals’ nutritional value. Though it helps enrolled students, the plan does not benefit children not attending school. The school meals incentivize students to attend, serving as an aspect Egypt tactfully uses to increase pre-university enrollment rates.

The Pre-University Education Plan resulted from new investment and financing strategies to develop curriculum, financial aid, illiteracy and dropout elimination programs, technical teacher training and recurring student assessments to ensure the meeting of international standards. To execute these programs, The National Strategic Plan for Pre-University Education set a goal to spend 8% of GDP shares on pre-university education by 2030. Currently, that number is at 6%, double the initial percentage that Egypt spent in 2014. Additionally, Egypt’s Ministry of Finance reported an 82% spending increase in education and health. With increased pre-university education attendance, children receive nutritionally balanced meals every day. Health and education funding creates a domino effect, which will eventually lead to the elimination of hunger in Egypt.

The budget increase, in addition to malnourishment, serves Egypt’s education system. Classroom sizes decreased from an average of 42 students in 2015 to between 23 and 16 in 2019. The National Strategic Plan for Pre-University Education 2030 target was to have an average of 35 students per classroom. Egypt’s strategies prove to be highly successful, as its school attendance numbers are higher than its once-projected targets.

Higher enrollment, smaller classroom sizes and well-trained teachers have replaced Egypt’s dated culture of memorization. This new approach emphasizes individual learning, life principles, and modern technology. Repairing the education systems tears has an undeniable correlation to employment and hunger rates.  In changing the fundamentals of the educational experience, Egyptian students now have proper nourishment. As a result, they can have the brainpower to master skill sets that will earn them stable jobs with livable incomes, thus ending the cycle of poverty.

Aid from organizations like the UN and World Food Programme, in collaboration with the Egypt Vision 2030, can eradicate hunger in Egypt. In breaking the cycle of malnourishment and lack of education, Egypt will continue on its path towards growth, prosperity and stability.

– Maya Sulkin
Photo: Flickr

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Poverty and Colorism in India

colorism in IndiaImagine, for a moment, that you’re a five-year-old girl growing up in India. All around you, the standards for beauty are pretty, light-skinned Indians: they’re in all of the movies, splashed across billboards and magazines, on promoted ads and videos. Every drug store sells multiple brands of skin-lightening creams, and your favorite actors all endorse skin-lightening products. Your family members tell you not to spend too much time in the sun, just so you won’t get too tan. That’s what colorism in India was like for Rajitha Pulivarthy, now 20 years old and living in the United States.

“I don’t know if I’ve ever experienced [colorism] myself, because I’m more on the lighter-skinned side, but I definitely adopted a colorist attitude when I was younger,” she said, recalling her experiences with colorism. “I wanted myself to look lighter or not get tanned in the summer.” Even with supportive parents who rarely mentioned colorism and told her to stay away from skin-lightening products, colorism still shaped Pulivarthy’s worldview growing up and even after moving to America. Sadly, Pulivarthy’s story is just one of millions. For many women growing up in India, this is the norm.

What is Colorism?

Colorism occurs when some people are discriminated against more than others of the same race, simply due to the shade of their skin. It is very prevalent in India, and it’s a gendered phenomenon, affecting Indian women more than men. Sometimes, colorism is obvious, but often it manifests in more subtle ways, like in everyday behavior. Something like commenting on how someone is “beautiful and fair-skinned” is commonplace in India. While those comments don’t necessarily insult those who have darker skin, they do show society’s preference for those with lighter skin.

Colorism in India

Colorism is so ingrained in everyday life and society, in fact, that skin-lightening products make up a multi-billion dollar industry in India. Bollywood, India’s movie industry, casts predominately light-skinned actors, which perpetuates beauty as light-skinned. Many Bollywood actors also endorse skin-lightening creams.

While the media plays a large role in these notions of lighter skin aligning with beauty, colorism in India can trace its roots all the way back to British colonization. The British ruled many South Asian countries, including India, for over 200 years. Their colonization embedded the idea that fair skin people were the ruling class, and darker-skinned people were the subjects. British rulers treated lighter-skinned Indians more favorably than their dark-skinned counterparts. They gave light-skinned Indians access to government jobs, while constantly demeaning dark-skinned Indians. This discrimination also bled into India’s caste system, where people perceived higher castes as fairer and superior and lower castes as darker and inferior. As such, these lasting colonial legacies mean that skin color still affects the socioeconomic status of Indians today.

