Living Standards

1. Is there enough for every man’s need, but not every man’s greed? OR Is it possible for everyone to have the same standard of living (in a country and around the world)? Living Standards

2. Standard of Living • standard of living refers to the quality and quantity of goods and services available to people, and the way these goods and services are distributed within a population • generally measures economic welfare • Other measures such as access and quality of health care, educational standards and social rights are often used as well • One aspect of Quality of Life

3. Quality of Life • Indicator of how good life is for the citizens of a given area physically, psychologically, and socially. Includes: • Wealth • Personal safety • Health • Nutrition • Status of women and children • Poverty line • Freedom of expression • Economic freedom • Right to a safe and clean environment

4. Developed Nations • industrialized, people well-housed, healthy, and educated • infrastructure – such things as transportation and communication links, electric-power distribution systems, schools, and hospitals – are well developed – known as “First World” • Examples: Canada, USA, most European nations

5. Developing / Underdeveloped • Poor infrastructure: few schools, doctors, and hospitals; roads were mainly unpaved, few railways, few people with telephones, only cities with electrical power • known as “Third World”

6. UN Human Development Index (HDI) • Living Standards Measure of countries • Comparative measure of: 1. Adult literacy (people who can read) rate • percentage of the population 15 years and older who can read and write 2. life expectancy rate • Average number of years a person or population can expect to live 3. per capita GDP (gross domestic product) • GDP - total value of all goods and services produced in a country in one year. • divide this # by the # of people in a country, you get the average GDP per person, or per capita http://www.infoplease.com/world/statistics/mostlivable-leastlivable-countries-2007.html

7. “Most Livable” Countries, 2007 1.Iceland 2.Norway 3.Australia 4.Canada 5.Ireland 6.Sweden 7.Switzerland 8.Japan 9.Netherlands 10.France 11.Finland 12.United States 13.Spain 14.Denmark 15.Austria 16.United Kingdom 17.Belgium 18.Luxembourg 19.New Zealand 20.Italy 21.Germany 22.Israel 23.Greece 24.Singapore 25.Korea, Rep. Of 26.Slovenia 27.Cyprus 28.Portugal 29.Brunei Darussalam 30.Barbados 2008: http://origin-hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/

8. “Least Livable” Countries, 2007 16.Angola 17.Rwanda 18.Guinea 19.Tanzania 20.Nigeria 21.Eritrea 22.Senegal 23.Gambia 24.Uganda 25.Yemen 26.Togo 27.Zimbabwe 28.Timor-Leste 29.Djibouti 30.Kenya 1.Sierra Leone 2.Burkina Faso 3.Guinea-Bissau 4.Niger 5.Mali 6.Mozambique 7.Central African Republic 8.Chad 9.Ethiopia 10.Congo, Dem. Rep. of the 11.Burundi 12.Côte d'Ivoire 13.Zambia 14.Malawi 15.Benin

9. Human Development Indicators • Other than those used in the HDI, other human development indicators include: • Education rates • The percentage of the population who attend or attended some sort of formal education • Fertility Rates • The average number of children that would be born to a woman over her lifetime

10. Human Development Indicators • Infant mortality rates • Reported number of infants dying under 5 years of age, per 1,000 live births • Disease • Prevalence of disease in an area such as HIV/AIDS – Pandemic • Pandemic: an epidemic that occurs over a wide geographic area • worst in developing countries like Africa where lack of education and access to medical supplies and treatments cause the disease to keep spreading at a rapid rate

11. Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC’s) • most countries at the bottom of the HDI are in debt to the developed nations • countries that are so in debt to developed countries that most of its gross national product is used to pay interest on those debts

12. Newly Industrialized Countries • known as “Second World” • countries between 2 categories • countries in the transition stage between developing and developed nations. • Most have rapidly growing economies. • Example: China

13. Additional Challenges in Developing Countries • Poverty Cycle – Trap • Health Challenges • Lack of education and employment, especially for women • Discrimination against Women • Armed Conflict i.e. Rwanda, Darfur; land mines • Child Labour • Access to Clean Drinking Water • Natural Disasters – i.e. tsunami

