Poverty

Poverty

1. definition

   • Absolute Poverty - severe deprivation of basic human needs - not only on income but also access to services
   • Relative Poverty - in relation to economic status of society - poor if fall below prevailing standards of living
   • Extreme Poverty - limited by malnutrition, illiteracy and disease - beneath human decency

2. contributing factors

   • Individual
     • Lack of income & resources - hunger & malnutrition - poor living conditions - limited education - limited healthcare - inadequate sanitation
     • Lack of opportunities - limited job opportunities - economic exploitation
   • National
     • Social/Cultural
       • - lack of population control - cultural beliefs and practices that discriminate against people
     • Political
       • - poor governance - internal wars
     • Environmental
       • - geographically vulnerable to natural disasters - climate change
   • Global
     • Developing VS Developed Nations - resource curse - unfair trade deals - exploitation

3. Factors

   • Income Inequality - overall poverty reduces as country grows economically - research by World Bank in 2000 --> 10% increase in country's avg income will reduce poverty rate by 20%-30% - national income is unequally distributed - poor gets poorer
   • Conflicts & Unrests - 33% of communities in absolute poverty live in places of conflict - massive loss of lives, diseases, hunger and violence, destruction of property and infrastructure, economic investments and quality labour - put off foreign investors
     • Rwanda & Sri Lanka had years of tribal and civil wars --> poverty
     • Afgahnistan, Iraq absolute poverty increasing - 39% of Afghans are poor
   • Location, Adverse Ecology & Location - geographic and ecological factors make life conditions unbearable - some communities are cut off from main economic centers of country as they are far from roads, markets, health services, schools and economic facilities - discourage economic investors
     • poverty in Andes, Peru is 6x higher than in Amazonian region
     • in Bangladesh, 7 rural districts contain half the country's severely stunted children
   • Natural Disasters - cause deaths, illness and loss of income - in better connected communities families can come out of poverty but remote and less accessible communities suffer for longer periods
     • in Ethiopia, 15 droughts and famines occurred between 1979-1998 - displacement, injury or death of more than 1 mil people
   • Ill Health & Disability - diseases like malaria and HIV/AIDS - disabled members drain household wealth quickly - considered a stigma
     • incidence of poverty is 15%-44% higher in households with a disabled member
   • Inheritance of Poverty - poor families cannot afford education --> children grow up without skills - children work on same family farms and marry into families with similar conditions - in turn pass on tradition to their children
   • Education, Training & Skills - people who are educated, had some training or skills are in a better position to fix basic problems and enhance their livelihoods - those without cannot help themselves --> even worse poverty
   • Gender Discrimination - negatively impacts women well-being and development of their children
     • Africa - girls are not allowed to be in school - women are not allowed to do major economic activity and had less ownership of lands and assests
     • Peru - national average years of schooling is just under 10 years - indigenous people is 7 years while poor indigenous women is 5 years

4. Effects

   • Crime & Stability - statistics show that crime and poverty are geographically related - instability discourages entrepreneurs from investing --> absence of jobs - poor people can only choose to partake in criminal activities or sign up for underpaid and hazardous jobs
     • - limited access to education and social inequality --> crimes are rarely violent where there is little social discrimination - poverty can be a threat to overall stability of a country - effects of poverty eventually reaches all tiers of society
   • Poverty on Women - lack economic stability or an education required to provide for themselves and families - single-parent families comprised of mothers and children have to face poverty at rates disproportionately high in comparison to men
   • Poverty as a Hazard to Health - poor unable to afford falling sick but with little or no access to sanitation, drinking water and safe food they have shortest life expectancy - no jobs --> forced to work in unsafe environments that may leave them with crippling accidents and all kinds of diseases --> compromise mental health which is also weakened by social discrimination and stress from poverty
   • Children in Poverty: EXTERNAL - lead to child abuse and neglect, mobility, homelessness and exposure to drugs and alcohol INTERNAL - children born underweight - key risk factor of infant mortality - in addition to parents' low educational level, they fail to level out throughout their academic career - risk experiencing emotional and behavioral problems - effects of poverty on mental health of children are very lasting even if they are no longer in poverty

5. Solutions

   • Individual
     • Boycotts - consumers from developed nations with access to information should ensure what they buy are produced sustainably - without forced labour or poor working conditions
   • Community
     • Exercising Responsibility - corporations have financial power to ensure their suppliers do not exploit the poor by refusing to work with those who practice child labour, unfair working hours or underpay employees
     • Watchdogs - NGOs can pressure corporations and governments to uphold human rights - prevent exploiting poor
     • Provide Education & Training - NGOs and governments can organise programmes to improve access to education - empower them to participate in decision making
   • Global
     • Increase Awareness - IGOs like United Nations can organise conferences to alert world to serious problems related to poverty
     • Protest - some developing nations have formed The New International Economic Order to demand the reformation of internal trade
     • Coorperation - international agreements like Milliennium Development Goals allow nations to work together to solve poverty
     • Provide Monetary Aid - IGOs like World Bank and International Monetary Fund provide loans for development projects to reduce poverty