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Ten Poverty Statistics You Should Know

Ten Poverty Statistics You Should KnowThe following are ten poverty statistics that any advocate should know and be able to share with others. They describe the global poverty situation:

1. Globally, there are over 1 billion children living in poverty.

2. 1/4 of all humans live without electricity — approximately 1.6 billion people.

3. The World Food Programme says, “The poor are hungry and their hunger traps them in poverty.” Hunger is the number one cause of death in the world, killing more than HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis combined.

4. Gender discrimination is widely recognized as a major contributor to children living in poverty and creating disparities in how resources are earned, valued and distributed based on power relationships between men and women. These poverty-induced relationships lead to tens of millions of children becoming victims of exploitation, violence and abuse.

5. Global poverty leads to global hunger, as people living in poverty cannot afford nutritious food for themselves and their families. This creates a vicious cycle where a lack of food makes people weaker and less able to earn money, preventing them from escaping poverty and hunger.

6. Poverty is closely linked to the inability to access clean water and proper sanitation. More than 750 million people lack adequate access to clean drinking water.

7. The disadvantages of poverty are closely linked to an increased risk of disease. For example, diarrhea, which is caused by inadequate drinking water, sanitation and hand hygiene, kills an estimated 842,000 people every year globally, or approximately 2,300 people per day. With the increased risk of disease, those under the poverty line have little access to basic medical attention, causing preventable diseases like diarrhea and pneumonia to take the lives of 2-3 million people a year.

8. 80 percent of the world’s population lives on less than $10 a day, well below the standard of the Quality of Life Index.

9. A quarter of all people live without electricity — approximately 1.6 billion people.

10. The cost of eradicating world poverty is estimated at 1 percent of global income, whereas other financial endeavors such as military spending in the U.S. alone can reach over $691.22 billion.

– Alysha Biemolt

Sources: 11 Facts About Global Poverty, Global Issues, UNICEF, United Nations World Food Programme
Photo: Flickr

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School Lunch Program Improves Lives of Children in CAR

School_Lunch_Program
The World Food Program began a massive school lunch program this past May across the Central African Republic. This week, they began a campaign that aims to battle common intestinal worm infections in children in cooperation with the school lunch program.

Many children in the Central African Republic suffer from intestinal worm infections that affect their health, ability to intake nutrition, mental development and the ability to study in school. The program that collaborates with UNICEF and the Ministry of Education aims to improve the health of 250,000 children across the Republic.

One deworming pill is effective for six months. When children are healthy and worm-free, they can both focus in school and study at home more effectively.

The school lunch program that began in early May of 2015 has been very effective so far. Over 155,000 metric tons of food have been distributed. Ninety schools, over 70,000 primary school children and 4,300 elementary school children across the capital of the Central African Republic are currently receiving school lunches.

The meal includes rice, beans, oil and salt. In many cases, this school lunch is the only food children will consume in a day. The food encourages families to value attendance and enrollment in school. It also improves the efficacy of the children’s schooling experience, enabling concentration and enthusiasm.

The school lunch and deworming campaign in the Central African Republic follow political violence, armed conflict and chaos that began in December of 2014. Thousands of people have been killed and almost 1 million have left their homes due to political violence.

The instability and violence caused the majority of schools in the Central African Republic to close, leaving children without access to education. The few schools that remained open were too unsafe for children to attend. According to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, about 45 percent of schools are currently still closed in the Central African Republic and 35 percent of the population is food insecure.

According to the U.N., 3,500 to 6,000 children have been recruited as child soldiers in armed groups in the Central African Republic. Parents and many organizations like World Vision are encouraging school attendance in an effort to diminish children’s vulnerability to recruitment.

According to World Vision, Claudia Geraldine, a teacher from Bangui that educates boys and girls from age 5 to age 14 said, “I’m encouraging parents to send children to school now because it is safe.”

The school lunch and deworming programs have so far been successful due to the tenacious, determined, collaborative efforts of local community members along with large organizations. “Everybody plays a part in the process. The head of the school organizes the logistics and mobilizes parents to help. Local women volunteer to prepare the food, and the children fetch water. This is making a real difference in the lives of children in Bangui,” said Fikru Gebeyehu, a World Vision food assistance expert.

– Aaron Andree

Sources: World Food Programme, World Vision USAID
Photo: World Food Programme,

10 Shocking World Hunger Statistics

World_hunger_statistics
A recent collaboration among the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, or IFAD, and the World Food Programme  yielded a publication titled, “The State of Food Insecurity in the World.” This document analyzes the current statistics regarding the number and location of the world’s hungry and these ten statistics reflect the most updated state of the world’s hungry populations.

1. There are 795 million people around the world who are undernourished, down by 167 million in the last decade.

According to the publication, 780 million people out of the 795 million are located in underdeveloped regions, namely Sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia, two areas in which severe hunger is most prevalent.

