A World Without Want

One of the world situations that likely keeps us all from feeling as happy and content with our own lives as we wish is the knowledge of such massive poverty that exists for so many in a world of such abundance. Many economist see great progress towards a better life for 6 billion of the world's inhabitants. But most experts agree that there is really no end in sight for a group called, “the bottom billion.” There are differing perspectives on this issue because when we do donate or do what we can to help, we want to think that we are really making a difference.

Some of the countries that you might find in the bottom billion include Malawi, Ethiopia, Haiti, Laos, Chad, Burma, and the countries of central Asia including Afghanistan. Other, once poor countries such as India, Brazil, or China are seeing vast economic progress. So why are some countries stagnating, or even becoming poorer? Many of the economists that are studying the situation are using very complex forms of statistical analysis to come up with that answer. 

In his book, “The Bottom Billion: Why the Poorest Countries are Failing”, Paul Collier suggests that sending money is not always the answer. Change must come from within and cannot be imposed. He suggests that in all these countries, there are reformers and those opposed to change. We may have to help the reformers by the use of military interventions and trade policies. The problems are not easily solved by celebrities spotlighting the problems and there is not a one size fits all solution.

 

Jeffrey Sachs, the author of “The Price of Civilization: Reawakening American Virtue and Prosperity"  applies his global economic theories to the US. Sachs is an advocate for economic aid and he works with celebrities like Angelina Jolie and Bono who raise visibility for his programs. His work in Africa has been in the form of initiatives such as the Millennium Villages Project.  He wrote this book as a result of his growing concern that America is not going in the right direction. He suggests that neither party, the Democrats or Republicans have any really substantial ideas.

He believes the Republicans to be the party of “Big Oil” and the Democrats to be the party of “Wall Street.” Just as he believes the right kind of activism can make a difference in the bottom billion countries, so he believes the same for the US.  He advocates that the current diagnosis that big government is the problem is exactly the wrong diagnosis. In reality, only government can fix the real challenges we are facing, globalization, technological change, and environmental threats.

He suggests a partnership between the market economy and government can make a difference and that the top 1% have a social responsibility to do their part.  There are many things in these ides that ring true, both globally and locally.