The Root of Many Problems

Written by: OngAC

WORLD HUNGER AND POVERTY      

Have you ever felt hungry? Your answer is most probably yes. Now, think about the millions of people out there who sometimes have to live through days without eating, and reconsider my question. Have you felt truly hungry, with your stomach aching so hard that you can’t feel it anymore? I think not.

Not everyone realizes it, but world hunger and poverty are both very serious problems. They are connected, and they affect everyone on this planet. They are obstacles to the development of the entire world, not just a certain country. To those of you who don’t understand, let me explain.

HUNGER AND DISEASES

Poverty is the state of being poor and not being able to attain your basic needs, such as food, clean water, clothes and other necessities. Believe it or not, approximately 870 million people around the world do not have sufficient food. More than 1 billion people, 400 of which are children, cannot afford clean water. Because of these, those poor people try to make do with garbage and polluted water. They receive communicable diseases. Being penniless, they cannot afford treatment, and as a result, they spread the illnesses to other human beings. If this continues, there is a huge possibility that a simple ailment can lead to an epidemic.

POVERTY AND EDUCATION

Education is said to be a very important factor of development. If people are too poor to even afford food, then they most probably cannot meet the expense of going to school. Illiterate people will have difficulties in getting jobs and therefore, they will continue living in poverty. Moreover, uneducated people may resort to crime as a way out of paucity. This fact makes the world a more dangerous place to live in.

POVERTY: NOT AN UNSOLVABLE PROBLEM

The most annoying thing about poverty and world hunger is that it is not unsolvable. It is highly possible for everyone to be properly nourished and thriving. Around $40 billion would be needed in order to provide everyone with clean water, food, education, and even health services. On the other hand, statistics state that $638 billion are used up every year for things like ice cream, cosmetics, narcotic drugs, cigarettes, and other unnecessary things. We only need 6% of that to be able to make the world a better place, and yet, everybody refuses to share their blessings and help their fellow humans.

LET’s ALL WORK TOGETHER TO STOP POVERTY

As I mentioned before, we can solve this problem that has been lingering in our world. We can have food drives, where all the fortunate people can give a can of food. If this can happen, I am sure that we can feed all the hungry people. We can also have fund-raising activities. The funds will be helpful in providing education or health-care services for the unfortunate.

There are also many other ways in helping. I encourage all you fortunate people to share what you have to those who truly need it. There is nothing wrong with sharing what you can spare. Everyday, 34,000 children die due to hunger, while you are eating more than you can. Hunger kills the most number of people in the world, and slowly, with unity, we can put a stop to it. Then, no one would have to feel the painful, empty feeling in their stomachs.