With a population exceeding 164 million people, Bangladesh has faced numerous barriers to eradicating poverty and fostering tdevelopment. However, Bangladesh’s declining population growth rate and improvements in health and education have been fundamental in eliminating poverty throughout the country. These progressions have shown promising results and offer the prospect of long-term prosperity in regards to ending poverty in Bangladesh.
At the Asian Development Bank’s 50th Annual Meeting in Yokohama, Japan, Bangladeshi finance minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith stated that poverty in Bangladesh will be fully eradicated by 2024. In order to achieve this goal, he stresses that the continual growth of employment and labor productivity must be maintained throughout Bangladesh’s development. In accomplishing this goal, he predicts that only about seven to eight percent of the population will be left under governmental assistance, including those with disabilities, the mentally challenged and the elderly.
A major barrier in this process is the demand for foreign investment which is necessary for Bangladesh’s economic development. Muhith hopes that the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and other organizations will fund Bangladesh’s financial endeavors. The ADB’s Country Partnership Strategy aims to provide up to $8 billion between 2016 to 2020 that will fund the development of infrastructure, strengthen rural livelihoods and provide the capital to boost regional trade.
Formerly known as one of the poorest countries in the world, Bangladesh has developed into a lower middle-income country through the implementation of modern factories and technology. In two decades, these economic progressions have allowed 20 million people to successfully lift themselves out of poverty, cutting the poverty rate from 44.2 percent in 1991 to 18.5 percent in 2010. The World Bank Group has funded almost $24 billion toward poverty-reduction efforts and initiatives that have helped grow and develop Bangladesh.
“Poverty is removable if you are sincere, if you have a multi-pronged attack on poverty and you have the commitment,” Muhith stated in an interview. “Commitment is the most important thing — commitment to the elimination of poverty.”
In regards to the economic progressions of Bangladesh, Muhith has high hopes for the future. These massive economic improvements demonstrate the promising results of Bangladesh’s poverty reduction efforts and the importance of foreign investments, both of which are crucial in reaching the long-term sustainability goals of Bangladesh.
Two years ago, Norfolk Island lost its independence after 68 years to become an official territory of Australia.
The new reforms, due to Norfolk Island’s severe economic downturn and high poverty rates, took effect on July 1, 2015. Half the population is at or below the poverty line.
The remote island between Australia and New Zealand relies on tourism for its main industry, but when its tourism rates heavily declined, the island began going to Australia for economic help.
The mainland decided to make Norfolk an official territory in which the 1,800 residents would have to pay personal and business income taxes to Australia. In return, Norfolk is provided with healthcare and social security benefits which they had previously been denied.
Many Norfolk Islanders resented this change due to the island’s deep roots of nationalism. The island was established in 1856 when 194 Pitcairn Islanders and their Tahitian companies settled there. Around 38 percent of the islanders are descendants of the original settlers.
“History is being rewritten around us about who we are and who we were. Our political heritage has been completely erased,” said Andre Nobbs, a former prime minister and descendant of a Pitcairn family. “You imagine all of those things happening to you as a people or a nation.”
So many Norfolk Islander’s feel that this change is a violation of the island’s rich political heritage and present the new mainland rule. To this day, they refer to themselves as Norfolk Islanders, and that the word ‘Australian’ on their passports is merely a technicality. With so much disapproval, it’s a wonder why the shift in power should even have happened.
The answer is because it works. Today, the island’s economy is taking off. The real estate industry has done more business in the last nine months than it has in the past seven years, more tourists are coming and new medical facilities and better schools have come about from this shift in power. Nonstop flights to and from Auckland have returned as of April this year. Many visitors to Norfolk Island have decided to move there permanently after a holiday there.
While the people of Norfolk will refer to themselves as Norfolk Islanders before they admit any connection to Australia, becoming a territory of Australia has greatly improved the economic state of the island.
Thanks to multilateral partnerships between nonprofit organizations, intergovernmental organizations and governments around the world, extreme poverty has gone down by 50 percent since 1990. Here is a list of influential organizations that are working to better the lives of the world’s poor. This list is not exhaustive, and is merely a sample of some of the exemplary organizations doing work in problem areas such as global health, water, sanitation, food, housing and education.
