Is Poverty of the Third World the Fault of the First World - Essay Example

? Is poverty of the third world the fault of the first world? Introduction Even after huge development in science and technology, poverty is still haunting the world. Even in developed countries poverty is not a myth but a fact. According to Usborne (2008), “28 million people in the US will be using government food stamps to buy essential groceries in the fiscal year 2008, the highest level since the food assistance program was introduced in the 1960s” (Usborne, 2008). Moreover, “In 2009, 14.3 percent of all persons lived in poverty” (Poverty in the United States, 2010). The cases of developing and underdeveloped countries are even worse. Some people believe that poverty in third world countries is caused by the uncontrolled consumerism and crazy life styles of the people in the developed countries whereas others argue that developed countries have nothing to do with the poverty in third world countries. In this paper I argue that the major reasons for poverty in third world countries is the activities of developed countries. Role of developed countries in causing poverty in third world In one world, as in one state, when I am rich because you are poor, and I am poor because you are rich, the transfer of wealth from the rich to the poor is a matter of rights; it is not an appropriate matter for charity.” Such are the angry claims of Julius Nyerere, president of the African nation of Tanzania. His sentiments are echoed by the Third-World revolutionary Frantz Fanon: “The question which is looming on the horizon is the need for a redistribution of wealth. Humanity must reply to this question, or be shaken to pieces by it (Davis, 2012). Nobody is taking birth in this world as rich or poor. In fact natural resources are equally owned by the people in this world. However, rich people control the majority of the natural wealth in this world, not because of their rights but because of their ability to exploit it. Such people have the ability to exploit the natural wealth of even underdeveloped countries. Lack of education, unemployment and poverty, force governments in under developed countries to accept the strict terms and conditions put forward by the developed nations, for granting financial aids. Thus, the debts of poor countries are getting accumulated as time goes on. In short, developing countries are exploiting the weaknesses of poor countries while providing financial aids and hence the poverty in third world is remaining as a answerless problem. Because people in developed nations may have more wealth and resources than those in developing countries, their standard of living is also generally higher” (Poverty at large: A dark spot in humanity, n.d.). Higher living standards force people in developed countries to practice consumerism at the highest level. For example, wealthy people in developed countries have more than one vehicle in their family. When the number of vehicles increases, the consumption of petroleum products also increase. Since oil is a nonrenewable energy source, uncontrolled consumption of petroleum products results in rapid exhausting of energy sources. Shortage of oil sources cause price hike for petroleum products in global market. Price hike of petroleum products in global market increases the living costs in poor countries since petroleum products are necessary for the transportation of goods like food and other commodities. In short, increased consumption of petroleum products in developed countries is indirectly causing poverty in developed countries. Current world is extremely globalized and interconnected. The problems or developments in one part of the world can affect other parts of the world. MNC’s from developed countries are currently investing heavily in third world countries not for helping but for exploiting the natural resources of those countries. It is reported that billions of tons of food products are getting damaged in the warehouses of developed countries. In a globalized world, it is the duty of the developed countries to help the poor or third world countries in eradicating poverty by supplying food grains to those countries on a subsidized rate. “Developed countries, can open their markets, especially to agricultural exports from developing countries, reduce subsidies on farm production, share technology and assist developing countries to take advantage of expanded international markets” (Reducing Poverty And Hunger: The Critical Role Of Financing for Food, Agriculture, n.d.). According to Nobel Prize winner and renowned Indian economist Amartya Sen; “Poverty is the lack of capability to function effectively in society. Inadequate education can thus be considered a form of poverty” (Van der Berg, n. d., p.2). Developed countries often blame poor countries for their inability to develop education and infrastructure in the country. Education, natural resources and infrastructure development are essential in eradicating poverty. However, how can developed countries blame poor countries such as Somalia or Ethiopia for poverty since these countries have lack of natural resources? As a starting point, developed countries should assist Somalia like countries in developing education and infrastructure. It should be noted that Somalia is a country famous for sea