Jacqueline Hyslop

2015-2016

A3 Global Studies - Mr. Emmons

Poverty in Africa

Poverty is a major issue that impacts many countries throughout the continent of Africa.
In many places, poverty creates a sense of hopelessness and leads to disastrous results, such as
famine, war, and death. However, no one wants to take responsibility for the cause of it, the
effect, or the solution, even though efforts have been made to reduce poverty. This problem is a
global crisis that has impacted so many lives and will be extremely difficult to end.

There is no single cause for this tragedy because there are many factors to take into
consideration when it comes to the cause of poverty. Things like unemployment, drought and
limited resources, and confusion of land ownership are a few of the many causes of poverty in
Africa. Unemployment will forever be a problem all over the world but its caused the most
damage in Africa. Unemployment causes more crime than income inequality and crime is never
good for a country. Without jobs, people are left without money and that leads to starvation and
death. Poverty due to unemployment will continue to threaten the lives of individuals and force
citizens to live with poor, little, or no health care. If unemployment continues to exist in
countries throughout Africa, people will not be able to afford adequate necessities and eventually,
unemployment will lead to death. Drought and limited resources play a huge role in determining
what is the greatest cause of poverty. Like unemployment, drought can lead to starvation and
income decline for the people who rely on crops. In African countries, where the rainfall is
limited, there is hardly any irrigation which would leave families without water. As if that wasnt

enough, natural resources have been taken from the people and by larger companies, some of
which, are very successful and from other countries. The resources these struggling countries are
lacking in are education, medicine and useful medical services, clean water, and energy.
Confusion of land ownership is one of the many causes of poverty in Africa especially when
poor African countries cannot afford the unfair terms of trade made by richer countries. Africa's
economic growth is being held back by confusion over who owns vast swathes of agricultural
land, Says the World Bank. Confusion of land ownership and limited resources go hand-in-hand
because some established communities have had their farms taken from them and have been left
to find natural resources elsewhere. This problem will be difficult to solve because the World
Bank says that farmers inability to prove their ownership can lead to legal disputes and pauses
in cultivation. There is no single cause of poverty but all these problems are leading to something
even larger and more terrible than what is happening now.

Poverty has produced an extremely negative effect on the people of Africa. In most
African countries, unemployment has affected a large amount of youth and parents, typically
mothers or women. For example, the rate of poverty among Africa's youth is higher than other
regions. Forty-six percent of teenagers make less than a dollar a day, which is not nearly enough
to help support a struggling family. Children and teenagers affected by poverty tend to have risky
behavior, which is most likely triggered by crime and protests. A sense of hopelessness forces
Africas youth into rebellion, terrorism, or militancy. The ones who think there is no way out
have resorted to criminal behavior such as child trafficking, drug trafficking, prostitution, armed
robbery, child labour, and assassination. Some have even attempted rigging electronics being
used by politicians or election malpractice. Based on the examples above and more,
unemployment causes more crime than income inequality. Most of the women in Africa are

without and education and uneducated women are more likely to contract AIDS and bring AIDS
upon their children. In fact, children of educated women are more likely to survive by forty
percent. Poverty doesnt happen everywhere but in the places where it does, one in three people
are undernourished and not fed well. This happens mostly in the eastern and southern parts of
Africa where most of the 130 million people live with poverty in rural areas. Poverty forces
people to live without everyday basic necessities. People living in poverty do not have electricity
so they resort to burning wood and charcoal in order to cook. Rapid population growth has
negatively impacted the overall number of extreme poor and it will only worsen if a solution is
not found soon.

Efforts have been made to reduce the problem of poverty in Africa, but more can be done.
A few ways to help the problem are economic growth, population growth, and education. Today,
more than 347 million people are living with extreme poverty but the poverty rate in Africa is
slowly decreasing from the fifty-six percent of Africans living on under $1.25 a day back in
1990. Economic growth has help to lift people out of poverty by aiding in improving African
citizens health and education. This is a huge step because many people who are in poverty are
lacking in health care. Population growth can be positive or negative when it comes to
determining the future of Africa. Because the population is rising, more lives will either be
brought out of poverty or put into it. For example, as mentioned before, population growth has
already negatively impacted the overall number of extreme poor but one more person in the
world means one more person to take charge and help end poverty for good. Education would
provide people with knowledge and skills by giving them a chance to fight back against poverty.
This can be accomplished by hiring teachers and building schools, both of which are in demand
and lacking in Africa. Education would not only give people jobs but it would help solve the

issue of AIDS amongst mothers and their children. As for the conflict of land ownership, the
World Bank suggests now is a good time to rationalise land ownership, so Africans could have
the resources they need to be successful. It also says that the government should use satellite
technology to conduct land surveys and settle the dispute of land ownership. So while there are
many ways to bring Africa out of poverty, not a lot has been done to conquer this growing issue.