Oxfam
Oxfam is currently fighting poverty in developing countries by taking on issues of inequality, discrimination and unequal access to resources. It provides assistance during humanitarian crises. Also, it is very involved in educating the world’s poor about human rights and civic engagement to change the root causes of poverty at the political level.
United Nations Development Program (UNDP)
Founded on the belief that all people should have a chance to live with dignity, opportunity and safety. The UNDP helps countries develop policies that lead to sustainable development, democratic governance, peace building, climate and disaster resilience. The UNDP is a giant agency that delegates country-specific activities and programs through its Resident Coordinator System (RCS) that has offices in 130 countries. The organization’s highest goal is to implement the Sustainable Development Goals in all countries of operation.
United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)
UNICEF fights for children’s rights and welfare by strengthening legislation and social services. Initiatives include early childhood development, nutrition, immunization, WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene), children with disabilities and education.
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA)
UNOCHA is responsible for coordinating humanitarian relief efforts during natural disasters and conflict. In addition, UNOCHA raises awareness and encourages involvement among U.N. member states of humanitarian crises.
United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (U.N. DESA)
The U.N. DESA creates and analyzes data pertaining to the economic and social aspects of sustainable development. U.N. member states draw from these when creating U.N. resolutions as well as drafting local policy plans in their home countries. The U.N. DESA’s in-depth policy analysis has helped to resolve many of the world’s most pressing socioeconomic issues.
The Borgen Project
The Borgen Project is an influential U.S. nonprofit fighting poverty in developing countries through civic engagement and education. The organization believes that developed countries have a moral obligation to help the world’s poor. The organization advocates on Capitol Hill for poverty reduction legislation, increasing the international affairs budget and making poverty reduction a primary focus of U.S. foreign policy.
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
USAID facilitates development abroad by allocating the U.S. international aid budget towards projects that increase agricultural productivity, lower child mortality rates and deadly diseases, provide humanitarian assistance during natural disasters and prolonged conflict and promote democracy, economic growth, environmental resilience and women’s empowerment.
Overseas Development Institute (ODI)
ODI is an independent think tank that researches a myriad of topics from climate and energy to poverty and inequality. The Institute’s goal is to facilitate international development by providing policy advice, consultancy services and training programs to fight poverty.
Concern Worldwide
Concern Worldwide is a phenomenal non-government organization that is fighting poverty in developing countries by providing lifesaving humanitarian aid. This aid is primarily focused on elevating world hunger, increasing world health and responding to emergencies and natural disasters.
The Hunger Project
The Hunger Project recognizes that poverty is sexist. Two-thirds of the world’s illiterate population are female and 60 percent of HIV/AIDS cases today affect women. The Hunger Project believes that empowering women is essential to ending world hunger and poverty. It fights for clean drinking water, nutrition and sanitation as well as economic growth.
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF)
The BMGF has been instrumental in saving the lives of 122 million children since 1990 largely through its efforts to increase access to health care and vaccinations, which have all but eradicated polio and halved rates of malaria and tuberculosis around the world.
World Bank Group
The World Bank Group funds development projects around the world through traditional loans, interest-free credits and grants. The World Bank Group also produces some of the world’s leading research and publications concerning development policies and programs. It offers policy advice, analysis and technical assistance to developing countries throughout the project application process as well.
The Earth Institute
The Earth Institute, directed by Jeffrey Sachs, is part of New York University. The institute is comprised of two dozen research facilities in the fields of Earth and climate science, public health, economics, law, business and public policy all focused on the future sustainability of our planet. It applies its research to developing policies and solutions to the world’s problems, especially sustainable development and the alleviation of poverty.
Red Cross
The Red Cross in an international NGO that provides urgent assistance to those affected by disaster through vaccination campaigns, disaster preparedness, reconnecting families separated by conflict and natural disasters.
Engineers Without Borders (EWB)
EWB is fighting poverty in developing countries by providing real-world engineering solutions to tough problems all over the world. Whether that be through increasing access to clean drinking water in rural communities or building roads and dams, EWB is committed to community-driven development by working alongside community members throughout the project.
There are thousands of other organizations that are also working to do their part on local to international scales. They are all working to end poverty and increase standards of living in developing countries.