2. WFP estimates that $3.2 billion is needed each year to feed all 66 million hungry school-age children.

Hunger is one of the leading causes of death in developing countries, particularly in young children under the age of 5. Increasing the U.S. foreign aid budget could drastically improve the lives of millions of hungry children.

3. About 1.3 billion tons of food, roughly one-third of all food produced, is wasted.

When all of this food is not consumed, the one in eight people in the world who go hungry every day are stripped of the chance to get a life-saving meal.

4. This year, 29 countries have achieved the World Food Summit’s goal to halve the number of undernourished people in their populations.

The countries who reached this goal: Angola, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Cameroon, Chile, China, Cuba, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Gabon, Georgia, Ghana, Guyana, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Mali, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Oman, Peru, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, São Tomé and Príncipe, Thailand, Turkmenistan, Uruguay, Venezuela and Vietnam.

5. More than 80 percent of the world’s most food-insecure people live in countries prone to natural disasters with high levels of environmental degradation.

Areas that are likely to have hurricanes, floods, earthquakes and other destructive events are consequently more prone to collapsed cities, destroyed farmlands and polluted water sources. These consequences directly impact the availability of food in these regions.

6. A total of 72 developing countries out of 129, or more than half the countries monitored, have reached the Millennium Development Goal 1c hunger target.

The MDG relating to hunger takes into account both the prevalence of undernourishment in the specified country, as well as the proportion of underweight children under the age of 5. According to the FAO report, “In many countries that have failed to reach the international hunger targets, natural and human-induced disasters or political instability have resulted in protracted crises with increased vulnerability and food insecurity of large parts of the population. In such contexts, measures to protect vulnerable population groups and improve livelihoods have been difficult to implement or [are] ineffective.”

7. Western Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa are the only two regions in the world where the number of hungry people has increased since the 1990 study by the WFP, according to “The State of Food Insecurity in the World.”

In Western Asia, there were eight million people undernourished in 1990, and this number has increased to 19 million this year. In Sub-Saharan Africa, the number of undernourished people has increased from 176 million in 1990 to 220 million in 2015.

8. Poor nutrition causes nearly half (45 percent) of deaths in children under 5, or 3.1 million children each year.

It is estimated that nearly 8,000 of these deaths are tied to hunger. Approximately one child dies every 10 seconds.

9. Nearly one in every five people survive on less than $1.25 a day.

Approximately 80 percent of this small amount is used to buy food for an entire family. This leaves very little room for buying other necessities such as health care, clothes and shelter.

10. The main cause of hunger is poverty.

According to The Hunger Project, “Poverty, food prices and hunger are inextricably linked. Poverty causes hunger. Not every poor person is hungry, but almost all hungry people are poor. Millions live with hunger and malnourishment because they simply cannot afford to buy enough food, cannot afford nutritious foods or cannot afford the farming supplies they need to grow enough good food of their own. Hunger can be viewed as a dimension of extreme poverty. It is often called the most severe and critical manifestation of poverty.”

– Hanna Darroll

Sources: Food and Agricultural Organization, World Food Programme 1, World Food Programme 2, World Food Programme 3, 30 Hour Famine, The Hunger Project
Photo: Cross Catholic Field Blog

Nonprofit Organizations 101

nonprofit organizations
In the modern world, there are a multitude of companies and organizations dedicated to certain causes, markets and world regions. Companies can be categorized under two main types: for-profit and nonprofit. For-profit companies are focused on making money, while nonprofit organizations are focused on spending money.

Typically, for-profit organizations direct their efforts to making a profit for their officers, members or directors. If they are a publicly-traded company, then the executives are responsible for turning a profit for the shareholders. For-profit organizations are usually required by law to pay both federal and state taxes.

Examples of for-profit companies and organizations include Apple, PepsiCo and Google. These companies make consumer electronics, bottled beverages and specialize in online search engines. All of these companies are publicly traded corporations and earn money for their stockholders and directors.

For-profit corporations are prevalent in people’s lives. Many for-profit companies heavily advertise their products which are used by people all over the world. However, despite having less market exposure and recognition, nonprofit organizations are also extremely important.

A nonprofit organization is defined as a “a group organized for purposes other than generating profit and in which no part of the organization’s income is distributed to its members, directors, or officers.”

Instead of exerting efforts to make money for themselves and their stockholders, nonprofit organizations are focused on spending money to help a particular group or cause.

An example of a nonprofit organization is a church. Churches typically are financed through donations and spend their money on spreading their religion or contributing to causes that could positively impact people’s lives.

The World Food Programme and Planned Parenthood are other examples. Planned Parenthood dedicates its funds to better women’s health through education and to advocate for public policies that are aligned with its mission. The World Food Programme, which is partially funded by the United Nations, dedicates its budget to the procurement of food for communities that have been plagued by disaster.