How Colorism Affects Poverty

Poverty and colorism in India go hand-in-hand. Because the caste system still affects socioeconomic status, people with darker skin tend to be lower in socioeconomic status as well. Colorism makes social mobility harder for Indians in general. There is systemic discrimination against dark-skinned people in education systems and the labor market. Educators and employers still prefer light-skinned Indians over dark-skinned Indians, which plays greatly into the opportunities for social mobility that darker-skinned Indians do and do not have.

A basic link between poverty and colorism in India is that impoverished people are not able to take care of their appearance and diet. Though they don’t have access to skin-lightening products, they are seen as “dirty” and “dark.” Over time, these connotations begin to blur, and socioeconomic status and skin tone become connected to social and financial status.

One of the most unique effects of colorism in India is how arranged marriages, common in India, discriminate against dark-skinned people. Marriage ads allow people to filter out women on every condition under the sun, including skin color. A study done at the University of New Delhi, India found that dark-skinned men and women were consistently rated lower on marriage ads. This demonstrates yet another way that colorism in India inhibits social mobility, which makes it harder for impoverished people to change their circumstances.

Combatting Colorism in India

Anti-blackness and anti-darkness together ultimately create discriminatory systems that disenfranchise dark-skinned people in India and across South Asia. However, protests over summer of 2020 in the U.S. have prompted calls for equity and justice around the world, especially in India. In particular, there has been a new wave of conversations surrounding colorism in India and how to fight it.

Many Indians are asking themselves and their family members how they can continue to support “Black Lives Matter” while also perpetuating harmful colorism within their own communities. Some people are starting the fight against colorism by talking to their friends, families and community members about colorism. Others are using social media to create movements, like #UnfairAndLovely, which takes the name of a popular lightening cream and uses it to brand positivity posts for dark-skinned Indians. Still others are calling for accountability from notable Indian celebrities like Priyanka Chopra, who has promoted skin-lightening products in the past.

No matter the level of activism, combatting colorism in India needs the work of all of society to make India equitable for all Indians, regardless of skin color. Fighting colorism in India also helps fight poverty, and vice versa. Ultimately, colorism in India shows us that the fight for poverty is not just a fight for living wages, but a fight for global human rights.

– Hannah Daniel
Photo: Flickr

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Innovations in Poverty Eradication in Zimbabwe

innovations in poverty eradication in zimbabweLocated in southern Africa, Zimbabwe is characterized by impressive landscapes and diverse wildlife. Currently, Zimbabwe is suffering from immense poverty. In 2019, extreme poverty was at 34% in Zimbabwe, an increase from 29% in 2018. Furthermore, this represents a change from 4.7 million to 5.7 million people living in poverty. The cause of this swift increase was an economic contraction of around 8%. The World Bank expects a continued increase in extreme poverty in Zimbabwe in 2020. Fortunately, many organizations are working on innovations in poverty eradication in Zimbabwe to combat this problem.

Hyperinflation and Drought

In addition to a general economic downturn, several droughts across Zimbabwe have caused the prices for food and other essential goods to rise. These same droughts slumped agricultural production, especially in rural communities, where people were hit the hardest by this downturn.

The African nation has also been struggling with hyperinflation for more than a decade. This problem results from economic mismanagement by the nation’s previous president, Robert Mugabe. The Zimbabwean dollar lost 85% of its value against the American dollar between February and December of 2019. According to Trading Economics, Zimbabwe’s inflation rate was 737.3% in June 2020, growing to 837.5% by July 2020. As such, Zimbabwe faces severe hyperinflation, which does not help with its fight against widespread poverty. Here are two innovations in poverty eradication in Zimbabwe that are aiming to solve this problem.

