Fighting global poverty is one of the most important problems to be solved for mankind in our time. This issue is of great importance not only for developing countries, where the number of poor people is huge. The poverty of people around the world is also a challenge for developed countries, since, in spite of the inner well-being, these countries are also influenced by the negative consequences of ill-being in other countries. Everything in our world is interconnected, so, for the sake of human welfare as a whole and an individual, in particular, it is needed as soon as possible to help people cross the poverty line and become more wealthy. Timothy Besley and Robin Burgess analyzed some solutions to this problem in their article “Halving Global Poverty”. The authors also examined the current and possible ways of development and approaches that should be applied to the different countries.
First of all, the authors emphasize the need to define the concept of poverty and who can be considered poor basing on the characteristics of each country in particular (Besley & Burgess, 2003, p. 4 However, the goal of reducing global poverty can be achieved in ways that are roughly the same for all countries. The most important condition for fulfilling this purpose is economic growth (Besley & Burgess, 2003, p. 7). Nevertheless, poverty reduction can be also eliminated or reduced by the lower level of income inequality among the population. What is surprising, according to preliminary estimates from the standard deviation, change in inequality can reduce poverty in sub-Saharan Africa by 62 percent. And though in other developing regions this percentage is lower, however, even this result is satisfactory and contributes to the fight against poverty (Besley & Burgess, 2003, p. 11). Thus, income redistribution can also be a tool for achieving the goal. Also, economic growth and redistribution can be accomplished by investing in the education of people in poor countries. Still, increasing the level of education among the poor should take place with a help of a carefully drawn up a program that makes the way of reducing poverty more effective (Besley & Burgess, 2003, p. 14). Thus, the economy is not the only component of the welfare’s growth of the of poor people. As well, the access to banking and the ability to make deposits and obtain loans from banks can also contribute to the increase of the poor’s incomes (Besley & Burgess, 2003, p. 15). In addition, the strengthening of property rights may bring benefits to poor people through access to credit, the opportunity to work in better conditions and improve labor productivity (Besley & Burgess, 2003, p. 16). Moreover, the political situation in the country also affects its well-being. Freedom of speech, democratic form of government, as well as the equality of political rights for both men and women, have a direct impact on improving the situation of the poor (Besley & Burgess, 2003, p. 18). Thus, it is evident that though economic growth by itself does contribute to reducing poverty in the country, it is just one of the ways to brighten the quality of life. It is also very important to show people how to improve their welfare in terms of economic growth. This can be done by giving people a good education, teaching them how to use the bank's services and how to profitably invest, as well as strengthening the rights of the poor’s property. With these steps, a redistribution of income can be achieved not only within a country but also globally.
And yet, the normal functioning of the economy of developing countries should be a priority for administrations. This is one of the main applications that states should implement in searching for different paths of progress (Besley & Burgess, 2003, p. 9). Inhibition of growth and economic development depend on the relationship between low income and low productivity, poor education and health care, which are the results of lower revenues (McCarthy, 2009, p. 4). Altogether, this forms a vicious circle. Therefore, in order to achieve economic growth, it is necessary to invest in human capital. In other words, people need to have equal rights of access to education, healthcare and political rights. There should be a redistribution of income that can be achieved by taxation system, based on the characteristics of a country. Although, in countries where redistribution is particularly necessary, the usual tax and transfer system does not show a great efficiency, yet it is the one most reliable way to reduce inequality (Besley & Burgess, 2003, p. 11). Improving the quality of education of the poor can be achieved with a help of providing schools with necessary textbooks and materials and encouraging children to get an education, creating by means of a good medicine the necessary internal resources for schooling children. There are a lot of obstacles in the way of increasing the level of education in the developing countries. These are the lack of support from the state, the lack of teaching staff, buildings or rooms and materials for schools. Also, sex discrimination and deviations from the normal state of health can be the barrier to study. The far distance from home to school, the price of education and the poor nutrition and hunger – these are the obstacles that must be overcome in developing countries on the way to increasing the number of educated people who in the future will be able to make a positive contribution to economic development ("10 barriers to education around the world", 2014). As for the poor people's access to bank deposits and loans, the banks, whose target audience will consist precisely of the poor, can help (Besley & Burgess, 2003, p. 15). The ability to get loans can be obtained by giving the poor the right to the land ownership. The opportunity to receive loans can be got by giving the poor the right to land ownership, as well as giving them the possibility to choose their political representative, who will be able to protect their rights and improve their situation (Besley & Burgess, 2003, p. 16, 18).
In conclusion, it can be said that the article describes a fairly realistic development path, that could help very well in reducing poverty by half. Economic growth is the main way to raise the welfare of the population. It could be achieved by the redistribution of income through the taxation system and by the investments in the human capital. All implementations have disadvantages and limitations, which vary in each country. However, despite all the obstacles and, sometimes, little efficiency, these measures should be taken. Because even a small step forward is better than stagnation. So, if the people of these countries and the whole world will unite in the fight against poverty, it would certainly be eradicated quite quickly.
References
10 Barriers To Education Around The World. (2014). Global Citizen. Retrieved 14 June 2016, from https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/10-barriers-to-education-around-the-world-2/
Besley, T. & Burgess, R. (2003). Halving Global Poverty. Journal Of Economic Perspectives, 17(3), 3-22. http://dx.doi.org/10.1257/089533003769204335
McCarthy, A. (2009). Barriers To Development. Presentation, http://www.slideshare.net/ajmccarthynz/53-barriers-to-development.
