CD11

AGRI/RURAL ISSUES AND

PROBLEMS: WORLD
POVERTY
DANILO T. EBIT
Instructor
 WHAT IS POVERTY?

• According to Max Roser(2019). Poverty is a state or condition in which

a person lacks the financial resources and essentials for a certain standard
of living.

• According to James Chen(2022). Poverty is the result of multiple

factors, not simply income.
 World Poverty
About 9.2% of the world, or 689 million people, live
in extreme poverty on less than $1.90 a day,
according to the World Bank. Although the World
Bank established the most widely held and
understood definition of poverty, they have also
described poverty as:
• Hunger
• Lack of representation and freedom
• Powerlessness
• Lack of shelter
• Not having a job
• Being sick and not being able to see a doctor.
• Not having access to school and not knowing how to read.
 How is Poverty Measured?
• Poverty lines aren’t the same in all countries. In higher-income countries, the cost of
living is higher and so the poverty line is higher, too.
• Poverty is measured by each country’s government, which gathers data through
household surveys of their own population. Richer and poorer countries set very
different poverty lines in order to measure poverty in a way that is informative and
relevant to the level of income of their citizens.
• For instance, while in the United States, a person is counted as being in poverty if
they live on less than roughly $24.55 per day, a family consisting of 5 members in the
Philippines earning $1.41 per day is counted as in poverty.
 World Vision (2022) cited Causes of Poverty as :
• Inequality and marginalization
• Conflict
• Hunger, malnutrition, and stunting
• Poor healthcare systems especially for mothers and children
• Little (or zero) access to clean water, sanitation, and hygiene
• Climate change
• Lack of education
• Poor public works and infrastructure
• Global health crises including epidemics and pandemics
• Lack of social support systems
TYPES OF POVERTY
 Social poverty
Social poverty includes people groups that are
undervalued and have few rights. Oftentimes, social
poverty is easiest to spot when we look for people
who have been silenced-they have no say and their
rights are minimized. They are often oppressed and
thought of as insignificant.
 Education Poverty
Hundreds of millions of children lack education and that creates a
lack of options. Education equals knowledge, skills, and training,
so when education is not available, families get trapped in the
cycle of poverty for generations. Steady employment and income
can be difficult to find and a person's basic needs can't be met.
Lack of education also makes children more vulnerable to
exploitation or abuse.
 Health Poverty
Health poverty may sound strange, but when a
person is unhealthy it is difficult to hold down a job
and develop positive relationships. Physical and
emotional health is the basis for our ability to work,
play and be in relationship with others.
 Economic Poverty
Half the world lives with a household
income of less than $2.50 a day. This level
of poverty is equal to slavery. People need
an income level that allows them to
purchase what they cannot make or grow.
 Absolute vs Relative Poverty
◦ Absolute poverty is when household income is below a certain level. This
makes it impossible for the person or family to meet basic needs of life
including food, shelter, safe drinking water, education, healthcare, etc.
◦ Relative poverty is when households receive 50% less than average
household incomes. So they do have some money but still not enough
money to afford anything above the basics. This type of poverty is, on the
other hand, changeable depending on the economic growth of the country.
 Effects of Poverty

Lack of economic opportunity leads to impoverishment

which then leads to crime. Global unemployment is at a
high point. One hundred ninety-two million people around
the world are jobless. In some parts of the world, mainly
poor parts, unemployment standings will drive this number
higher.
 SDG 1: No Poverty

◦ The Sustainable Development Goals are a plan of action

for countries worldwide to unify in a global partnership for
the benefit of people, the planet, and prosperity. By 2030,
the Sustainable Development Goals aim to end extreme
poverty for all people everywhere and at least cut in half
the proportion of people living in poverty in all its forms.
How can we end extreme poverty?
We can help end extreme poverty by identifying
what’s causing poverty in a particular community and
then determining what needs to change. Because
poverty looks different in various places and is caused
by different factors, the work to eradicate extreme
poverty varies in context.
SOLUTIONS TO POVERTY TO GET US TO 2030 According to Concern USA
(2022)

1. ELIMINATING POVERTY THROUGH EQUITY

◦ One of the main causes of poverty is inequality. The systemic barriers that lead to groups
of people going without representation in their communities leave them further behind in
terms of resources and opportunities. In order for a community, or even a country, to
alleviate poverty, all groups and identities must be involved in creating solutions.
2. COMMIT TO CLIMATE CHANGE SOLUTIONS AND CLIMATE JUSTICE
◦ Resilience against climate change is especially important and deserves its own mention.
According to the World Bank, climate change could force an additional 100 million
people into extreme poverty over the next decade without any urgent action taken.
3. ERADICATING POVERTY THROUGH
EDUCATION

According to UNESCO, if all students in low-income

countries had just basic reading and writing skills (nothing
else), an estimated 171 million people could escape
extreme poverty. If all adults completed secondary
education, we could cut the global poverty rate by more
than half. Education develops skills and abilities, corrects
some of the imbalances that come out of marginalization,
and decreases both risk and vulnerability.
References:
• Hasell, J. (2022, October 17). Poverty. Our World in Data. https://ourworldindata.org/poverty

• Brown, H. (2022, June 15). Relative vs Absolute Poverty: Defining Different Types of Poverty. Habitat
for Humanity GB. https://habitatforhumanity.org.uk

• Measuring Poverty. World Bank, https://www.worldbank.org

• Andrea Peer (2022). Global poverty. https://www.worldvision.org

• The Heartbreaking Truth About Poverty In the World and How You Can Help. (n.d.).
https://www.compassion.com