SDG 1: No Poverty- Eliminate Poverty in All Forms by 2030
It’s is a random Saturday in August. The break of dawn was accompanied by a heavy downpour. It rained for hours; the kind of rain that refuses to stop. You know, the type that slows down giving you glimmers of hope but then picks up its pace, shattering the optimism you just garnered.
Rainy morning weekends are quite peculiar. They hinder you from doing your regular weekend activities. That urge to sleep in and be cosy under a duvet takes over, the whole house, cold and grim like a scene from DC movie.
After 12 and the rains still haven’t stopped but continues in faint drizzles; the lazy farmer’s rain my mother will call it.
She was not one to let the weather deter her. While I took comfort under sheets, she had been up and about the house, cleaning and cooking.
She calls for me. I hesitate, hoping she calls one of my siblings instead, preferably my younger brother. She calls again and this time, I have no choice but to answer.
I walk towards her voice, and she presents a sheet of paper; scribbled upon its surface is a list of things to buy.
I protest, but she insists I go. Its not like I hate going to the market, its a stressful activity yes, but going to the market after such a heavy rain makes it unfathomably worse.
Just as expected, everything was wet and soaked. I boarded a motorcycle and went to the market. Throughout the journey, all I could think about is how I wouldn’t be going to the market if we just went grocery shopping like in the movies. But no, we will rather patronise open stalls operated by middle-aged women and men who display their goods on tables and in baskets.
If only we were richer I wondered. If only we were not so poor.
I alighted at my destination; Mararaba junction. I quickly made my way to the pedestrian bridge. The ground was soggy with mud splattered all over by the wheels of fast moving vehicles.
Halfway through the walk upstairs, I noticed people sitting on the steps in old and discoloured sweaters, wrappers and jalabiyas. There were men, women and children of all ages. There they were, seated on cold, wet concrete with plastic plates in their hands, begging for alms. Many of them were visually impaired, crippled or had some form of disability.
This wasn’t the first time I’ve seen them, oh no. They are always there; a regular site on many Nigerian, pedestrian bridges. But on this particular day, I was perplexed. I did not expect to see them, definitely not with the current weather conditions.
It was this on this day I saw and understood what real poverty actually is.
What is poverty?
What does it mean to be poor?
Poverty is the inaccessibility to basic amenities like food, shelter, water and education due to a constant absence of purchasing power. Basically, these people cannot afford the most basic of things due to no or very low income.
The term poverty can be subjective and its meaning can change with context. It is therefore imperative that a baseline for poverty be established. This baseline is known as the Poverty line, breadline or baseline for poverty.
As of September 2022, the World Bank updated the poverty line to be $2.15 from the previous $1.90.
This means anybody living on less than $2.15 daily is below the poverty line and hence that person is poor. A whooping 670 million individuals are estimated to fall below this poverty line.
Why Should I be Concerned?
If you’re reading this, you most probably do not fall below the poverty line. You have a phone and access to the internet and that is a luxury people in extreme poverty cannot afford.
You may be wondering, “What is my business with this?” Many people fail to see how this affects them. You have clothes on your back, a roof over your head and food on your table, so you don’t necessarily see how someone else’s poverty concerns you. Well, let me show you.
1. DEPENDENCY: In many developing nations, poverty is so wide spread that everyone knows at least one person in their direct extended family who lives below the poverty line. Due to strong family knits, the person farthest away from the poverty line has to provide some form of support to his poor relatives.
So, instead of growing in wealth by investing their money, many people remain stagnated in a viscous cycle where they dissipate their income as it comes. “Living from hand to mouth.” As the maxim goes.
2. POTENTIAL INCREASE IN CRIME RATES: When people cannot afford the most basic of resources, they are left with a few choices. One of which is begging or soliciting for funds and other one is stealing.
Nigeria has one of the highest number of out of school children in the world. This is a direct impact of poverty as people in extreme poverty cannot afford to give their children an education.
These children with nothing to do, soon become at-risk youth.
With hunger in their bellies and nothing in their pockets, how long before they replace their begging bowls with weapons and turn to a life of crime?
3. WIDESPREAD PANDEMONIUM: As the gap between the poor and rich continue to widen, it is only natural that some kind of revolution will begin.
The people living under the poverty line will begin to feel neglected and then revolt against the other economic classes.
This has happened before in various ancient civilizations. It is only logical to predict that if poverty is left unchecked, society as we know it can suffer such similar fate.
What Can I Do?
The alleviation of people from poverty is heavily dependent on government policies and reforms. But this does not mean that the ordinary citizens do not have a part to play.
The following is how we can help the poor amongst us.
1. GIVING ALMS: By giving alms, you can help a family survive another day. These people do not know where their next meal will come from. Your little change might just be the glimpse of hope they need.
2. DONATIONS: Many foundations exist to help people cope with the debilitating effects of extreme poverty.
By donating to such foundations, you help them help the poor people.
Although it is important to do your background checks to confirm if such organisations are real.
3. GIVING OUT OLD CLOTHES: Instead of throwing out old clothes, you can give it to the poor instead.
Clothes are expensive so by giving out clothing, you give these people one less problem to worry about.
Poverty is such an unfortunate condition that no human being should experience. We must all be united if we really want to curb the effects of this ancient pandemic.