Children in the Wilderness

One of these innovations in poverty eradication in Zimbabwe is a project by Children in the Wilderness (CITW), which started in February 2020. The project’s goal is to generate income within rural regions by creating businesses for women to operate. In northern Matabeleland, poverty levels are high due to a lack of diverse income-generating fields. Previously, this land relied on farming to produce income; however, unreliable rainfall and poor soil have made this method ineffective. Families now rely on an average monthly income of $9. This makes it a challenge to survive and prohibits many families from sending their children to school, which could help lift them out of poverty.

In response, CITW hosted classes that educated women on business and budgeting. The women who participated learned how to apply their innovative ideas, make money from their crafting skills and sell their work. CITW’s teachings have also promoted sustainability and self-management amongst the community. For example, the project provided a way to recycle unwanted waste by having women use it in basket weaving. To help women sell these goods, CITW pitches the crafts to businesses around Hwange National Park and Victoria Falls. As these businesses grow, poverty in northern Matabeleland will decrease. Importantly, CITW’s project has not only worked to eradicate poverty but has also brought women together and built pride in their local culture.

The Shoe That Grows

In 2020, CITW arrived in Tsholotsho, an area heavily affected by poverty, to act on a donation made by Melissa Cabrera Wilson. Wilson aims to ease the effects of poverty on children by providing them with another of many innovations in poverty eradication in Zimbabwe. The Shoe That Grows brand has provided children in Tsholotsho with something that most of them will never receive: new shoes. Without this donation, children would have to use shoes that have been passed down to them or nothing at all. So far, CITW has donated more than 45 shoes. The shoes can adjust from sizes one to four, allowing them to be used as the children grow. This innovation has given children relief from the harsh terrain they must walk miles on to get to school every day.

Hit by poverty and hyperinflation, Zimbabwe’s citizens are struggling. With these innovations in poverty eradication in Zimbabwe, they are beginning to overcome poverty step by step. The income-generating groups in northern Matabeleland will have a lasting effect on citizens, as a reliable and creative source of income is game-changing. Additionally, the shoes given to children in Zimbabwe and all over the world have also softened the harsh results of poverty on kids. In all, these innovations in poverty eradication in Zimbabwe have made life more tolerable for many of those affected.

– Emma Green
Photo: Flickr

5 Facts About Poverty in Panama

Poverty in Panama
In the past decade, Panama’s economy has been one of the fastest-growing among its Latin American counterparts, its growth largely due to the expansion of the Panama Canal in 2016. Yet, the growth of the economy does not translate to the prosperity of the entire country. According to a CIA analysis, Panama’s income distribution is the second-worst in Latin America. This means that even with a growing economy, poverty in Panama is still a significant issue with many Panamanians living under the poverty line.

Though the Panamanian government allocates funds to education and social programs, poverty continues to be a significant issue in Panama. Poverty is more significant in certain areas of the country, highlighting the economic inequality within Panama. Factors such as ethnicity, income level and education level all hold influence over one’s access to basic services and opportunities such as education and health care. Here are five facts about poverty in Panama.

5 Facts About Poverty in Panama

  1. Panama’s urban and rural areas have a large wealth disparity: According to the World Bank, 31.94% of the entire population of Panama lived in rural areas in 2019. These areas rarely see the benefits of the recent boost in economic activity, as 27% of the rural population lives in extreme poverty in comparison to 4% in urban areas.
  2. The national poverty rate is decreasing, but it is still high: In 2005, the national poverty rate of Panama was 38.3%. In 2016, the figure dropped to 22.1%. Although the poverty rate is seeing a downward trend, it is important to put these figures in perspective: over one in five Panamanians is living in poverty.
  3. Poverty affects indigenous people in Panama in particular: Seven indigenous groups exist in Panama and the government often overlooks their rights, such as the rights to their territories. Poverty is especially dominant in rural areas that include mostly indigenous populations. In fact, 86% of the indigenous population lives in poverty and more than 90% cannot meet basic needs.
  4. There is a significant gap in health care access: Rural areas often lack the resources to give Panamanians equal access to health care. As indigenous people largely populate rural areas, they often have 11 fewer years in life expectancy than the overall population, at 67.75 years and 79 years respectively.
  5. Some cannot easily obtain education: Because of better access to resources and job opportunities, urban populations are the most educated and enjoy comparatively affluent and healthy lives. Meanwhile, non-indigenous rural poor are more likely to escape poverty through labor migration from rural to urban areas. However, rural areas lack the schools and resources (such as internet connection) to educate their children. According to the World Bank, the gross enrollment rate at primary schools in 2017 was about 87% of the figure in 2007.

