Uganda has the unfortunate title of being one of the nations on the United Nations’ list of the least developed countries and its inclusion on the list is due to a host of interconnected reasons. This landlocked East African country was colonized by the British in the late 1800s until it gained independence in 1962 (The World Bank, 2014). Ever since it came free from Britain’s reign, the Republic of Uganda has been in the midst of a number of intermittent conflicts that have proved to be major obstacles to its development. Most recently, there has been an ongoing civil war with the Lord’s Resistance Army, causing the deaths of tens of thousands and the displacement of over a million residents (The World Bank, 2014). The political violence, combined with poor infrastructure, low food security, and major health issues such as HIV/AIDS has resulted in Uganda becoming one of the poorest nations in the world. This disturbing economic situation is represented by almost 40% of the Ugandan population living on a per diem of smaller than $1.25 (The World Bank, 2014). When looking at the many major developmental challenges Uganda has had to face in the past few decades since their independence, there is one in particular that stands out among the rest: rural poverty.
The Ugandan government has made great strides in reducing poverty across the nation, as the countrywide poverty rate went from 56% of the population in 1992 to just 24.5% in 2009 (The World Bank, 2014). The decrease in poverty is mainly noticeable in urban areas, while more rural areas are still entrenched in poverty (Ellis, 2003). This is a significant concern for the development of the nation, as 84% of the population lives in these rural regions (The World Bank, 2014). More...
... middle of paper ...
...Moreover, in addition to their many other tasks, rural Ugandan women have the responsibility of making sure that their families are well-fed and taking care of the sick and elderly (Okidi & Mugambe, 2002).
Of all the issues plaguing the development of this African nation, rural poverty is definitely one of the most significant, if not the tallest task to overcome. There are many reasons as to why rural poverty has become such a huge dilemma, and they are outlined above. Uganda has made considerable progress compared to other African countries in similar situations but still have a long ways to go if they are to sustain their growth and incorporate rural regions into their economic plans. Concluding, Ugandan rural poverty is an impactful issue that effects many levels of Ugandan society and must be dealt with in order for the country to thrive in the coming years.
Poverty is not just an issue reserved for third world countries. Instead, poverty is a multifaceted issue that even the most developed nations must battle
Smith, Stephen C. Ending Global Poverty: A Guide to What Works. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2005. Print.
Raffaele, Paul. "Uganda: The Horror." Smithsonian (Vol. 35, No. 11). Feb. 2005: 90-99. SIRS Issues
For decades, Uganda’s economy has suffered through disappointing economic policies and instabilities. These setbacks have been put forth by a chronically unreliable government, leaving it as one of the world’s poorest countries. Uganda’s weak infrastructure and corrupt government are two of the primary constraints against a continuation of economic growth. Uganda has ongoing military involvement in the War on Congo, wrongly taking money from the already deprived country and into the war. Many villages in Uganda also have to waste their precious money and time in pursuit of hiding places. They are faced with a group known as, The Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). LRA is infamous for their twenty years of massacre and slaughter in Uganda, causing an estimated 1.5 million internally displayed persons. Several people are questioning why the LRA is still terrorizing the country and criticizing the government’s commitment to putting an end this horrific group. The Inspector General of Government (IGG) ...
Zimmerman, Julie. "Rural Poverty: Myths and Realities." Rural Development News. Volume 21. Number 1. Mar. 1997. 4 Apr. 2001 http://www.ag.iastate.edu/centers/rdev/newsletter/mar97/rural.poverty.html.
United Nations Development Programme. Poverty Reduction and UNDP. New York: United Nations Development Programme, Jan. 2013. PDF.
For my essay I will be evaluating the sub-saharan African country of Liberia. Over the course of this essay i shall try and shed some light on the main threats to peace and stability in the country. Threats that, if not treated responsibly and correctly, could throw Liberia, the Liberian people and potentially a large proportion of West Africa back into the violence and political instability that has plagued the region over the last few decades.
Over one billion people are living in poverty, lacking safe water, housing, food, and the ability to read. There is a high concentration of communities in poverty in Africa; particularly Central Africa. States that are considered in Central Africa are the following: Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Central Republic of Africa, Chad, Equatorial Guinea and the Congo. The majority of these Central African states’ economies are dependent on agriculture. As a result of this dependency, natural disasters, droughts and wars can displace subsistence farmer from their land resulting in poverty becoming even more prevalent and harder to come back from. Also with a history of dependency on farming there tends to be the trend of education not being a primary focus for the youth which is another factor into the stagnant poverty trend in Central Africa.