Hepatitis has become a global epidemic. Such viral infections can cause cirrhosis of the liver and hepatocellular carcinoma. Nine percent of the global population, or 550 million people, are infected and one million die from the disease every year. Most of these deaths are in lower-income countries. Hepatitis infections have definitive links with poverty beyond death rates; poverty is an identified risk factor for the disease. Here are four ways poverty impacts the hepatitis epidemic:
Poverty Impedes Diagnosis Many people are unaware they have hepatitis. Indeed, 90 percent of people with hepatitis C are not diagnosed. Undiagnosed people may not take precautions in preventing transmission.Many diagnostic tests are expensive, putting them out of reach for lower-income countries. For example, the liver biopsy test is not only expensive, but it requires trained histopathologists to analyze the tissue sample. In Africa, medical professionals who are experts in liver diseases are generally not common. This includes those who would analyze the histology sample.Furthermore, lower-income countries don’t typically have high-quality laboratories that can test for hepatitis. The centers that do exist are usually found in urban areas, neglecting those in rural locations.
Poverty Reduces Access to Treatment Lower-income countries have limited access to hepatitis treatment. Forty-one percent of the population lives in places without public hepatitis funding. One treatment, known as PEG-INF/RBV, can cost EUR 25,000 for full course therapy in Europe. This figure does not consider any of the follow-up care or further tests.There are also tests which guide the treatment of hepatitis. They identify the strain and how much virus is in a person. They’re expensive and as such not always routine.
Patents Make Drugs More Expensive Than They Need to Be Drugs are protected as intellectual property by patents. These protection laws prevent other companies from creating comparable, generic drugs at lower prices for twenty years after invention. The intention is to encourage research and development by drug companies. In reality, when only one company makes a drug the company has free range with pricing and often sets a high price tag. These patents make some hepatitis drugs too expensive for patients in lower-income countries.
Reuse of Syringes is Common in Lower-Income Countries Syringes can be contaminated with hepatitis. When they are reused without sterilization, they can pass along the infection. One reason that dirty syringes are reused is because of poorly trained healthcare workers. Also, lack of funding forces medical professionals to reuse syringes. If this practice continues, so will the epidemic.The good news is that there are treatments and cures for hepatitis. There is a complete cure for the hepatitis C strain and preventative vaccines for hepatitis A, B and E. The World Health Organization (WHO) is optimistic in defeating the hepatitis epidemic. They have prioritized its eradication and are creating guidelines to help countries with this process.
Previously, the WHO prioritized fighting a global epidemic during the HIV outbreak. HIV therapy once cost $10,000 per patient, per year. That is now down to $100. Today 10 million people receive treatment, in contrast to the mere 20,000 who were once treated in developing nations.
Hopefully, with focus and funding, the future of hepatitis can follow the pattern set by the HIV outbreak, and poverty’s impact can be eliminated.
Poverty in the Maldives is improving. The country has grown into a middle-income country over the past 40 years. Its population has steadily increased, sitting now at nearly 410,000 people. Life expectancy at birth has also increased steadily and consistently in the Southern-Asian group of islands in the Indian Ocean over the past five decades. The Maldives life expectancy at birth was just 37 in 1960. It currently stands at more than 76 years of age.
Economically, the former British Protectorate and current climate change champion has bettered itself largely in the past decade. The country’s Gross National Income (GNI), or the sum of the value added by all resident producers, was less than $3,500 per capita in 2003. That number climbed gradually, topping out at $4,000 in 2007.
GNI per capita in the Maldives skyrocketed over the next 10 years, bounding up to $4,880 in 2008, $5,030 in 2009 and nearly $7,000 by 2015.
In reference to a more widely understood, accepted and analyzed statistic, Gross Domestic Product (GDP), poverty in the Maldives has rebounded since the turn of the century.
Annual GDP growth percentage figures fell off the cliff from 2004 to 2005, dropping more than 21 percentage points, from 12.5 percent growth to shrinking by 8.7 percent.
However, GPD growth was up 28.3 percent the following year, to 19.6 percent annual GDP growth in 2006. Since that time, growth in GDP has leveled out and remained consistent, around 3.5 percent today.
In 2009, it was estimated by the World Bank that 15.7 percent of the population lived in poverty in the Maldives. Severe poverty was 7.3 percent, measured as the proportion of those living on less than $1.90 a day.