14. Causes of Poverty • Armed Conflicts • Disrupt attempts at aid and development (farming, infrastructure, industry) • Natural Disasters • Limited Resources inhibit the construction of adequate housing, infrastructure, and mechanisms

15. Causes of Poverty • Lack of Education • Cannot find jobs that will support a family • Lack of Employment • Income inequalities and too few jobs for low income groups

16. Causes of Poverty • High birthrates • Enormous demand on scarce resources • Starvation • Disease • Low Levels of Literacy • Cannot find jobs that will support a family

17. Causes of Poverty • High Debt Burden • Provide lower standards • Reduced wages • Undercutting their own resources in order to compete economically in the global market • Infectious Diseases • Death of significant portions of the population • Strain on resources • Reliance on foreign aid

18. NEW Cause: Climate Change • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLoprwEFero

19. Poverty and inequity Illiteracy and limited education; particularly of girls and women Rapid population growth and rural-urban migration Poor Nutrition / Lack of food security Squatter settlements and poor housing MAJOR DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH Environmental degradation Inadequate access to safe water and sanitation Social unrest and armed conflict Unhealthy human behaviour Low Status of women / gender inequity Inadequate access to health services In Developing Countries

20. The root of most health issues: WATER http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYsZOI8gftU&feature=related

21. Family in debt due to low wages (can lead to break-up of family & abuse) Baby born to malnourished / impoverished mother Baby’s development is slowed Marry young; few job opportunities; limited social influence Also – Natural Disaster and/or Armed Conflict = Loss of Resources = Enhanced Vulnerability to Poverty When adult – need to send children to work to help support family Poor nutrition and medical care Limited diet, poor general health Child becomes an uneducated, unskilled worker unable to earn a living wage Physical and mental development are slowed Reduced likelihood of economic success (low job skills) Children go to work instead of school OR Poor performance in school Low Literacy Level (little / no education) Poverty Cycle in Developing Countries

22. The Vulnerable Ones: Women and Children • the burden of poverty creates particular hardships for women and children because many developing societies have male-dominated societies where females and children have lower status than men • often have no legal rights, or the legal system may allow them to be treated as property • women may even be killed to satisfy a family’s honor • in some tribal societies, women and children may have to eat whatever is left after the men have finished their meals – can lead to malnutrition

23. Women – Developing World • woman in a developing country may have to work over 12 hours a day to ensure the survival of her family • often left to support family when men migrate (move) in search of work • education – often a luxury restricted to males • only 1/3 of girls in rural India go to school – compared w/ ½ boys • feeling: education wasted on girls • many families keep girls @ home to look after the younger children and help w/ chores until they are married and move into their husband’s village

24. Women – Developing World • cultural tradition dictates that when a woman is married she is reborn into her husband’s family, so there is an incentive to marry young • demographers agree that economic development and the fertility rate of countries are connected • decline in # of children a woman has frees her to improve her life & the lives of her children

25. Women – Developing World • better educated women have fewer children – tend to marry later and have fewer children, usually because they are better educated about contraception and better able to resist family pressure to have more children • children of educated women also more likely to survive • know more about the importance of immunization, clean water, and good nutrition • study in Peru – showed infant mortality rate dropped for every year of schooling the mother had • key to improving status of women: education http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sTMNOVpCB4

26. Women – Example: Women in Niger, Africa • Niger – lies almost entirely in Sahara Desert • #176 out of 177 on 2004 HDI • life expectancy: under 49 yrs • literacy – 14% • 65% of pop’n survive on less than $180/yr • uranium - #1 export – recent drop in price has redcued country’s earnings • donor aid has been withheld until the military government returns the government to civilian rule • women – large role in economy – making pottery, selling firewood, cloth, etc. • yet in traditional Muslim society –bound to obey the wishes of male relatives – husbands, fathers, brothers, etc. • polygamy (practice of having more than one wife) – widespread • average marrying age – 15 • average # of children – 7.4

27. Children in Crisis • Children – often 1st victims of underdevelopment • famine, disease, war, etc – prey on society’s most vulnerable dependents • even if survive critical 1st 5 years – children in some developing nations have few educational opportunities and are all too often exploited as child labour – some trapped in sex trade • high birth rates in many developing areas – ensures this will continue