The COVID-19 Pandemic and Unemployment

There is a sharp difference between the rich and the poor in Panama. In 2017, the top 20% of the population generated 54.2% of the income, while low-income communities had high poverty and unemployment rates. One such community is Colón, a coastal city in Panama that has a 50% unemployment rate. There, inhabitants struggle to pay rent as a result of Panama’s building boom.

Panama’s economy relies heavily on global trade through the Panama Canal as well as its service section, which makes up 75% of the country’s GDP. Both saw a sudden drop in activity as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, the country expects to see a rise in unemployment and poverty rates, reversing the Panamanian government’s push to improve poverty rates.

Reducing the Poverty Rate

Though expectations are that Panama’s poverty rate is going to rise due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the overall trend appears to be positive. From 2010 to 2018, the percentage of the population living under $3.20 USD per day halved, dropping from 10.7% to 5.2%. There has also been an increase in secondary education among rural and indigenous communities. Panama’s $326 million portfolio oversees five active projects that push to improve social protection, governance, disaster risk management, wastewater management and support for the Indigenous Peoples Plan. With economic growth and government policies, Panama has made progress in reducing poverty in recent years.

The government hopes that its continued and further investment in infrastructure and social programs will foster prosperity within the general population through increased opportunities in education and jobs, improving the overall poverty rate of the country and among the poor, rural population.

SOS Children’s Villages International

SOS Children’s Villages International is a nonprofit organization that operates in Panama, fighting poverty through assisting children. At each of its four locations – Panama City, Davíd, Colón and Penonomé – the organization supports the youth population by providing daycare, education, vocational training, playgrounds and sports facilities. In the case that children do not have a home to stay at, the organization provides families for them to stay with. By providing these means of assistance, the organization hopes to decrease the child labor that is prevalent in the region as a result of extreme poverty. With education more accessible and families less financially burdened, the organization provides crucial resources to improve poverty in both rural and urban areas of Panama.

SOS Children’s Villages International has been operating in the capital city of the Chiriquí province, Davíd, since 1999. Davíd is a city with 180,000 inhabitants and its population is mostly reliant on its agricultural sector. However, 34.6% of the population lives in poverty, more than 4,000 children in the province engage in child labor and 58% do not attend school. The organization has helped the children in this province by providing 13 SOS houses for them to live in, assisting them with education and other basic necessities.

While poverty in Panama is a significant issue, it has managed to reduce it in recent years. With continued attention by Panama’s government and organizations like SOS Children’s Villages International, the country should be able to continue its progression in making poverty a thing of the past.

– Mizuki Kai
Photo: Flickr

Understanding Fragility, Conflict and Violence

Fragility, Conflict and ViolenceFragility, conflict and violence (FCV) is among the largest threats to development, continuously putting both low-income and middle-income countries in danger of inescapable poverty. Addressing FCV is a top priority for the World Bank specifically, as the organization considers it an essential problem to solve in order to both end extreme poverty and promote collective prosperity. Alongside other global organizations working towards peace, the World Bank looks to address FCV in the hopes of achieving Sustainable Development Goal 16 for peace, justice and strong institutions.

Understanding Through Numbers

The World Bank estimates that as many as two-thirds of those in extreme poverty could live in FCV environments by the year 2030. Even today, conflict accounts for almost 80% of the world’s humanitarian needs and conflict is estimated to worsen gross domestic product (GDP) growth by two percentage points annually. Sadly, the number of people living close to conflict, which includes those within 60 kilometers of at least 25 conflict-related deaths, has more than doubled since 2007.

