Free Custom «Ending Poverty» Essay Paper

When the world started to be viewed as one global village, it implied that people are expected to share treasures as well as problems. Over a century, wars have been leading to the destruction of major cities such as Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan, but the global concern, expressed through the work of the United Nations, which initiated the compensation process, helped to bring Japan back to its normal conditions. However, wars are not of the largest concern for people anymore. Poverty has caught the absolute attention of many nations around the world instead, with the central aim of supporting the poor. It is beyond the doubt that Africa has its countries still in the developing process, and that poverty has been a significant challenge for them. World Organizations can no longer afford to stay indifferent and see people dying. The poor need support to improve their lives and think of the possible ways to do that. Jeffrey Sachs once said, “The key to ending extreme poverty is to enable the poorest of the poor to get their foot on the ladder of development… the poorest of the poor are stuck in it. They lack the minimum amount of capital necessary to get a foothold and, therefore, need a boost up to the first rung.” Basing on this statement, the paper will discuss such issues as reasons of some countries’ failure to thrive, clinical economics, the explosion of inequality, solutions for ending poverty, and “can the rich help the poor” slogan.

 

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Before bringing the poor to the ladder of development, it is preferable to consider the reasons why such people or countries do not prosper. Statistics and industrial sources reveal that out of 6.3 billion of the world population, around 5 billion people have achieved the highest rung of the considerable economic development (Krueger & Lindahl 2001). Such a growth implies that a significant part of the world population does not face a problem of the extreme poverty. However, economic development is still in progress, and poverty is said to be decreasing, but not ending. It means that economic development is not working in some areas of the world (Lin 2009). The failure of the economic growth in a place is defined by the changes in the GDP over the time. The GPA index shows the level of productivity per person. Reasons, why economic development may not be achieved in some countries, include lack of savings, absence or limited degree of trade, technological reversal, population growth, and natural resources’ decline. In fact, these reasons may sound too broad and general (Bazzi & Clemens 2013). From the perspective of pragmatic circumstances, the reasons of extreme poverty can be explained by corrupted leadership and governmental failures as well as geopolitical situation. Corrupted leaders misuse resources and ruin the national capital, which is supposed to be accessible to each individual, thereby preventing the process of economic growth (Rotberg 2010). In some cases, leaders misappropriate large plots of land and destroy nature, for example, by cutting trees. Land, as both a property and a resource, is very important for people, who do farming because their productivity depends on it. (Dercon, Gilligan, Hoddinott & Woldehanna 2009). The fact that leaders misappropriate this land for their benefits leaves poor people helpless due to the lack of means for facilitating production. In addition, governmental systems play a crucial role in creating a favorable environment that should support investments, especially, in private businesses. Inefficiency of the government means that security measures no longer create a positive impact on the productivity of people, therefore, enhancing poverty among them (Aker & Mbiti 2010).

Apart from analyzing the reasons, why some countries cannot thrive, Sachs also addressed the disturbing issue of inequality among people and the increasing gap between the rich and the poor. Africa, being one of most poverty challenged areas in the world, serves as a vivid example of the economy in which there is a considerable difference between the rich and the poor. The rich multiply their incomes, while the poor continue to lack the necessities of life. (Chandy, Ledlie & Penciakova 2013). Sachs feels that this is a society, in which material welfare plays a more important role than moral values because the humanity has lost its sense. Clinical economics views economic development as the process, during which the economy tries to hide its weakest points and promotes the strong areas, considered to be necessary to support the financial growth in the society and in the whole world. This is not what is happening in most of the African countries, where the economic inequality lets some people make profits, while others are suffering from financial hardships (Graham & Temple 2006). The situation cannot be improved if the society is not unified, as it may lead to a division in the economy, with the key players being self-centered instead of treating the society as a whole. Sachs argues that there are people, who would never provide help even if the situation looked extremely critical. American concern over Africa and aid programs, aimed at it, do not imply that Africa does not have well-off people who can support the poor. The self-centered aspect, therefore, is important in the extension of the gap between the rich and the poor (Cramer & Goodhand 2002).

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Extreme poverty cannot challenge people forever. Some solutions can be found to bring the lives of poor people to a substantial level, which would allow them to feel the comfort of the society and the support of the immediate neighborhood (Mishkin 2006). It is evident that reliable, proven, and appropriate interventions and technologies can be applied to improve the living standards of the individuals, who live below the poverty line. Agricultural advances such as fertilizers and a small-scale irrigation device can support productivity among the poor population. It means that people can produce food on their own and have a normal life without financial pressure (Houweling, Ronsmans, Campbell & Kunst 2007). Apart from this, the investment in people’s health is fundamental while ensuring a stable economic growth.

HIV treatment and control of the late stages of AIDS are considered to be effective in changing the attitude of the society and establishing a balance between the poor and the rich within it (Birdsall & Clemens 2003). Investments in education make it possible for children from poor families to access opportunities the same as those, available for children of rich people. It can only be supported by the government free of corruption, which is ready to serve its nation without taking side of one of the social classes. Infrastructural development and sanitation also bridges the gap between the poor and the rich, and should be available for all people, regardless of their social status. It means that equal chances should be given to all people, so that the poor can make use of the few opportunities they have to improve their living standards. For example, poor people can benefit from good roads by accessing better markets for the modest produce of their firms (Calderón & Servén 2010). The money, they will earn and a skillful saving scheme may enable them to build better houses and take their children to better schools.

In order to end poverty, it is necessary to take smaller aspects of the problem into consideration. Such aspects include the neighbor to neighbor contact, which plays a fundamental role in the appearance of the problem (Cruz, Foster, Quillin & Schellekens 2015).Sachs tends to ask a question, of whether it is possible that the rich may be willing to help the poor. The responsibility of the wealthy people is to help those in need to avoid poverty. The expanses involved in this process may be insignificant in comparison to the income, earned by the rich, and are less than the taxes, paid by them. If a country can support a neighboring state in eradicating the poverty, then the current generation should consider it as a way of curbing bitter poverty. It is quite challenging to end poverty completely, but extreme poverty can be eliminated by enhancing economic development, which focuses on balancing the entire economy (Strauss & Thomas 1998). Economic development should encourage rich people to help the poor to improve their standards. It has been already implemented by well-wishers, who have started the process of educating poor children and supporting the lives of street children. It is worth noting that it can be done internationally by taking it as the working strategy, aimed at changing the lives of many. For example, the United States, at one point, influenced a substantial decrease of extreme poverty. It was achieved by assigning the taxpaying responsibility to the richest (Straub 2008). The rich were forced to pay heavy taxes that served the entire purpose of supplying enough food and jobs to the extreme poor.

In conclusion, the paper discussed the ways of ending poverty through economic development. It has mentioned some reasons why countries fail to succeed in financial sphere. The paper further took into consideration the aspect of clinical economics and how imbalances can be regulated through economic development. Sachs’ statement has been acknowledged internationally, which was manifested in facilitating interventions in such extreme conditions as abject poverty. The living standards of poor people can substantially be improved by establishing the right governmental systems and working on investments, which are proven to increase productivity.