CAUSES OF POVERTY

Causes of Poverty in Low Income Countries

Causes of Poverty in Low Income Countries

Introduction

There has been a lot of development in recent years, which has affected the overall scenario of the world. If it is true that the world has moved proportionally more in the last fifty years than in all history, it is nevertheless the fact that inequality between nations is one of the characteristics that best define contemporary world. This has resulted, especially in the major differences between peoples in access to basic goods and services, and is the result of economic processes, with varying results, we have experienced in recent decades. Recent research seems to show that the main factors involved in current conflicts relates to economic difficulties, problems to access to land ownership in rural, religion and political instability. These factors and differences are the cause of poverty. Poverty is defined as a condition characterized by lack of resources, resources or opportunities for satisfaction of minimum human needs, both material and cultural.

The problem of poverty is mainly attributed to the people living in third world countries. Since, they have to face a whole lot of issues; poverty makes life more critical for them. In this paper, we will discuss the general causes of poverty and analyze why the problem of poverty is severe in third world or low income countries.

Definition of Poverty

Poverty is deprivation of material essentials such as food, shelter, drinking water, and clothing. It is also associated with the lack of education, freedom, and dignity. The uneven distribution of poverty at various scales, from the global to the household, via the national, regional, and local, suggests the importance of geographic factors in explaining its prevalence and understanding its nature.

Poverty is a social phenomenon and refers to a condition of serious social disadvantage. There are two definitions of poverty; one is referred as absolute poverty in which, one person earns less than 1.25 U.S. dollars per day. On the other hand, it is also defined as the relative poverty in which, an income of an individual is well below the average income of the country. Both absolute and relative poverty lines cannot be determined without normative guidelines.

Absolute Poverty

Robert Strange McNamara, the former president of the World Bank introduced the concept of absolute poverty. He defined "absolute poverty" as follows:

“Absolute poverty level is life on the very edge of existence. The absolute poor are people who are struggling under severe privation and in a state of neglect and degradation for survival that is beyond our imagination”.

The absolute poverty line is defined as income or spending level, under which people can no longer afford proper food and vital supplies of daily life. The World Bank sees people who earn less than 1.25 U.S. dollars per day comes under "poor". According to the definition of International Development Association (IDA) Indicators of absolute poverty are as follows:

1. Per capita income (PKE) <150 U.S. $ / year

2. Average life expectancy <55 ...