Conflict And Poverty Essay

Conflict is defined as a relationship between two or more parties (individuals or groups) who have, or think they have, incompatible goals. It is an expressed struggle between at least two interdependent parties who perceive incompatible goals, scarce resources and interference from the other party in achieving their goals (Adjapawn, 2014). Conflict, it seems, is always with us, like poverty. Conflict is bad, it is worse in poor countries and it makes them poorer.

Poverty according to World Bank Report is: “Poverty is hunger. Poverty is lack of shelter. Poverty is being sick and not being able to see a doctor. Poverty is not having access to school and not knowing how to read. Poverty is not having a job, is fear for the future, living one

That is whether conflicts lead to poverty or poverty causes conflicts.

No one needs to be persuaded now about the existence of a positive relationship between poverty and conflict, as captured in this mantra that there can be no conflict without poverty and no poverty without conflict.

Poverty is a multidimensional problem that goes beyond economics to include among other things, social, political, and cultural issues. Scholars have been trying to develop a theoretical approach to poverty and conflict for a long time. Some like John Burton (1997), Laune Nathan (2003), Richard Sandbrook (1982) and Ted Gurr (1970) agree that poverty as a result of lack of human needs lead to reactions that result in conflict. The human needs theory championed by Burton (1997) argues that there are conflict and instability in developing countries because people are denied not only their biological needs, but also psychological needs that relate to growth and development. The overriding importance of this theory is that it understands that needs, particularly basic needs (such as food, water, shelter and health) unlike interest cannot be traded, suppressed, or bargained for; thus any attempt to do this, leads to