Nearly 50,000 people, including 30,000 children, die each day due to poverty-related problems and preventable disease in underdeveloped Countries. That doesn’t include the other millions of people who are infected with AIDS and other incurable diseases. Especially those living in Sub-Saharan Africa (70%), or “the Third-World,” and while we fight to finish our homework, children in Africa fight to survive without food, or clean water. During the next few paragraphs I will give proof that poverty and disease are the two greatest challenges facing under developed countries.
The overriding challenge Uganda faces today is the curse of poverty. Poverty, ‘the lack of something”(“Poverty.”), something can be materials, knowledge, or anything one justifies as necessary to living. Associated with poverty is the question of what causes poverty and how to stop poverty? The poverty rate in Uganda has declined from the year 2002 from the year 2009, which shows the percent of residents living in poverty has decreasing. Yet, the year is 2014 and the poverty rate could have drastically changed over the course of five years. One could assume the poverty rate would continue to decrease, which would be astounding and beneficial, but does poverty ever decrease enough to an acceptable level or even nonexistence? Poverty is a complex issue that continues to puzzle people from all across the globe. Poverty could possible be a question that is never truly answered.
Like a fairy tale at the top of a railroad, Uganda is a land of pristine beauty and astonishing ecosystems. From tall volcanic peeks in the East and Western borders, to the wetlands of the Albert Nile River, and the densely growth of rainforests of the North; Uganda has a rich soil that combined with its geographical location of central Africa has the ability to have coffee that has become both a mainstay of the agricultural economy and a favorite of connoisseurs around the world. The languages of English and Swahili, combined with mixtures of cultural dialects that exist throughout the nation, the religions of traditional African belief structures and Christianity are the main two of the region. I have chosen this country due to its economic solidarity and independence from outside requirements being self-sufficient for goods for one of the longest periods of African history.
Over the past five years, Uganda’s education system has proved both effective and successful. Although in the process of further development, it has nonetheless served as a model for many developing African countries. The Ugandan government, with President Yoweri Museveni at its forefront, has determined primary education to be one of the major channels toward poverty eradication and as a vital resource for economic and social development. The Ugandan government has made a national commitment to eradicate illiteracy and educate its citizens through the 1997 initiative, Universal Primary Education (UPE). All levels of government, the private sector, grass-root organizations, local and international non-governmental organizations (NGO’s), community and church leaders, international aid agencies, and international governments have been major players in Uganda’s universal primary education policy and continue to structure the policy in ways to benefit Ugandans, while simultaneously protecting their own interests. Unfortunately with such an enormous national commitment and the underlying interests of the many contributors, there were many shortages in the realistic policy as experienced by Ugandans. I argue that these shortages, which ultimately affect the quality of primary education, can be linked to inadequacies in the deliberations, monitoring, evaluation, and feedback of Ugandan education policy; once these areas are reformed, a more comprehensive education system can be re-established.
...earch and extension, rural infrastructure, and market access for small farmers. Rural investments have been sorely neglected in recent decades, and now is the time to reverse this trend. Farmers in many developing countries are operating in an environment of inadequate infrastructure like roads, electricity, and communications; poor soils; lack of storage and processing capacity; and little or no access to agricultural technologies that could increase their profits and improve their livelihoods. Recent unrest over food prices in a number of countries may tempt policymakers to put the interests of urban consumers over those of rural people, including farmers, but this approach would be shortsighted and counterproductive. Given the scale of investment needed, aid donors should also expand development assistance to agriculture, rural services, and science and technology.
In rural Nigeria, up to 80% of the population (as compared to 70% of Nigeria as a whole3) live below the poverty line, despite their fast-growing agricultural economy4. According to Nigerian author Anthony Maduagwu, it is in places such as these where we can find the solution to Nigeria's economic predicament. In his article “Alleviating poverty in Nigeria”, he says, “only the poor understands poverty and it is also the poor that know how their poverty could be alleviated... the fact is that the poor usually have quite good perceptions of their own needs and goals and of what would be required to satisfy and make progress toward them”5. He made the case that while government-funded “poverty alleviating programmes” help poverty rates in one place, the create poverty in another6. This is supported b...
Due to rural-urban migration, there has been increasing levels of poverty and depopulation in rural areas. This is one of the reasons why the government has seen it as necessary and made it a priority to improve the lives of the people who live in rural areas. Rural development is about enabling people in the rural areas take charge of their destiny. This is through the use and management of the natural resources they are exposed to. This is a process through which people learn over time and they use this knowledge to adapt to the changing world. The purpose of rural development is to improve the lives of people living in the rural areas.