Poverty as a development problem in Africa
Poverty being the being insufficient in amount, being inferior and being extremely poor is one of the leading impediments to development in Africa. Poverty eradication or alleviation has been the core mandate of organizations that seeks to deliberate Africa from its development problems such as the pan-Africanism movement (Hall & Patrinos, 2012). Sustainable development, which is the ultimate mark of development, is the ability to fulfill the needs of the present generation without compromising the needs of the future generation too. Moreover, Africa as a continent harbors the underdeveloped or the so-called third world countries on the globe except for South Africa because of poverty. The gross poverty influence that has engrossed the nations of Africa has impeded both economic and social growth and development in the various sector. Some of the key sectors profoundly affected by poverty include health, environment, education, and trade (Teller et al., 2011). The international organization have also contributed a great deal in perpetuating and exacerbating poverty in Africa instead of offering a helping hand in what is referred to as “poverty porn.” Consequently, as a result, despite the intervention measures and strategies geared towards poverty alleviation poverty remains a challenge to African development. The immediate consequence of poverty is low GDP, which results in the low quality of live and low living standards. The impediment to development in Africa has been an issue of concern, and many have theorized the problem is giving up their views and perception concerning the underdevelopment of Africa. Therefore, this paper seeks to discuss the poverty as a problem of development in Africa and the theories around it.
Brief historical background
Looking at African development, the issue goes beyond just the normal measurement of the economics achievements, but it widens into recurring issues such as historical background, political theory, sociology, and political philosophy. The gross poverty that undermines African countries, with statistical data showing that 75% of the countries in the world infested by poverty are African countries can be traced back to the colonial period. The main issue of women not participating in developmental has been highlighted as poverty. For instance, women in South Africa during the apartheid system black woman were pushed into rural places, a fact that deprived the women an opportunity to build to themselves decent lives.
Similarly, the same also happened to African in productive agricultural lands such as Kenya and Zimbabwe where the white settler pushed the Africans into reserves, marginal and unproductive land. The white settlers in Kenya and South Africa preserved those big chunks of land for agriculture and gold mines respectively. In any social setting women and children are always affected immensely by the effects of poverty compared to men. In the African context, women having pushed to the reserves and the rural area they still assumed their job of caregiver to the family (Teller et al., 2011). The life in the rural areas made it difficult for the women to serve their family and work at the same time. Historical injustice pushed the African into the territory of high poverty that has persisted even after the attainment of independent (Hall & Patrinos, 2012). Fortunately, only a handful of women whose husbands were privileged to work in mines and farms could receive some money from their spouses.
Additionally, another leading historical contributor of poverty in the many African countries is the African customs and traditions. Some of the customary assumptions that existed in South Africa for instance in the Eastern Cape that only men were responsible for property ownership left a mark or a legacy of devastating poverty among the African women. Some culture also embraces polygamy as a source of prestige, hence it is through polygamy that poverty has been elevated in some community practicing the same. New wives in such customs as prioritized over the elder women and favored whereas the older women are neglected languishing in poverty.
Poverty and sustainable development
Poverty is a major hindrance to development in Africa. Women and children are the most affected. Africa is one of the continents in the world, which are endowed with immense human resource and natural resources as well as ecological and economic diversity. Nonetheless, the continent remains as the United Nations classifies the majority of African countries as the least developed (Teller et al., 2011). Many countries in the content of Africa still suffer from many factors that perpetuate poverty hence hinder sustainable development in the region. Some of the issues include corruption, military dictatorship, war, and civil unrest. Remarkably, several development strategies have failed this scenario have made others believe that is doomed to economic slavery and perpetual poverty which is a fallacy since the continent has immense economic potential. Poverty has negatively influenced key sectors of development such environment, health, industries, and trade. Therefore, the following are some discussion of the effects of poverty of these key pillars of development.
Poverty and environment
Natural resources are the backbone of sustainable economic development. Environment harbors critical aspect of sustainable development ranging from the factors of production to non-valuable resources such as aesthetics and fresh air for life. However, as a result of gross poverty in the region, this pillar of sustainable development has been greatly devastated. Agriculture is the engine of economic development since development begins with primary production. The environment can be of considerable economic benefit only if it is conserved and well preserved.
Nonetheless, poverty makes a group of people depend entirely on the environment from food to sources of energy. As a result of poverty, the majority of Africans depend entirely on the environment for livelihood. They cut down trees for settlement and firewood leading to deforestation and desertification (Hall & Patrinos, 2012). The use of firewood itself as a source of energy is an unclean source of energy hence produce GHGs t the atmosphere causing global warming Precisely, dependent wholly on the environment for survival by exploiting and deplete natural resources and at the same time degrading the environment hence less productive to support economic growth. Additionally, because of poverty, the Africans have no ability to afford the modern, clean energy such as electricity, tides, the wind, nuclear and natural gas. Poverty also promote poor disposal of waste and waste management since many Africa countries have no such financial powers to purchase the new waste management facilities or engineer the same (Crush et al., 2010).
