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Our Earth Issues Africa
COVID And Poverty
Many see management in Africa as a key to getting the Covid pandemic under control. Due to the interconnectedness of the world today, with regular flights in and out of Africa going to Europe, North America and Asia, leaving Africa's trouble unaddressed could mean disaster for the rest of the world.
Bloomberg reported in March that Africa lags much of the rest of the world in terms of vaccinating its people.
According to Bloomberg, Africa's economy contracted for the first time in 25 years last year. Zambia has defaulted on its debt and Ethiopia and Chad are seeking debt relief.
Already in recent years, almost half of poor people in Sub-Saharan Africa were living in just five countries: Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania, Ethiopia, and Madagascar.
recommended reading Democratic Republic of the Congo
V5 COUNTRIES LEADING IN POVERTY RATE REDUCTION
Borgen Project reports the DRC reduced its poverty rate by 2.7 percent from 2005-2011. It remains low on the Human Captial Index with 72 percent of people living in extreme poverty.
RECOMMENDED READING Africa
Can Cryptocurrency Help in Eliminating Poverty in Africa?
All Africa opinion piece: If direct capital transfers are appreciated as the promising mode of distributing aid, a practical step in improving distribution could be via direct cryptocurrency deposits. This can be a more efficient way of reducing poverty.
Nations Begin to Shape Post-Covid-19 Economy Amid Diverging Fortunes
WSJ - Many low- and middle-income nations with limited resources lag behind.
Africans slam rich nations for blocking access to generic COVID vaccines
Reuters - Charities in Africa slammed rich nations for blocking efforts to waive patents for COVID-19 vaccines, saying this would prolong the pandemic for years in poorer nations and push millions across the continent deeper into poverty.
Books and Periodicals
Books and periodicals written about the issue or by local authors
Creative Works
Works of art, music and dance from local people that address the issue