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Poverty in the world

Thanks to rapid economic and technological development, there has been a

drastic improvement in most peoples living standard. But sadly, the irreversible
trend of globalization has widened the income disparity between the rich and the
poor. Actually, the deterioration of the poverty problem has raised the alarm bells.
If we dont find solutions to eradicating poverty, the repercussions will be
disastrous.
As far as I am concerned, frequent occurrence of wars is the stumbling block
of economic development is these countries. Sadly, the recalcitrant leaders of these
regions spend a large proportion of government expenditures on developing
weapons of mass destruction in lieu of stimulating economic development.
Inevitably, there are countless casualties and deaths when wars break out. To add
insult to injury, wars result in widespread destruction of infrastructures. Under
these circumstances, it is extremely difficult to develop agriculture, industry and
commerce.
In addition, widespread illiteracy is also the encumbrance of development in
economically backward regions. Due to frequent occurrence of wars, agricultural
and industrial production is sluggish. As a result, people find it difficult to maintain

their livelihood. Children in such impoverished countries as Ethiopia, Afghanistan

and North Korea are deprived of the opportunity of receiving education as their
parents cannot afford huge school fees. As a result, most people are semi-illiterate or
illiterate.

In

an

increasingly

knowledge-based

world,

they

are

highly

uncompetitive. They can only depend on farming. Unfortunately, most of these

countries lie in hazard-prone areas. Therefore their harvest is unreliable. To tackle
this vicious circle, education is the most effective way. But unmistakably, local
governments in impoverished nations cannot afford the huge expenses of education
due to prolonged fiscal deficits.
Another obstruction of poverty eradication is the spread of infectious
diseases. Owing to low education levels, people in impoverished countries have low
awareness of sanitation. The poor hygienic conditions have given rise to the spread
of such infectious diseases as cholera, malaria and dengue fever. To rub salt into
the wounds, the spread of AIDS has been pervasive since the 1980s due to a lack of
sex education. Tragically, these epidemics have taken the lives of hundred of
thousands of people. Evidently, the loss of labour force severely undermines the
competitiveness of the poor countries.
Recently, some of the richest nations in the world, such as the United States and
the United Kingdom, have agreed to write off the debts of some impoverished

nations. This is something to be applauded. But in the long term, we have to dig
into the root of poverty. As a matter of fact, both governments and charitable
organizations can make tremendous contributions to the eradication of poverty.
As mentioned above, frequent occurrence of wars has opened the Pandoras
Box in the impoverished nations. Therefore, prevention of wars is of paramount
significance. In my opinion, the United Stations and developed countries should
cooperate in pursuit of peace. For instance, they can send delegates to organize
negotiations for people of different political spectrum in these countries. In this
way, political leaders can resolve their disputes through dialogues instead of wars.
As far as high rate of illiteracy is concerned, international relief agencies,
such as the Red Cross, the World Bank and the Oxfam, can play crucial roles in
improvement of education in the poor countries. For example, they can make use of
donations to build schools for the underprivileged. They can subsidize children to
buy textbooks and stationery. As there is a lack of teachers in the developing
countries, these charitable organizations should send more volunteers to teach the
children. Equally important is that affluent nations should provide more financial
assistance to countries which are in dire straits. With abundant capital, poor nations
can implement mandatory education in schools. In this way, children will be
equipped with skills and knowledge. There is no doubt this will raise the

competitiveness of these countries.

The prevention of infectious diseases is also of particular concern. In my
opinion, international charitable organizations can send doctors to economically
backward regions to cure dying patients. They can also promote civic awareness
and sex education. Governments can also educate people about the significance of
public hygiene and safe sex. Hopefully, these measures can prevent the widespread
outbreak of infectious diseases.
In a world swimming against the tide of poverty, both governments and
charitable organizations have made strenuous efforts to alleviate the alarming
problem. Undeniably, alleviation of impoverishment is no easy task. But in an
increasingly globalized world, all of us have moral obligation to help the
underprivileged. Let us build a world of affluence and merriment!

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