Poverty and health
The health status of an individual is important in determining economic growth. Sick people are less productive, Poor health and poverty are inextricably linked, and poverty serves both as a cause and effect of poor health. In developing countries especially in the sub-Saharan region, the neglected and infectious tropical diseases weaken most of the people, and others are killed each year. Some of these diseases include the tropical disease malaria, which is caused by a plasmodium that only survives in tropical regions, HIVAIDs pandemic. In this case, the vulnerable and marginalized groups are always the most affected as others are forced to make critical decisions and harsh choices putting their lives at risk at the expense of their children
Others in some region, who live below a dollar per day, transport to access medication, money for drugs and doctor’s fee is a nightmare to them. As if that is not enough, families may force to sell their property in circumstances when the diseases worsen or if the patient contracted chronic diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and growth that required a significant amount of money to treat. In addition, poor leaving standards contribute to spreading of airborne diseases such as Ebola and tuberculosis and water-borne disease, which are spread by the lack of clean water food and sanitation (Crush et al., 2010).
The many diseases mean that resources, capital, and money that should be used in development is channeled into overcoming the threat of epidemic and pandemic diseases. Moreover, sick people are less productive since they cannot participate in production activities such as agriculture, physical constructions and even avail themselves for daily duties in the offices. Hence, this makes the African continent undeveloped despite the enormous store of natural resource wealth it beholds.
Poverty and education
Education is very vital for development, literate people are informed people, and they are influential people since information is power. In marginalized areas in Africa majority of kids drop out of school, others do not even enroll for lower primary learning the main reason being the issue of poverty (White & Killick, 2001). Unfortunately, the majority of African children drop out of school annually. In Malawi, nearly half of children in grade five classrooms cannot perform numeracy tasks and basic literacy hence this shows the devastated education in Africa.
A study conducted cold the learning barometer provided a window into schools in Africa. The study that was carried in 28 countries majorly in primary schools making a percentage of 78 percent. Countries such as Zambia, Nigeria, and Ethiopia are below the minimum learning bar. Another barrier to learning in African school is the parental illiteracy. The significant majority of the children joining African schools over the past years come from illiterate home. Hence, these kinds of children lack the basic platform or benchmark of education such as language, early reading, and numeracy skills.
Education is the key to success. For economic development, acquisition of knowledge and expertise is vital. Literate are open minded and using the acquired knowledge and expertise from schools can be creative and innovative. Innovation and creation of ideas are one of the essential elements of economic growth since the invention of new technologies in the economy help in solving the various economic problems that countries face. Nevertheless, this remains a myth to Africa countries because of the poor system of education that has been devastated by the gross poverty in the region (Teller et al., 2011).
Poverty and trade
Trade is a very significant economic activity; it is speculated that the international trade is the only solution to the African underdevelopment problem. Trade liberalization is fundamental for developing countries those in Africa for this case, to strengthen their economy and achieve sustainable development yet Africa remain the most underdeveloped continent. With intense high trading in the continent trade, boost financial institutions such as banks to provide loans to member and start their bossiness as well as encourage the investors to invest in new plants helping create new jobs. For instance, this kind of platform will make a literate worker to from a low-paying job and find employment in the factory.
However, due to impediments such as poverty, neo-colonization, tariffs, and competition have barred this from happening and Africa is still facing a stunted economic crisis. As result of poverty, Africa countries produce low quality produce that cannot withstand the competition in the international market since most of the commodities these countries export are primary production goods hence cannot withstand the value of the processed and manufactured one (White & Killick, 2001). Furthermore, the international agencies and organization have intensified the state of poverty in Africa instead of elevating it, by what we call neo-colonization and poverty porn. Different African countries sign trade treaties and agreement, engineer investments in the name of helping African countries to develop only to plough back the benefits and profits to their country of origin.
International humanitarian organization in another world in various sectors such as education, trade, and health has done worse in exacerbating the poverty status. Because one might wonder, how someone may alleviate poverty by displaying compromising picture on media social network platforms.
Theories of development
Modernization theory
Modernization theory is an ancient theory of development that shows a trajectory or process counties must undergo to attain development. It elaborates the process of development in the form of a transition from traditional or pre-modern stage to a modern society. It looks at development in a holistic manner incorporating all aspects of sociology, economy, and politics. Agreeably, this is very true because, for a country’s development, it goes just beyond a single impediment, but all aspects in totality since some of these factors of underdevelopment are interrelated. The theory elevates poverty and poor culture as the major hindrance to development claiming that the introduction of western modernism and capitalism will alleviate poverty and promotes development, which is a non-communist approach.
The theory ascertains that culture and traditions are a major hindrance to development in most of the Africa countries. Maxis posit that religious belief and customs influences people live, as in the case of Eastern Cape Town in South Africa where women are not allowed to own property. He continues to affirm that unlike traditional point of view, traditional values prevent change and economic growth, current values inspire economic growth and are based on rational decisions such as efficiency and cost-benefit analysis, which are more critical in a country’s development (Teller et al., 2011). The theory highlights political instability, lack of technology, lack of skills in the workforce, and infrastructure and the leading causes of underdevelopment. All the barriers mentioned earlier are promoted by poverty since poverty hinder students from learning to become innovative and acquire skills to improve infrastructure and technology in the African countries.