The definition of poverty is the state of being extremely poor. Things like unemployment,
drought and limited resources, and confusion of land ownership are a few of the many causes of
poverty in Africa and these particular problems have had an extremely negative impact on the
citizens of Africa. While efforts have been made to bring people out of poverty, not a lot has been
done to help. The British Prime Minister once said, Poverty is a scar on the conscience of the
world. But it is an even bigger scar for the people who are living in it.

Jacqueline Hyslop
Mr. Emmons A3

March 2, 2016

Works Cited

1.Rural poverty is deepening in Eastern and Southern Africa, where most of the regions
130 million poor people live in rural areas. ("Rural Poverty Portal." Rural Poverty
Portal. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Mar. 2016.)
2. In 1990, 56 percent of Africans lived on under $1.25 a day accounting for 15 percent of

those in poverty worldwide. Over the subsequent 20 years, the regions poverty rate
dropped to 48 percent. ("Africa's Challenge to End Extreme Poverty by 2030: Too
Slow or Too Far Behind?" The Brookings Institution. N.p., 29 May 2013. Web. 02 Mar.
2016.)
3.Africas strong economic growth has contributed to improving peoples health and

education in the past 20 years as well as major reductions in poverty in several

countries, but a rapid rise in population has led to increases in the overall number of
extreme poor, the World Bank Group said Friday in a comprehensive report on
poverty in the region. ("Africa Gains in Health, Education, but Numbers of Poor
Grow." World Bank. World Bank, 16 Oct. 2015. Web. 02 Mar. 2016.)
4. Worse, between 1975 and 2000 it was the only place on earth where poverty has

intensified. It's only recently that the situation started to slowly improve. As the
British prime minister declared in 2001 African poverty is "a scar on the conscience
of the world.("Causes of Poverty In Africa: A Lost Continent or Land of
Opportunities?"Poverties.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Mar. 2016.)
5.Conflict and drought, for example, are certainly important causes of hunger, but the

most typical situation is that people just do not have enough income to purchase the
food that they needthey could be starving in some slum somewhere, for example.
("Africa Hunger and Poverty Facts." Africa Hunger and Poverty Facts. Hunger Notes,
n.d. Web. 04 Mar. 2016.)
6. In sub-Saharan Africa, 589 million people live without electricity. As a result, a

staggering 80 percent of the population relies on biomass products such as wood,

charcoal and dung in order to cook.
Approximately one in three people living in sub-Saharan Africa are undernourished. The
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations estimated that 239
million people (around 30 percent of the population) in sub-Saharan Africa were

hungry in 2010. This is the highest percentage of any region in the world. In
addition, the U.N. Millennium Project reported that over 40 percent of all Africans
are unable to regularly obtain sufficient food.
Of the 738 million people globally who lack access to clean water, 37 percent are living in
sub-Saharan Africa. Poverty in Africa results in over 500 million people suffering
from waterborne diseases. According to the U.N. Millennium Project, more than 50
percent of Africans have a water-related illness like cholera.
Twice as likely to contract AIDS and 50 percent less likely to immunize their children.
Meanwhile, the children of African women with at least five years of schooling have
a 40 percent higher chance of survival. (Packtor, Jordanna. "10 Poverty in Africa
Facts - The Borgen Project." The Borgen Project RSS2. The Borgen Project, 07 Nov.
2014. Web. 04 Mar. 2016.)
7. The land is a major problem in Africa, with many African countries having confused

land ownership so that much useful land is unused - and in some African countries
where rainfall is unreliable there is still little or no irrigation of land. Africa's natural
resources have also been mostly monopolised by European and American companies
largely taking money out of Africa. And African land degradation, largely due to
poor land management, has mostly been worsening in recent years especially in East
Africa and near the Sahara.
The terms of trade set by richer countries tend often to exploit poor countries and give
unfairly low price for their exports of commodities such as tea, coffee, bananas and
their other export products.
Education, medicine and drinking water are also major problems in poor African
countries - as well as transport and energy. Diseases like AIDS, malaria and cholera
are widespread with the latter two involving poor water systems. In some African
countries a lack of adequate medical services is helping maintain poverty for many
families. ("World Poverty,." Poverty in Africa. Poverty in Africa, n.d. Web. 04 Mar.
2016.)
8. (Liolio, Samson Eyituoyo. "Eliminating Poverty in Africa The Most Viable Solution to
Conflicts." Poverties.org. Poverties, n.d. Web. 04 Mar. 2016.)
9.Quality education provides children with the knowledge and life skills they need to realize

their full potential, and is essential to creating change in a childs life. Plan helps by training
teachers, building new schools and breaking down barriers that prevent many children and girls

in particular from attending school.

Access to health care is essential. Plan helps communities build health clinics, train
healthcare workers and invest in equipment and medicine, so children can grow up healthy and
strong. ("5 Ways to End Poverty around the World." 5 Ways to End Poverty. Plan International, n.d.
Web. 04 Mar. 2016.)
10. Unemployment is a bigger factor for specific types of crime than income inequality is.
("Effects of Poverty on Society: Why We Should All Care." Poverties.org. Poverties, n.d.
Web. 04 Mar. 2016.)