Causes of Poverty

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Wongsa LaohasiriwongKhon Kaen University

Factors contributing to poverty

• Poverty is too complex an issue to be the result of just one problem.

• There are many interrelated factors that contribute to poverty in developing nations.

Factors contributing to poverty

• Education • Lack of education keeps children from obt

aining jobs that would lift them and their families out of poverty.

• Often, children are kept from school because they are needed at home to support their family with additional income.

Factors contributing to poverty

• Health:• Poor health decreases the amount of work impo

verished individuals can do, lowering their income and driving them deeper into poverty.

The onset of disease, such as HIV/AIDS or malaria, can result in death (which can cut off a major source of income for a family), or high medical costs that many impoverished families cannot afford.

Factors contributing to poverty

• Economics: • The poor often have very limited economic

choices – they are often prevented from receiving loans and other financial benefits. This makes it hard for them to establish businesses, increase their income, and break out of poverty.

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Factors contributing to poverty

• Government• The governments of many developing cou

ntries are often dysfunctional, unstable, and corrupt.

• Lack of government infrastructure (public sanitation, schools social welfare, etc.) can be crippling for the poor.

Factors contributing to poverty

• Overpopulation Overpopulation, the situation of having large numbers of people with too few resources and too little space, is closely associated with poverty.

Factors contributing to poverty

• Global Distribution of ResourcesMany experts agree that the legacy of colonialism accounts for much of the unequal distribution of resources in the world economy. In many developing countries, the problems of poverty are massive and pervasive.

Factors contributing to poverty

High Standards of Living and Costs of LivingBecause people in developed nations may have more wealth and resources than those in developing countries, their standard of living is also generally higher.

• Thus, people who have what would be considered adequate wealth and resources in developing countries may be considered poor in developed countries.

Factors contributing to poverty

• Inadequate Education and EmploymentIlliteracy and lack of education are common in poor countries. Governments of developing countries often cannot afford to provide for good public schools, especially in rural areas.

Factors contributing to poverty

• Environmental DegradationIn many parts of the world, environmental degradation—the deterioration of the natural environment, including the atmosphere, bodies of water, soil, and forests—is an important cause of poverty.

Factors contributing to poverty

• Economic and Demographic TrendsPoverty in many developed countries can be linked to economic trends. In the 1950s and 1960s, for example, most people in the United States experienced strong income growth.

Factors contributing to poverty

• Individual Responsibility and Welfare DependencyThere are differing beliefs about individual responsibility for poverty. Some people believe that poverty is a symptom of societal structure and that some proportion of any society inevitably will be poor.