As of 2019, almost 80 million people were forcibly displaced as a result of FCV settings. Of that 79.5 million, four out of five of those displaced have been in those conditions for at least five years. And, startlingly, more than two-thirds of all refugees come from just five countries: Syria, Afghanistan, South Sudan, Myanmar and Somalia. Today, all five of these countries face significant fragility, conflict and violence, sparking refugee crises and general instability.

What is Being Done

The World Bank has developed a Fragility, Conflict and Violence Strategy in its IDA19 Special Theme documents. The proposed four pillars in the strategy involve: “pivoting to prevention, remaining engaged in conflict, escaping the fragility trap and mitigating FCV externalities.” Given that the World Bank has tried to reduce FCV conditions in the past, this newly developed strategy is focusing on improving the organization’s response to mitigating risks and is focusing on partnering with a more diverse group of stakeholders.

So far, the World Bank has found mixed success in its efforts to reduce fragility, conflict and violence. In Cameroon, the World Bank shaped the policy of the government to better protect refugees, using its reputation and finances to leverage a stronger policy. In Lebanon, its cash transfer program focused on host communities, making the program more inclusive to even the communities that feel excluded by humanitarian organizations providing aid to refugees. However, while the emergency cash transfer program implemented in Yemen was successful in that it helped millions buy food, the approach was unorganized and many humanitarian efforts overlapped, resulting in duplication and inefficiency.

In today’s world, fragility, conflict and violence stand as one of the largest threats to global peace and stability, for not just low-income countries but middle-income countries as well. The efforts on behalf of the World Bank prove not only that this is an urgent humanitarian issue, but if solved well, these efforts can work to end extreme global poverty.

– Olivia Fish
Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Latin American Indigenous Communities’ Storytelling

Latin American Indigenous CommunitiesModernization has been pushing Latin American indigenous communities into progressively smaller bubbles. This causes many to lose important aspects of their cultures such as language and tradition. On this same note, many international governments only provide federal funding to indigenous communities if they follow certain guidelines. This has made the preservation of indigenous cultures increasingly more difficult as the years go by. The preservation of indigenous cultures is of course important at its core. However, what is equally important is who is controlling the narrative.

Modern Indigenous Struggles

Many indigenous communities are struggling to balance modernization with the preservation of their rich cultural histories. Although the numbers have been improving, Latin American indigenous communities are still very vulnerable. They also experience higher rates of poverty than their non-indigenous peers. Now many wonder about how this problem can be fixed.

Storytelling as a Possible Solution

Many people are interested in learning about Latin American indigenous communities. However, an ethical approach to this requires an administrative role in the production of any film depicting their culture. This important realization was introduced to the National Film Board in 1968 by the Company of Young Canadians and the National Film Board’s Challenge for Change program. This partnership saw the potential to elevate the voices of marginalized people, allowing them to control their own narratives and advocate for themselves.

A New Indigenous Storytelling Platform

August 9th is the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. To commemorate the occasion this year, the People’s Planet Program launched a new platform called Tribal Stories. This platform amplifies the pieces created by indigenous filmmakers in the A’i Cofan community of Ecuador and the Kīsêdjê community of Brazil.

Initially, the founder of the People’s Planet Program, Abdel Mandili, was interviewing indigenous community members to produce his own documentaries. However, he quickly realized the importance of allowing these communities to control their own narrative. He then transformed the People’s Planet Program into a nonprofit organization that focuses its efforts on providing indigenous communities with the tools to document their story and a platform to promote it.

The People’s Planet Program engages in educational workshops and provides film equipment to these communities. Nonetheless, it allows the communities to advocate for the causes important to them. For example, many indigenous communities find themselves on the frontlines of deforestation, pollution and other business practices that negatively impact their communities. They have pivotal insights that many other communities do not.

In tandem with this, the People’s Planet Program helps connect indigenous communities with political activists and legal counsel. They aid them in their fight for equal representation and land rights.

When engaging in international advocacy, it can be quite easy to fall into the trap of thinking that your actions always reflect your intentions. Most of the time, this is true. However, taking a step back and allowing marginalized groups to speak for themselves is a crucial aspect of international advocacy. An important aspect of advocacy is providing people with the tools to better their societies on their own terms.

– Danielle Forrey
Photo: Flickr