Today more than 98 percent drink clean water, and 97.9 percent have access to improved sanitation facilities. Poverty in the Maldives is not entirely reflected in its GDP either as it currently sits at $3.4 billion and growing.
According to the CIA’s World Fact Book, poverty in the Maldives may not be improving, as the collection of Southern-Asian islands in the Indian Ocean continues to spend, dropping its gross national savings eight percent in two years (2014-2016).
Poverty in Maldives — if measured by unemployment numbers — presents a problem in that more than 11.5 percent of its 392,960 people are without work.
While some facts and figures project an improving economy, poverty in the Maldives remains an issue as the country spends more than its revenue and works to combat climate change. The region has witnessed fiscal expansion and domestic growth, yet may feel after effects of an unbalanced trade ratio in coming years.
At the 2017 Global Diversity and Inclusion Benchmarks (GDIB) Conference, the Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF) won the Outstanding Achievement Award for promoting diversity and inclusion within its organization and society. During the conference, the PPAF, recognized as Pakistan’s pre-eminent poverty reduction organization, was awarded for its contributions to Pakistani poverty efforts.
The GDIB Conference, which was held on Apr. 27, 2017, in Karachi, Pakistan, aimed to identify and recognize practices and standards for various organizations around the world that aspire to further mankind. These achievements include ensuring the long-term sustainability of the world and its people and raising struggling people out of global poverty.
In the efforts of alleviating the poverty that distresses Pakistan, the PPAF is dedicated to reducing poverty and improving living conditions across many struggling regions of Pakistan by exemplifying principles of diversity and inclusion. Also, varying themes of social inclusion, gender and environment are implemented through all PPAF’s projects and programs.
Established in 2000, the PPAF was primarily funded by the World Bank and the Pakistani government. In providing loans and grants throughout many struggling regions of Pakistan, it was reported in 2015 that PPAF’s assets totaled $308 million.
Since July 2009, approximately 10 million people have benefited from the PPAF’s various project interventions, with more than half of them being women. Additionally, 125,000 children were enrolled in 896 project-supported schools and 6.5 million patients were treated for various conditions in 482 project-supported health facilities. The PPAF aims to progress Pakistani poverty efforts by giving physical, emotional and financial stability to millions of vulnerable and marginalized people throughout Pakistan.
Poverty in Malaysia is a controversial economic and political issue. The definition of poverty and the poverty line in Malaysia has been disputed for years and causes much political uproar, including political protests and debates.
Malaysia has grown rapidly in economic development, with 65.6 percent of the population aged 15 years and above employed and working in 2014. With that many people working, each household is expected to make a sufficient income.
It has been recorded that there was a 55.3 percent reduction in the percentage of population below the poverty line in Malaysia, meaning that poverty in Malaysia is a large focus for the government and the community, and they are working together to solve the problem.
A survey conducted in 2014 by the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM), on a sample size of 81,634 households, shares the preliminary data that only one percent of these households were living below the poverty line index. That’s right – Malaysia has a poverty population of one percent, meaning that only 300,000 people of 33.3 million are living in poverty in Malaysia.
The government is currently working to solve the poverty in Malaysia by using a four-pronged method of thinking:
Educate and lift the level of education among the poor children in school, and teach them business practices that can help them gain a higher income job and possibly run a company.
Strengthen social safety nets, and provide government funded empowerment
Ensure income is redistributed to uplift those in poverty.
Create policies that promote economic development.
Malaysia has one of the largest middle classes in any Muslim country. It’s made up of Malays, Chinese and Indians. Many of these middle-class people own their own modern houses and condos, own two cars and employ Indonesian maids.
Malaysia is on the right track to completely eliminate its poverty and strengthen its economy. Aid from the U.S. can only guarantee these goals.
The Lives and Livelihoods Fund board of the Islamic Development Bank has approved $242.6 million to finance several development projects. These projects were created to improve areas of health, agriculture and rural infrastructure in countries including Tajikistan, Sudan, Djibouti, Niger, Mauritania, Cameroon, Uganda and Guinea.
These projects strive to create healthier living standards for struggling communities, hoping to generate a lasting impact in the fight against disease and poverty in Muslim countries.
The Islamic Development Bank provides economic and social development to member countries through financial assistance and participating in equity capital and grant loans for development projects and enterprises.