Typically, nonprofit organizations are not traded on the New York Stock Exchange. Instead of being responsible for responding to those who own the company, they elect to distribute the money to certain causes.

Not all nonprofits are required to pay taxes. Those that apply and are approved to be registered as a “501-c organization” are not required by law to pay taxes.

– Erin Logan

Sources: CNN, Encyclopedia, Society for Nonprofits, Cornell, IRS, Planned Parenthood
Photo: UCONN

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World Food Program USA: What it Does

World_Food_Program_USA
In the ever-evolving global fight against hunger, the World Food Program USA, an ally of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP,) is leading the charge against the humanitarian issue.

With its headquarters in Washington D.C., WFP USA is thought of as the American arm of WFP. While WFP is the largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger throughout the world, World Food Program USA “builds support for WFP through fundraising, advocacy and education in the United States.”

Through its work to connect American businesses, organizations and philanthropists, WFP USA seeks to “transform the lives of hungry people across the planet.” The organization views its relationship with American citizens as key to solving world hunger.  

WFP USA releases an annual report each year detailing the state of hunger throughout the world. Its most recent report noted how the effects of conflicts in certain countries, including Syria, the Philippines, the Central African Republic and South Sudan, destabilize the ability for each nation to combat hunger and food security.

WFP has recently collaborated with such organizations as Yum! Brands, India Charitable Foundation and a bracelet line called The Brave Connection. These collaborations are sought to strengthen ties with different organizations.

Moreover, WFP seeks to alleviate the hardships caused by natural disasters or other emergencies, including a lack of adequate school meals and inadequate food security. The organization also strives to make a difference for women throughout the world.

A non-governmental agency, WFP received over $20 million last year through a combination of grants and fundraising. Both WFP and WFP USA rely upon contributions made by everyday individuals in order to continue to fight against global hunger and its related issues.

Through its relationship with WFP, WFP USA is one of the foremost leaders in the fight against world hunger. By working with businesses large and small and Americans of all socioeconomic classes, WFP USA is able to make an impact worldwide.

— Ethan Safran

Sources: World Food Program 1, World Food Program 2, Franchising, Huff Post
Photo: WFP USA

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Food Insecurity in India

Food Insecurity in India
The Indian government is currently considering a special session of parliament to pass a bill on food security. While some dismiss the effort as a rather blatant ploy for votes by the ruling Congress party, the issue of food security is very real for the world’s second-most populous country.

The UN World Food Programme recently released a report on food security in the Indian state of Maharashtra that highlights the challenges for India as it seeks to push forward in its economic and social development. Maharashtra is one of the largest states in population and land area in the country. The state has varied landscapes, varied demographics, and is an excellent example of the complexities involved in Indian food security.

Two key factors in addressing food security and social and economic issues arising from widespread hunger and malnutrition are child mortality and under-nutrition. Half the districts of Maharashtra suffer from under-five mortality rates higher than the national average of 74.3 per 1,000 live births. The state also struggles in comparison to the national average of under-weight children, with 26 of to 33 districts above the national percentage.

In both children and adults, improving the nutritional level can improve an individual’s productivity level. Given the implications such improvements hold for the overall development of a community, there are several programs working to reduce and prevent under-nutrition. Unfortunately, these programs are plagued by the problems of centralized implementation, often resulting in more affluent populations receiving aid over the populations most in need.

Availability, access, and absorption of food are also critical issues in Indian food security. Changing rainfall patterns in Maharashtra have created new challenges involving these aspects. Effective irrigation infrastructure and practices are notably lacking throughout much of the state, causing widespread low crop productivity. Low crop productivity, in turn, reduces a household’s income, limiting their buying power of food commodities they do not grow themselves.

Even when food is available, water-borne illnesses can drastically reduce the number of nutrients absorbed. Cleaner irrigation practices and modernized infrastructure are proven methods to improve the morbidity and mortality rates from these diseases, and a healthier population is a more productive population.

More effective irrigation is not the only infrastructure needed in Maharashtra. Road improvements are critical to improving food access in the region. Reliable roads not only open up economic opportunities but also serve to connect a rural population to health and education resources. This connectivity, particularly to educational opportunities, can help diversify rural economies away from a sole reliance on agriculture.

Women are also an important part of the successful implementation of food security and development programs in Maharashtra. Reducing and eliminating gender inequality is a top priority of the UN World Food Programme. In Maharashtra, women’s land ownership rights are particularly critical in integrating women into the food security solution.

Even with modest progress, the challenges facing Maharashtra and India as a whole are daunting. Government, private sector, and foreign investment in the implementation of responsible and sustainable development practices is critical. More critical, however, is the collaboration of the local communities receiving the aid. Without a comprehensive, collaborative approach, the many challenges of food security in Maharashtra and India could continue to afflict several future generations.

– Lauren Brown
Source: UN World Food Programme, BBC
Photo: Ask Use