Blog Action day 15th October 2008 - To Know Poverty!

This article is response Milieunet article about Blog Action Day, everybody is invited to link to their own blog and articles when commenting.  I am sure we will see some pretty powerful poverty related stories. As I write articles about poverty here in the Philippine I wish to thank Nowpublic member Milieunet for making me aware what  October 15th is all about and hopefully there are many more articles on poverty on nowpublic especially from members that live in the third world. But we must remember there is even poverty within the USA and other prosperous nation. My own renderings are below the quote..

 

 

To Know Poverty! 

 

To know about poverty one really needs to visit the <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 />Third World and see the degradation that many fellow humans suffer. That there are many reasons why there is so much poverty in our world the biggest reason is over population and the next being the cause of nature. Droughts being some of the cruelest as this means the crops fail nothing will grow, live stock dies and people have no real means to provide food for the table. Of course floods, earth quakes etc adds to the Worlds dilemma.

 

Third world countries such as the Philippines have a different problem of a increasing population within it’s community of poor people where many find it hard to put just one meal of rice and dried fish on the table each day. Very large families with 14 or more children are not unknown, the average being about 6 or 7.

 

The biggest problem here in the Philippines as with many other Catholic third world country is the Catholic Church it self that forbids most birth control methods. Stating only natural methods can be used; these methods are not very fail safe thus the big families.

 

He average daily wage for those that can find a job is about 200 pesos (4 US$) a day and there is a Hugh unemployment problem. 6% of the people here are very wealthy and the rest are poor or in real poverty. The food prices went up drastically when oil prices went up and many Filipino’s had to tighten their belts.

 

The biggest problem in a country such as the Philippines is education, yes there is free education here but the side costs are to expensive for many families to send all their children to school. Many children stop at elementary level and have no chance of going to high school where the many projects and term signing up fee’s are just too expensive for the parents on low income or really impossible for those eking a living that are so very poor. Normally about 20% of the children graduate from high school with 10% going to college or university.

 

There are very few good jobs, so many of the graduates seek work over seas as a B.Sc does not really wish to work in a small shop or store as a salesman or women. The aim of most families is to get at least one child to high school. As the children are expected to support the parents when old this leads to many problems in later life as some times expectation are not fulfilled. I have seen many poor old people begging on the streets or wandering around house to house asking for food or money.

 

There are of course many worst places concerning poverty in Asia such as India and we must not forget South America and Central America. However the poverty I have seen here in the Philippines is alarming and the government even though is corrupt seems to be making a slight headway including introduction of birth control of which is being used by the sensible even though it’s against their religion. It is sensible to cut the amount of mouths you have to feed to stop you going down the slope of a poverty that you can not get one self out of or worst still leave an inheritance of poverty to ones children.

 

The answer to poverty here in the Philippines is education and investing in people and only the government is in a real position to do that by attracting the elite to help start new businesses and ridding corruption. Donations and help such as scholarships from outside the country do help but it’s never enough. Tourism is one of the best answer adventure holidays, diving and not package tours to the most expensive hotels as much of the money spent there does not stay in the country. More people need to retire here and be allowed to run small businesses and buy small pockets of land in their own name.

 

Each year I bring in approximately one million peso’s from UK and spend it here in the local shops, businesses and restaurant’s etc. It helps boost the local economy and there are many ex-pats here who like me have retired the number is swelling. With the other things I do here, I thing whilst I am enjoying my retirement I am helping in my own little way and I have achieved my life dream of living on a tropical Island, I did not realize what poverty I would see and know my eyes are wide open.

 

I plead to those that can afford it to go on adventure holidays in the third world your learn about poverty and also enjoy the sun and the great sights and experiences, just one holiday of a life time and know you are helping to eradicate poverty in your own little way. But don’t stay in the hotel or beach walk around talk to people and spend money in the small rickety shops and market places.

 

One of the saddest thing about poverty it attracts the birds of prey the human traffickers, unfortunately here in the Philippines human trafficking is very apparent not just to overseas but here in the Philippines it self. Where girls are sort for prostitution and the bikini bars. Many Girls are lured to other Asian countries by false recruitment companies and in fact even end up in far away places to be forced to become prostitutes. This is becoming a very big problem though the government closes many recruitment companies down and the offenders go to jail, new establishments open. Similarly the bikini bars and prostitution rackets here get close down etc, and others sex business take their place. I expect that’s the same in many other third world countries.