Bandar Hajjar, president of the Islamic Development Bank, states that the fund’s goal is to assist in developing sustainable living conditions and more productive lives in the poorest communities throughout the Muslim world.
Over the next five years, the Lives and Livelihoods Fund will strive to help millions of people in 30 of the poorest Muslim countries lead healthy and productive lives. To do so, the Islamic Development Bank will provide $2.5 billion to develop several expansion projects. This fund is currently the largest multilateral development initiative in the Middle East and North Africa for poverty alleviation in the partnering nations of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
Hassan Al-Damluji, head of Middle East Relations at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, states that out of the one billion people in the world that are facing extreme poverty, 400 million of them are living in the Islamic Development Bank’s member countries.
Although established in late 2016, the Lives and Livelihoods Fund has seen promising results, with $363 million already being allocated for the fund’s first operational year. In partnering with other donor organizations and regional governments, the fund strives to make a lasting impact and save millions of lives by addressing the issues of disease and poverty in Muslim countries.
While Thailand historically has been known to have a fairly strong economy, it experienced setbacks in 2013-15 as a result of domestic political turmoil and slow global demand. Since then, the Southeast Asian country has undergone a period of economic growth, advancing as a middle-income country and moving toward achievement of its Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), poverty in Thailand has decreased from 21 percent in 2000 to about 12.6 percent in 2012.
While it is important to note the remarkable progress that has been made, certain challenges and conditions still pose a threat to people and society. Following are five facts about poverty in Thailand.
The reported unemployment rate in Thailand is less than one percent. In addition, 69.4 percent of the population aged 15 and older is employed.
Just more than 38 percent of the population have at least some secondary education. Advancements in education have been particularly impressive and a large contributor to reducing poverty in Thailand as a whole.
According to the Asian Development Bank, for every 1,000 babies born in Thailand, 11 die before their first birthday. Similarly, the maternal mortality rate as of 2015 is 20 deaths per 100,000 live births, and the total infant mortality rate is 9.4 deaths per 1,000 live births, emphasizing the close link between the effect of poverty on death rates.
In the booming 1960s, Thailand’s economy grew at an average annual rate of 7.5 percent, creating millions of jobs that helped pull millions of people out of poverty.
As of 2014, more than 80 percent of the country’s impoverished population of 7.1 million live in rural areas. Moreover, an additional 6.7 million were living within 20 percent above the national poverty line and remained vulnerable to falling back into poverty in Thailand.
With a massive population of more than 68 million as of 2017, poverty in Thailand affects many individuals. Fortunately, with awareness and assistance, there are opportunities for the nation’s recovery to eliminate poverty and help boost prosperity for all citizens.
Thailand is being touted as a development success story. Sustained growth and poverty reduction are the reasons for the incredible progress. Poverty in Thailand was reduced from 21 percent in 2000 to 12.6 percent in 2012 and 7.5 percent in 2015. Between 1999-2005 the economy grew annually by five percent, which created jobs and improved education.
While Thailand has become a middle-income country and an active development partner, the country’s growth has slowed to only 3.5 percent between 2005-2015. Despite this, Thailand is making great progress towards meeting their Millennium Development Goals.
Thailand’s economic success is not shared with all citizens. Poverty in Thailand mainly affects those living in rural areas. There are 7.1 million people living in poverty and 80 percent of those live in rural areas. The inequality is not limited to those living in rural areas. Some areas and ethnic groups are affected more than others, particularly in the Northeast, North and Deep South.
Poverty and inequality create a challenge for a country with a faltering GDP. While the World Bank predicts that growth will increase 3.2 percent in 2017, it has grown by less than 2.5 percent annually between 2014-2016.
A 20-year strategic plan to end poverty in Thailand and help attain developed country status includes reforms to stabilize the economy and provide equal economic opportunities, environmental stability, and effective government bureaucracies. The country has already implemented large-scale public infrastructure projects, renewable energy tariffs, strengthened the renewable energy market, identified opportunities for energy efficiency improvement, diversified fuel sources and created a state enterprise policy committee. On a more economical level, the country has transferred supervisory oversight of specialized financial institutions to the Bank of Thailand, created a National Savings Fund and created a retirement safety net for workers.
Thailand may achieve its desired goals and see an end to poverty in the country if it can sustain growth and implement additional sound reforms.
