Question 2: Examine Poverty and its relevance in South Africa
The Triple Challenge
Poverty is classified as a member of The Triple Challenge. These are the three major problems which country could face and unfortunately South Africa is facing all three.
There are many different explanations for what poverty is and what its causes are. Poverty in rural areas in not the same as poverty in urban areas but both classify as poverty. Fortunately, there are set standard which we can use to measure poverty in an area.
A commonly used method is the Poverty-Line, determining a monthly average which one family unit needs to survive. This average amount is dependent on the size and age of the family. Any family whose monthly income is below this line, is classified as living in poverty. In 2003, the average per family was R1100, considering
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Most Affected:
• Children:
Poverty affects a lot of children. Poverty has the potential to steal their dreams away as children have no hope of breaking free form this cycle. (fund, n.d.)
• Disabled:
Roughly 5% of the population lives with a disability. The care of these people usually falls on the family but when the family isn’t there, they often end up on the streets. Government subsidies are not enough for them to live on. They suffer from poverty and disability.
• Elderly:
When you retire, the state often pays a monthly pension to the elderly but in low income families this money is often shared between a household. This income is then too little and the elderly often must continue to work.
It is important that the businesses in South Africa do their Corporate Social Responsibility and help to decrease the socio-economic issues within the country. This report will focus on the fast food industry in South Africa which has quickly become the leading income for our
The child born to poverty will be less likely to have a bicycle, skateboard, football club membership, swimming lessons etc. This lack of opportunity, coupled with a less nutritionally dense diet will have a detrimental effect on bone and muscle growth and thus restrict development in these areas. *Social and emotional Development the reduced invites, abilities and self-esteem experienced by a child from a family with no financial security will create reduced opportunities for development in these areas. Every time a child is not invited to a party, sports event or social event it will further knock their confidence and self-esteem.
Does poverty affect the way people grow up? In certain situations people have no escape from their childhood and have to suffer. Others might say that the rich are privileged and have no worries. To most, money can make or break someone in the long run and that might have been the case in these stories. In the stories Lamar Loper’s First Case, How I Lost the Junior Miss Pageant, and the story Thank You, M’am, poverty is the cause of the characters problem
[2] Despite recent declines in poverty rates, a large number of people still face hardship, particularly children. According to the Center for Public Policy
Poverty is affecting billions of people around our world and the number is growing with each day. Many people think they can avoid the effects of poverty, but it is something that affects all of our daily lives. Many people see poverty as a person who lacks money, although this is true poverty is caused by many more things than being without money. Just the fact that one in two children live in poverty can help people see clearly the impact it has on our world. Poverty truly does influence the type of care and treatment a person will receive when they need it.
The great depression made a major impact on the lives of the people that lived through it. One group of people that is often overlooked are children that lived during that time period. When the parents lost their jobs the responsibility the parent once held was put on the children of the families to contribute to the income of the home. Because of this in the great depression “two-fifths of children were employed in part time jobs” (Elder 65). In Glen Elder’s book Children of the Great Depression: Social Change in Life Experience he discusses how the depression affected those children in their later lives.
The cycle of poverty is something discussed in political, medical, education and social circles. The children that are stuck in the cycle often becomes adults that remain in the living conditions and lifestyle of poverty. A few ways that they become trapped is through their poor health and educational opportunities. My thesis statement is, The cycle of poverty continues to plague American children and families, but with some changes focused on health care and education they may be able to escape from the cycle.
Some people on welfare may not physically be able to work because of disabilities. However, people with disabilities are already getting paid by the government. 4.6% of Americans are on workers’ disability. The money the federal government spends on welfare and food stamps combined is less than the amount they spend on disabled workers. The majority of these people getting paid for disabilities do not work (Joffe-Walt).
Relative poverty considers the status of each individual or household in relation to the status of other individuals, households in the community, or other social groupings, taking into account the context in which it occurs (i.e. their position within the distribution of that population). Relative poverty typically changes spatially and temporally, and measures of relative poverty are therefore not necessarily comparable between locations (due to the differing social stratification between communities) or over time. The relative approach examines poverty in the context of inequality within a society, though they should not be conflated. According to FAO (2006) it is the condition in which people lack the minimum amount of income requirements in order to maintain the average standard of living in the society in which they live. Moreover, it is defined relative to the members of a society and, therefore, differs across countries.
The Effects of Poverty, Homelessness, and Hunger in Education Even before a child is born, they are affected by their environment. Poverty in children can be seen at a very young age. Mothers that live in poverty have babies with low birth weight and medical problems. Poverty, homelessness, and hunger can have extremely negative effects on the brain and body. It also affects a child’s education and learning ability.
Although there are many effects of growing up in poverty, but the major effects are divided into three parts that are social life, health issues and hunger. The first major effect is hunger which creates enormous problems for children and adults. Hunger is a common phenomenon that has spread all over the world and produced
These statistics are overwhelming due to the fact that child poverty affects all areas of their lives. Children exposed to poverty at such a young age are at a disadvantage in several areas; these children are at risk of low academic achievement, resulting in lasting negative effects. Our economy is not able to thrive if child poverty continues. Children living in poverty are also at risk of dropping out of school, being unemployed, and entering the juvenile justice system. Our government is responsible for ensuring that child poverty ceases to be an issue in the United States.
I. Introduction A. Thesis statement: A child’s early development is greatly impacted by living in poverty which leads to poor cognitive outcomes, school achievement, and severe emotional, and behavioral problems. II. Body Paragraph 1. Claim: According to (Short, 2016) poverty consists of two parts: a measure of need and resources available to meet those needs.
Poverty can adversely affect the population in so many ways. Families living in poverty can face emotional and social challenges, cognitive lacks and health and safety issues and acute and chronic stresses. Levels of stress increase with the economic circumstances. Subsequent poverty and job loss are associated with violence in families, including child and elder abuse. These families are also more likely to be exposed to illnesses, job loss, eviction, criminal victimization and family death.
Inefficient policies all around the world and especially in our country are contributing to problems in the society. And the biggest problem which the world faces today is the problem of “Poverty” and “Inequality”. It is hard for one to determine whether poverty causes inequality or is it the other way around because both these problems are interrelated. Poverty is something which is caused due to transferring wealth in to the hands of a specific group and the unjust policies of the government. And inequality is discriminating a person in all spheres of life which gives a rise to sense of deprivation.
Poor people being unable to take part in social and cultural norms leads to breakdown of social relation among the people The effects of poverty can be mainly categorized as unemployment, illiteracy, food security, psychological well-being, increased crime rate, child health, homelessness etc. Major effect of poverty is unemployment to those without land or dependable wage labor. Poor people can rarely find permanent, salaried job in the village or even in the city. Poor people engage in informal and daily wage labor with no security and low earnings.