Poverty

INTRODUCTION

Poverty is the biggest problem in Pakistan right now as most of the other problems stem from this.

According to World Bank Organization, “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 of future, living one day at a time. Poverty has many faces, changing from place to place and across time, and has been described in many ways. Most often poverty is a situation people want to escape. So, poverty is a call to action—-for poor and wealthy alike—-a call to change the world so that many more have enough to eat, adequate shelter, access to education and health, protection from violence, and a voice in what happens in their communities.”

We know that poverty is even much more than this. Poverty has a direct relationship with the health indicators. Poverty literally kills. Life expectancy is lower and Maternal, infant and under five mortality rates, are all higher in lower socioeconomic groups. Not only mortality but also morbidity (state of poor health) is higher in this group which is due to multiple complex factor like lack of education or inability to pay for healthcare or access to healthcare or poor nutrition. Poor health is directly related to performance in school or job. Thus, there is a vicious cycle perpetuating ignorance and poverty which is difficult to break. It is not only the physical health that is affected but the poor are also victims of mental health problems. Depression, anxiety, stress and emotional instability is more common in the poor segments of society resulting in suicide, killing or selling of children, domestic abuse, family feuds etc.

Poverty is also linked with crime. When people are poor and have difficulty coping with daily life’s problems, they become desperate, angry and frustrated and thus try to use all means to either fulfil their needs or to get back at the society and system. Theft, lying, unscrupulous means of business, and even murder are more common in poverty ridden areas. Thus, jails are full of poor people.

Poverty leads to marginalization of the poor from the political process. Poor are given the right to vote and theoretically, even the right to contest elections, but in practice this is not possible as the current system of democracy requires money for that. Thus, they are neither present nor properly represented when crucial decisions are made like making national budget, allocation of funds for various services, policies regarding jobs, energy, youth, women etc.

Another aspect of poverty is its relationship to extreme views about society which promotes terrorism and violence. Even if poverty does not cause terrorism directly, it provides a fertile ground for those who want to promote terrorism for their own agenda. With economic recession since 2008, this phenomenon is increasing worldwide. We have seen rise of extreme ideologies, racism, Islamophobia and xenophobia in the USA as well as in many European countries.

Last but not the least, poor are also socially isolated. They cannot afford entertainment, enjoy art and culture, go to movies, cafes, vacations, or travel. This directly impacts their world view and results in lack of broadening of vision due to lack of exposure to other views, cultures, life s etc. They have no respect in the society, are looked down upon and thus lack self confidence. It also erodes their self-respect. The emphasis on charity in the society creates beggar mindset and dependency.

Poverty is a complex and multidimensional problem which impacts not just individuals but nations and its effects last through generations. Unless this is addressed no other problem can be solved adequately and permanently. This is why the United Nations objective of achieving Millennium Development Goals failed and the same fate awaits the Sustainable Development Goals.

Causes of poverty

While the World Bank Organization, United Nations Foundation and other such institutions realize the impact of poverty on human life and society, they don’t offer a solid plan to eliminate poverty other than “trickle down” economy, promoting some low skilled jobs, offering microcredit so people can barely make it or offer some social benefits to the poor and other such superficial measures. Poverty is a complex phenomenon but the single most underlying cause of poverty is uneven distribution of wealth. This has been realized and admitted by leading economists of the day. The uneven distribution of wealth starts when we accept the fact that a few have the right to control natural and manmade resources. This gives upper hand to them and their future generations and makes it harder if not impossible for the rest to compete with them.

Most of economists and social scientists agree that inequality of wealth distribution is the primary cause for this. However, most of them believe that the solution is redistribution of wealth like increasing taxes on the rich and using them to provide social services and other benefits to the poor. We have major ideological disagreement with this solution. By promoting this solution, we are maintaining the inequality, promoting welfare culture and keeping the poor still dependant upon the rich. We have also seen that this solution is difficult to implement because those who control wealth also control policy making and thus are always resisting and finding excuses to avoid this. And even if policies are made, they are difficult to implement and there are enough loop holes left in the system where tax evasion becomes possible and is difficult to challenge even in the court. This has been proven in the recent example of Panama Leaks and the fact that up till now no one has been convicted of corruption and tax evasion in Pakistan. And even if they are forced to implement these policies due to grassroots pressure, they are always looking for an opportunity to withdraw them. We have seen this recently happening worldwide under the name of austerity measures or Structural Adjustment Programs imposed by the international financial institutions and consists of withdrawal of social benefits, privatization of state institutions as well as many life necessities like education, healthcare, transport and even water.

There are other causes which are again related to uneven distribution of wealth like unemployment, poor governance, lack of education and skills etc.

Thus, in order to address poverty, we need to make some structural changes in the economic system and distribution of wealth generating resources like lands, industry, financial institutions and in spending patterns and setting up our national priorities.

We propose the following measures to counter the poverty and move towards a more egalitarian society. Other economic issues will be dealt with in the economy section.