1. Climate Change and Poverty in Developing Countries
Hannah Watkins and Jacob Blankenship, UNC Asheville
Third world countries are extremely vulnerable to climate change. These countries depend heavily on agriculture and natural resources for survival and defense against the hazardous effects of climate change. These effects that impact developing countries include the following: flooding, droughts, resource scarcity, etc. Specifically, the focus of this presentation will represent the countries of Malawi and Bangladesh--two important developing countries that are struggling to combat these effects. Malawi and Bangladesh both have populations that, as previously stated, are very dependent on agriculture. As the effects of climate change became more apparent in these countries, a chain reaction occurs. Frequent flooding and droughts damage the food supply, leading to food insecurity. Unfortunately, this leads to worsening poverty and worsening health. Flooding and droughts leads to water supplies are also tainted, worsening the already dire clean water situations in these countries. These countries, while emitting significantly lower CO2 than other countries, often experience the worse effects of climate change.
Malawi
Geography
Located in sub-Saharan Africa.
Bordered by Tanzania, Mozambique and Zambia.
45,747 square miles (about the size of Pennsylvania).
Lake Malawi: world’s 12th largest freshwater lake at 360 miles long.
Much of Malawi is a large plateau that ranges between 3,000 and 4,000 feet about sea level.
Northern Malawi contains rolling hills.
Economy
Population is 17.6 million.
GDP is 13.7 billion.
GDP per capita is $780.
Unemployment is 7.5%.
Economy resolves around agriculture , popular crops include:
Maize.
Tobacco.
Tea.
Cotton.
Energy Sources and Consumption
Consumption per year: billion kWh.
Consumption per year per capita: kWh.
CO2 emissions per capita: .08 metric tons.
Climate Change and Poverty
Extreme Weather: Floods, droughts, heat waves, and temperature extremes. Bangladesh, specifically, experiences storms (cyclones), and sea level rise.
Flood and droughts in both countries have led to destruction in entire seasons of agriculture.
Poverty: Poverty stricken; two of the most vulnerable countries to climate change and underdeveloped infrastructure in both countries.
Bangladesh experiences high population density.
In Malawi, 61.6% of their population lives off of less than $1.25 USD a day.
Food Scarcity: In Malawi, prolonged droughts have left 60 million Malawians in dire need of food.
Bangladesh
Geography
Location: Southern Asia, bordering Bay of Bengal—between Burma and India.
Area comparison: slightly smaller than Iowa.
Terrain: mostly flat sedimentary plain—hilly in southeast region.
Natural resources: natural gas, arable land, coal, timber.
Economy and Infrastructure
Economy has grown roughly 6% per year since 1996.
2015 GDP (according to World Bank—in US$): billion.
Agricultural products produced:
Rice, tea, wheat, potatoes, tobacco, etc.
Industries:
Iron and steel, fabricated metal products, pharmaceuticals, electricity, natural gas, etc.
Infrastructure:
One of the most underdeveloped in the world.
Investments into Bangladesh’s infrastructure industry growing—ties with China/India.
Energy Sources and Consumption
Production and consumption (respectively):
47.31 billion kWh (2012 est.)
41.52 billion kWh (2012 est.)
Natural gas:
Production: billion cubic meters (2013 est.)
Consumption: billion cubic meters (2013 est.)