Potential Role of the World Bank in Resolving the Challenges posed by Poverty

For many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, poverty reduction or eradication is the key component of
developmental plans. Most countries have come to understand the strain poverty put on their effort to
move forward as a people. For this reason governments and international organizations like the World
Bank have taken it upon themselves to eradicate this problem for the benefit of their societies.

The effect of poverty has its toll stretching beyond the people considered to be poor and even beyond
the countrys borders. We live in an era where most leaders believe that the elimination of poverty is in
the interest of all citizens.

The belief is that a world without poverty would bring about a boom in international trade and hence
the growth of all economies.

As an employee of the World Bank I believe I can play a role in the eradication of poverty by proposing
and working towards measures which are outlined in this article. However before indulging on measures
to help curb poverty, it is important to understand why people live under poverty.

In sub-Saharan Africa majority of the population live in rural communities. These communities do not
usually have access to basic education. Their main occupation is farming through which they earn their
living. However because these people are not educated they do not know how to add value to their
farm produce to increase the income they generate from it. Due to the lack of proper infrastructure they
are unable to transport their goods to urban centers where they could sell these goods.

Most governments concentrate their efforts in only urban areas and neglect the rural communities
where majority of the people are situated. This means that the development of these communities is
not prioritized. Even when governments comes out with plans to tackle the issue of poverty in the rural
areas, unscrupulous official divert the funds to settle their personal interest.

Lack of education in my opinion is the major cause of poverty and threat to its elimination. Most people
living under poverty do not even understand the root causes of their situation. They only feel its effects
and may even feel incapable of turning their fortunes. This lack of education stem from the fact that
poor people live in remote areas and do not have access to education or cannot afford it.

After identifying what the causes of poverty are, it is important to come out with measures to help
eradicate it from the international community. I outline below measures I would suggest if I were to be
in a position to do so as a staff of the world. They would be my guiding principles as I work to help the
World Bank in its efforts to make poverty a thing of the past and ensure a prosperous society for future
generations.

To start with, education should be the first point of call in trying to eliminate poverty. Through
education people are empowered to think critically of matters around them and give them the
opportunity to earn a desirable living for their families. Education will not only equip people with skills
to get employment in the formal sector, it will also give them the ability to create their own sources of
living. Educated farmers will be able to increase their yield, add more value to their produce and sell it to
procure more income from efforts.

As mentioned earlier due to lack of education, most poor people are ignorant about causes of their
situation. Through education they would understand their situation better and be able to drive
themselves out of it. I would always pursue projects that seek to eliminate illiteracy in deprived
communities.

To reduce poverty, communities should be empowered to increase the value of what they already
produce. For example most poor people are already into farming. The World Bank through its
interventions could provide agricultural extension officers who will teach and also create a participatory
plat form for the village farmers in agriculture that will help increase their yield. In Ghana for instance,
this practice has helped a lot of farmers in rural communities.

With my experience with rural communities in Ghana, particularly in the northern part of the country,
women usually pick shear-nuts from trees, dry them and sell them to local buyers or use them to
produce shear butter. This products are usually sold at derisory prices because the value added is very
marginal and therefore do not sell for decent prices to earn better income. The World Bank through its
interventions could empower these women to add more value to their products. This could be done by
sponsoring experts to train these women and support them to acquire equipment and machines to
facilitate their production process.

For urban communities where poverty still exists, I would suggest that current challenges being faced
could be turned into an opportunity for income generation for people. An example is the issue of waste.
Managing waste in urban centers in sub-Saharan Africa is a big challenge for governments. This
challenge however could be turned into an opportunity where it will be a source of income for the
populace. A recycling plant could be established with collaboration between a countrys government
and the World Bank. Individuals would then be encouraged to collect waste and deliver them to the
plant for a fee.

Having outlined the causes and potential remedies to poverty, the World Bank to succeed in its mandate
of eradicating poverty would need to work closely with local governments. However strict control
measures must be put in place when implementing policies with local governments. This will help avoid
the diversion of funds by local officials. Close monitoring of projects should also be ensured if the
projects aimed at eliminating poverty from the world is to be successful. These will be my guiding
principles in working with the World Bank in eradicating poverty from our societies.

Marhey Muhusin

marhey.25@gmail.com