robbers. Somalians do not have enough natural resources to eradicate poverty. Therefore they try to loot money from the ships passing through their coastal regions. Mohamed (N.d) pointed out that “Leadership failure in Somalia has caused our people to sit on a golden rock while starving to death” (Mohamed, n.d.). It is duty of developed countries to help Somalia like poor countries to solve their root problems so that poverty can be eliminated in Somalia. One popular theory about the cause of poverty might be called the “robber baron” theory. According to this theory, if I am rich and you are poor, it must be the case that you have been the victim of my exploitation and oppression. This point of view was popularized by Karl Marx, who believed that the relationship between capital and labor was inherently that of oppressor and oppressed (Davis, 2012). The thirst for domination is inherent in the bloods of human. Rich people will never give up the wealth they enjoy. In fact they use their existing wealth to multiply their wealth further. It is a fact that for making money or for doing business, some kind of financial capital is necessary. People in the developed world have that capital. On the other hand, people in the poor countries do not have such financial capital and hence they cannot think about the possibilities of doing business for making money. Thus, the poor people in the third world are becoming working class whereas the people in the developed countries are becoming the elite ones. That is why Karl Max said that the relationship between capital and labor was inherently that of oppressor and oppressed. It is the duty of the rich countries to eliminate oppression as much as possible so that the living conditions of the oppressed would be improved. However, rich countries are implementing strategies to keep the oppressed people in that status as long as possible. Some of the most economically underdeveloped nations were the colonies of the west once. West exploited the natural wealth of the underdeveloped nations with the help of colonialism. It should be noted that India like countries was once the colonies of Britain. India started to develop only after getting independence. Until then, Britain was looting the wealth of India. India is one of the rapidly emerging economies now. The case would have been different if colonialism still persists in India. It should not be forgotten that before leaving India, Britain looted India’s natural resources as much as possible. Same way many of the African countries were also under colonial rule once. One of the major reasons for underdevelopment in Africa is the colonial rule in the past. Colonial rulers implemented the strategy of creating differences among the communities and ethnic group so that people will fight each other and they can stick in power. Even now ethnic clashes are common in Africa which is believed to be the major reasons for poverty in Africa. However, the seeds of ethnic violence were farmed by the colonial rulers and hence they cannot stay away from the moral responsibilities of poverty in Africa. Conclusions Even though there are plenty of structural, political, economic, social and geographical reasons to cite for the poverty in third world, the role of rich countries cannot be neglected. Uncontrolled consumerism and crazy life styles in rich countries are causing poverty in poor countries. Even though wealthy countries are giving financial aids to poor countries, the terms and conditions of such aids are increasing the debts of poor countries further. Rich countries exploit the natural wealth of poor countries in many ways. Colonialism caused major problems in poor countries. Global powers exploited the wealth of poor countries in the name of colonialism. In short, it is impossible for rich countries to stay away from the responsibilities of causing poverty in the third world countries. In a heavily globalized world, it is the duty of the rich countries to help poor countries to come out from difficult situations. References 1. Davis, J.J. 2012. First-world Wealth And Third-world Poverty. [Online] Available at: http://www.fee.org/the_freeman/detail/first-world-wealth-and-third-world-poverty/#axzz2E3EOAMbl[Accessed 4 December 2012] 2. Mohamed A H. N.d., Poverty in Somalia, [Online] Available at: http://www.authorsden.com/visit/viewarticle.asp?id=24182&AuthorID=12041 [Accessed 4 December 2012] 3. Poverty in the United States, 2010. National Poverty Centre. [Online] Available at: http://www.npc.umich.edu/ poverty/ [Accessed 4 December 2012] 4. Poverty at large: A dark spot in humanity, N.d. [Online] Available at: http://povertyhci.weebly.com/causes-of-poverty.html[Accessed 4 December 2012] 5. Usborne D. 2008, USA 2008: The Great Depression, [Online] Available at: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/usa-2008-the-great-depression-803095.html[Accessed 4 December 2012] 6. Reducing Poverty And Hunger: The Critical Role Of Financing for Food, Agriculture, N.d. [Online] Available at: http://www.fao.org/docrep/003/Y6265e/y6265e03.htm[Accessed 4 December 2012] 7. Van der Berg, S. N.d. Poverty and Education. UNESCO: International academy of education. [Online] Available at: http://www.iiep.unesco.org/fileadmin/user_upload/Info_Services_Publications/pdf/2009/EdPol10.pdf[Accessed 4 December 2012] Read More