Have you imagined children on an empty stomach everyday? How would you feel if you only had a blanket and a few ripped clothes and you were living on the street? Have you ever seen a person sitting on the street asking for money? Hi my name is Saijal and if you didn’t know I am going to talk to you about how poverty is an ongoing problem around the world and what are we going to do to help those who live in extreme poverty. Well if we work together we can achieve the Sustainable Development Goal No Poverty by 2030!
Do you know how many people live in poverty? Well, in 2013, it was estimated that more than 767 million people and 385 million children in the world were living in poverty. Now you must be thinking this is the world’s most difficult challenge. But what can we do to help! Donating money to various charities can be a solution. An organization called World Vision is helping those people by providing the basic needs and fundraising.. Another organisation in New Zealand called KidsCan is a voice for children who cannot speak for themselves. KidsCan is trying to help by providing raincoats, shoes and free food to most of the low decile schools. This shows the support offered by the different organisations in helping people living in poverty.
Do you know how people end up in poverty and how it affects their lives?
Did you know that 1 in 5 people are living on $1.25 or even less everyday. Because of this between 2 million and 26 million children and people die each year due to poverty. One of the causes of poverty is that people can end up losing their jobs and not having enough money to pay bills and to feed their families. This cause can lead to people having no food, no water, no power, no clothing, and no shelter. Another cause that leads to poverty is the new threats brought on by climate change. This happens when people are displaced and left without a home. These causes have had devastating effects on people lives.
Do you know which countries suffer the most because of poverty? South Sudan is just one of the many countries that are affected. Many of those people live in rural areas so they aren’t able to access basic necessities. But South Sudan is not only suffering from poverty but they are affected by extreme weather conditions, for example: droughts. Now I am going to talk about something special to New Zealand called Kaitiakitanga which means a way of managing the environment such as the land, sky and sea. People are not preserving the environment as they pollute our land and oceans, creating climate change. Climate change has caused more natural disasters and is creating more poverty.
In conclusion poverty has become one of the biggest challenges faced by countries globally. Currently there are millions of people living in poverty and many lives have been lost. It may be difficult to achieve this goal but if we work together we will get rid of extreme poverty by 2030. Overcoming poverty is a gesture of charity, it is an act of justice. Thank you.