Upfront: The End of Extreme Poverty
Extreme poverty is everywhere in the world. China, India, Africa, etc. However, in the article "Extreme Poverty," we are are making huge changes in defeating the worst of world's poverty. The world has improved since the 1900's. For example, the global literacy rate in 1990 was 76%, and in 2013 it has gone up to 84%. Another example is in 1990, more then 12 million children died before the age of 5. Now, that figure is down to about 6 million. Bill Gates's foundation, Microsoft, pioneers those vaccines and medicines. His goal is to get down to 1 million in his lifetime. Thanks to him, a huge global investment in vaccines, medicines, schooling, sanitation, and technology. Many diseases are dying out. Cases of polio, measles, guinea worm, and malaria are dying out, thanks to massive vaccination programs, improved sanitation, and effective drug treatment. Child birth death rates are also declining. Diseases aren't only dying out in the world, but many other things are helping with extreme poverty. One thing that is helping with extreme poverty is technology. For example, a woman in Kenya had a eye exam done by smartphone. Improved techniques in farming are increasing crop yields. Education has improved by a lot. The percentage of the population in developing nations with no schooling for teens 15 and older since 1950 was 61%. However, in 2010, there were only 17%! That is a really big improvement.
Disease don't just kill people. They also leave them disabled or unproductive, that damages a country's economy. Poor people used to go blind from disease or were unable to work for the want of reading glasses. Now they are much less likely to go blind, and far more likely to get glasses. That translates into more economic proactivity. So does better education. All over the world, illiteracy is retreating and technology is spreading. Most people now have cellphones then toilets!" The achievements weren't just done by the Western donors or aid groups. Some of the biggest gains in economic growth in China and India. When the poor are able to get jobs, they make their own path out of poverty.
This article in the "Upfront" magazine made me very happy, because every day the world's population is getting bigger and bigger, and bad things are happening everyday. But this is big news because one disaster will be closer to getting solved. I hope that soon, extreme poverty will end. The goal to end extreme poverty is by 2030, and we're getting close to it!