28. UNICEF - PNR • UNICEF - since 1990 has published an annual Progress of Nations Report (PNR) on the welfare of children that measures the risk of children in countries worldwide on a scale of zero to 100 • Based on 5 factors: 1. mortality rates of children under age 5 2.% of children moderately / severely underweight 3.#s of children who do not attend primary school 4.risks from armed conflict 5.risks from the disease HIV/AIDS

29. UNICEF - PNR - Results • Canada, the US, Australia, Japan, & other highly developed nations had risk scores of 5 or below (of no consequence) • Africa’s average score: 61 • world average: 30

30. Canada’s Responses to Development Issues • Canada – Foreign Aid Policy • Gives aid ($, goods & services) to poor (developing) foreign countries • Official Development Assistance (ODA) • Program gives financial aid to countries of Africa, Asia, and some in Central / Eastern Europe • CIDA – Canadian International Development Agency • CIDA was established in 1968 to administer the bulk of Canada’s official development assistance (ODA) program • CIDA’s aim is to reduce poverty, promote human rights, and support sustainable development

31. Does Foreign Aid Work? • Issues to consider: • Is Aid reaching those who need it? • What do people need most in developing countries? • Who is benefiting most from Foreign Aid? • What are some different ways we could spend the same amount of money on Foreign Aid and get different results? • Afghanistan – Security Issuehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhtQlBVF8tU • Phantom Aidhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqjoAFcnCvU • Malnutrition Solution • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnwX2U6sqK4&feature=fvw • Myth:  Foreign Aid http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oyRzzZ9Eig

32. Bilateral Aid • Aid given directly from government to government • Usually in the form of grants as opposed to loans and • goods and services

33. Tied Aid • Form of bilateral aid • Loans / grants provided to a developing country with the requirement that the recipient use the funds to buy goods or services in the donor country • The majority of aid is tied aid

34. Multilateral Aid • funding multilateral institutions / international organizations such as: • UN – i.e. UNICEF, WHO • World Bank • Often in form of cash • Often large-scale initiatives like building dams

35. Project Aid • Money, goods, or services that a donor-nation provides to a developing country for a specific project

36. NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations) • NGOs are non-governmental organizations are non-profit organizations that often conduct humanitarian and development work around the world. NGOs are essential to poverty relief efforts. • Governments such as Canada support NGOS through donations, but do not control what NGOs do • Most active in ecological, health, and general welfare programs • Examples: • Red Cross • Oxfam • Save the Children • Greenpeace • Amnesty International • Habitat for Humanity • Doctors Without Borders

37. Debt Reduction • Canada supports the idea of forgiving all or part of the debt developing countries owe to international banks

38. Debt Reduction cont’ • Debt has been chocking the world’s weakest economies and blocking economic progress for billions of the world’s poorest people • Governments borrowed money in the past for development projects from World Bank / IMF, etc. • Corrupt leaders often stole the proceeds

39. Debt Reduction cont’ • To pay off interest and principal of the loan • Governments have been forced by creditors to slash their social spending and shrink their public sector • But debt still grows, placing the poorest countries in a kind of debt bondage • Many countries of the UN have been encouraging the elimination of these debts or at least a reduction in the amount owed by developing nations

40. Debt Reduction – con’t • Debt Relief • Easing the obligations of a debtor nation to repay loans • Debt Swap • A new nation or organization takes over a nation’s debt in exchange for some favour by the debtor nation • Debt Forgiveness • Cancelling obligations to repay debts • Debt Moratorium • Postponement of payments on loans

41. Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) • CIDA • Supports foreign aid projects in over 100 of the poorest countries • Manages Official Development Assistance (ODA) • Promotes sustainability in developing countries

42. CIDA • Focuses on 6 basic principles: 1. basic human needs 2. gender equality 3. infrastructure 4. human rights 5. environment 6. democracy / good governance • Explores 4 social development sectors: 1. basic education 2. HIV/AIDS 3. health and nutrition 4. child protection