The Challenge of Global Poverty International Agencies can help to reduce poverty International agencies play an important role in reducing global poverty. For example: In 2000 the UN agreed eight Millennium Development Goals (to be achieved by 2015) to tackle global poverty:

The MDGs are intended to highlight the areas that need to be addressed, and to give the UN a way of measuring the progress that’s been made in reducing global poverty. To date, the success of the MDGs has varied. Some progress is being made, e.g. in Sub-Saharan Africa there has been an 18% increase in primary school enrolment between 1999 and 2009. But little or no progress has been made in other areas, e.g. in Africa the number of children with stunted growth due to malnutrition has actually increased between 1990 and 2010. Other international agencies, such as the World Bank and the World Health Organisation, and international charities (e.g. Oxfam and the Red Cross) are also working to reduce global poverty.

17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

Poverty can be Reduced in a Number of Ways To reduce poverty, international organisation are doing things to address the causes of poverty: Bad growing conditions Subsistence farming Overpopulation War Natural hazards As a group think and write down ways that international organisations could address the above causes of poverty?

Bad growing conditions: Growing crops that can withstand harsh environmental conditions helps to increase crop yields. For example, the $39 million Water Efficient Maize for Africa (WEMA) project aims to develop drought-tolerant types of maize to be grown in Sub – Saharan Africa. Reducing overgrazing helps maintain soil quality. For example, in central Tanzania the HADO project encouraged farmers to grow hay to feed cattle. This reduced grazing and provided reliable food for animals all year round. Subsistence farming: Subsistence farmers need to improve productivity so they can generate an income. Loans could enable farmers to increase productivity by buying equipment or animals. E.g. as part of a UN programme, a Kenyan business is offering small loans to 100,000 farmers in Kenya to help them buy livestock, seeds and equipment which they can use to improve their farming methods and produce more food. Increased agricultural productivity also reduces the risk of famine by improving food security. Food security is when all people have access to sufficient food at all times. E.g. a UN programme in 2012 aimed to increase the area of irrigated farmland in Afghanistan by 15% (by upgrading old irrigation systems) and increase crop yield by 20%. War: Diplomacy could resolve many conflicts before they escalate to war. For example, the Union of South American Nations was set up in 2008. one of its aims is to improve security in South America by building stronger diplomatic links between the nations.

Overpopulation: Overpopulation is sometimes due to rapid population growth caused by a high birth rate. This can be reduced by increasing use of contraception and education programmes. E.g. the UN and WHO ran programmes in Ethiopia which doubled the use of contraception between 2005 and 2010. Natural hazards: The impacts of drought can sometimes be reduced by strategies such as water collection and storage schemes, irrigation schemes or the use of drought-resistant GM crops. E.g. a UN-led programme has installed water storage tanks on the Pacific island of Nauru, so homes still have access to water during a drought. The impacts of floods can be reduced by improving prediction and warning systems, e.g. UNESCO (part of the UN) has set up a project to improve flood prediction and warning systems in Pakistan following the 2010 floods. This allows people to make better plans to prepare for floods, and to protect their property when flood occurs.

Poverty, Security and Development are all Tied Up Together Poverty is closely linked to the level of development of a country. So a country needs to develop to reduce its level of poverty. In order to develop, countries need security. This means a few different things: Countries can’t develop without security. For example, if a country has a low level of economic security, (e.g. because it has a high level of debt), then it can’t afford to invest in development. But, countries can’t get security without development either. For example, if a country is at a low level of development, then it can’t generate the money it needs to pay off debts and create economic security. Economic security involves a country’s economy being stable and sustainable, as well as all individuals having a reliable basic income. Food security involves having access to a reliable source of sufficient food. Health security involves having protection from diseases and access to health care. Personal, community and political security involves being protected from violence, crime and human rights abuses.

Poverty, Security and Development are Problems in Afghanistan There have been conflicts going on in Afghanistan for a long time. The conflicts have contributed to Afghanistan being at a very low level of development: 3. They’ve also meant that Afghanistan has very little security: It is economically poor – in 2011, the GDP per capita was $1000 (in the UK it was $36,600). The birth rate is high – in 2011, each woman had an average of 5.64 children. There are high levels of gender inequality – in 2000, the male adult literacy was 43.1%, but the female adult literacy rate was only 12.6% Economic security is low – the unemployment rate was 35% in 2008. Food security is low – in 2008, 29% of the population did not get enough calories every day. Health security is low – there is 1 doctor for every 5000 people. Personal security is low – in 2008 there were 2118 civilian deaths caused by war.

Afghanistan can’t get security without investing in projects to improve its level of development, such as building roads, hospitals and schools etc. These projects would create security by providing jobs, health care and education. But money can’t be invested in development projects while things like personal and political security are so low, e.g. there is no guarantee that new roads, hospitals and schools won’t be destroyed by the ongoing conflict. So, Afghanistan can’t get security without development, but can’t develop without security either. To break this cycle Afghanistan may need help (e.g. money or military assistance) from international agencies and other countries.

Exam Question ‘No development without security, and no security without development.’ Discuss this statement. (40 marks)

HINTS: Start by writing an introduction to your answer. Introduce both the key terms (‘security’ and ‘development’) in the statement, e.g. ‘Security for a country means many different things. It can include personal security, which is how at threat the population is from violence or crime, but also economic security, which is to do with how stable the country’s economy is and whether everyone has a reliable income or not’. Write about the first part of the statement – you should use examples to back up your points wherever possible. E.g. “No development without security” means that it is difficult for a country to develop if it does not have all the different forms of security. For example, in Afghanistan there is very little personal and political security because of an ongoing war. Without this security, Afghanistan can’t invest in development projects such as building roads, schools and hospitals as there is no guarantee that they won’t be destroyed by the ongoing conflict’. Then write about the second part of the statement (‘no security without development’), and discuss how it contrasts with your point about the first part of the statement. This is a 40 mark essay question, so, wherever it’s relevant, you need to bring in your geography knowledge from other parts of the course. For example, you could talk about how lots of countries remain trapped at low levels of development because of this problem, then discuss the ways that countries can develop (e.g. through trade and aid) to break this cycle.