The theory classifies the stages of development into five main stages. In agricultural produce or primary production is a key preliminary of economic growth. In this stage, the society has less knowledge, no wealth to invest; at this stage, the country has most of its majority living below a dollar per day (Mbaku, 2004). In the second stage what he calls the precondition for take-off, the theorist posit that this is the point of incorporation of western values, expertise, and practices. Some of these western things according to the theorist include the science and technology to enhance primary production agriculture, industry, and infrastructure. Those mentioned above are they key pillars of development, and hence their enhancement means development and vice versa. They attract investors to invest in the country, and the process develops the country. The third stage is the take off stage, the society slowly begins to experience transition and economic growth in modern values, and practices take hold. The profit gotten from the ongoing developments are ploughed back to industrial development as new ones emerge. At this stage, some hindrances to development such as poverty are being subdued and are becoming outdated.
The next stage, stage four, the economic growth is at its constant growth mean sectors that are that were dilapidated by poverty such as education and health are taking shape as newer opportunities open up. Stage 5 is the last stage, and the age of large mass consumption at this stage poverty line is far much behind, and the factors of production are operating at their maximum, and everything is self-maintaining and self-perpetuating (Crush et al., 2010).
The dependency theory
Dependency theory is the understanding economic and development resources flow from the “outskirts” of undeveloped states and poor countries to wealthy states referred to as the “core.” It states that in the process of dependency the reach countries are enriched with the integration of the developing countries into the world system for instance involvement of international trade, allowing foreign from wealthy countries invest in poor countries. The reaction arose because of criticism of modernization theory (Mbaku, 2004). The theory is against the notion that all society progress to sustainable development in the same manner other arrive at the destination through other means of development such as intervention from rich countries that the present-day underdeveloped countries are in the same stage as the developed ones in the past. The trajectory of assisting underdeveloped nation out of poverty in the way out by using technology transfer and investments and integrating those countries and region into the world market. Dependency theory posits that the underdeveloped are not a primitive version of the wealthy countries as the theory of modernism theorizes but it argues that every country has its unique potential for development.
Personally, agree with the nation of the dependency theory because its conceptual orientation continues to be of more relevance to the current global status than modernization theory. Poverty being the main menace and hindrance to the development of African nations, strategies of overcoming it is the light of development to the nations of Africa. Poverty has diverse effects to the key pillars of development such as infrastructure, health, education, environment, and industrialization. Conversely, it is impeccable to follow the same trajectory of developed countries back then because the factors that affected development then are not the same today. Now many challenges such as poverty porn, new Epidemics, environmental factors such as climate change which was not the case then. Furthermore, ecological limit of strategies of development highlighted in modernism is outdated such as primary activities such as mining and forestry have reached their limit since any further exploitation destroys the environment.
The following statistical data by NASA collected over the years showing climate change because of increase of GHG carbon dioxide.
Inferably, the above data in a clear indication that the conditions that favored development centuries ago do not exist anymore and the same manner countries developed then cannot be the same way to go now because a lot has changed. The mean that if by any chance the currently underdeveloped countries follow the same trajectory the increment will be twice the present which is a death sentence to all human race hence dependency theory is the best way to go.
Policy relevance
Dependency theory was influential in the 1960s when it got a strong support against modernism; it worked in some countries such as the Latin American. As different economies come to an agreement on the fact that development of third world countries can be achieved by share of technology and market (Crush et al., 2010). However, the theory faced criticism after challenges from other nations that thrived to development purely on trade, such as South and North Korea Egypt while states that went dependency way such as Zimbabwe end up performing poorly. Furthermore, the theory only facilitates the transfer of technology but the innovation, which is the essential part, is intact.
Conclusion
Inclusion, poverty is a major impediment to development in African. Despite Africa being a richly endowed continent with natural resources appropriate for development, it is still bound to economic slavery not only on the measures of economic achievements but also some recurring historical background. The two theories modernization and dependency theories are pathways to sustainable development, but dependency is the most appropriate following the changes both ecological and economic that has occurred since then. Nonetheless, following the current status of things the dependency theory has also been challenged by other countries such as India, Egypt, and Korea which are trade-developed countries. Poverty alleviation from most countries in Africa is the solution to the underdevelopment state in the continent.
Reference list
Crush J., Frayne, B., & Southern African Migration Project. (2010). Surviving on the move: Migration, poverty, and development in Southern Africa. Pretoria, South Africa: Idasa Pub.
Hall, G., & Patrinos, H. A. (2012). Indigenous peoples, poverty, and development. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Mbaku, J. M. (2004). Institutions and development in Africa. Trenton (N.J.: Africa world Press.
Rodney, W. (2012). How Europe Underdeveloped Africa. Fahamu Kenya: Pambazuka Press.
Teller, C. H., Assefa, H., & Butz, W. (2011). The demographic transition and development in Africa: The unique case of Ethiopia. Dordrecht: Springer.
White, H., & Killick, T. (2001). African Poverty at the Millennium: Causes, Complexities, and Challenges. Washington, D.C: World Bank.
