How many Children are poor?
'Poverty is not to be suffered in silence by the poor. Nor can it be tolerated by those with power to change it. The challenge is now to mobilize action - state by state, organization by organization, individual by individual.'

James Gustave Speth, UNDP
When we think about poverty, we think to money right away. Well, poverty is not about money. It's all about access. Access to the basic rights of food, clothes and shelter, education, proper health care, clean water - rights which most of us take for granted. In the past 50 years there has been greater poverty reduction than in the previous 500, with more and more people across the world gaining access to these rights. Yet over one billion people still live in severe poverty today - and the clock is turning backwards, with poverty on the increase once again.
Access to rights
- Half the world -- nearly three billion people -- live on less than two dollars a day.

- The GDP (Gross Domestic Product) of the poorest 48 nations (i.e. a quarter of the world's countries) is less than the wealth of the   world's three richest people combined.

- Nearly a billion people entered the 21st century unable to read a book or sign their names.

- Less than one per cent of what the world spent every year on weapons was be needed to    put every child into school by the year 2000 and yet it didn't happen.
Using  CPS data, the National Center for Children in Poverty  at Columbia University has published statistics on the rate of poverty among very young children. The center estimates that between 1979 and 1993, the number of children under age six living in poverty in the United States grew from 3.5 million to 6.4 million (26.2 percent of all children under 6 in 1993). By 1999, the number had declined to 4.2 million (a poverty rate of 18 percent) [2]. The Census Bureau estimates that nationwide, in 1998, 20.8 percent of children under age 5 (about 4 million children) were living in poverty.
Statistics
How many children are poor?
Why do we always think that to help the poor, we gotta move to Africa or Mexico?. Others will find excuses like they do not believe in organism like World Vision. They believe that a small part of the money is really sent to the child. Is this true? I don't know. But what I do know is that there are no excuses for not helping others.

When you walk on the street and a poor man ask you for money, what do you do? Too often, we  pretend to not see them nor hear them. This is indifference. By doing this, we tolerate poverty.

We think that by giving money to that poor man on the street, we will encourage him to buy alcohol or drugs. Well, get informations about this because there are many ways you can help the poor in your city. For exemple, where I live, we can buy tickets for food and we just have to give it to the poor and they will  be able to buy food. That way, we can be sure that they won't buy alcohol.

So if you don't want to give money directly to that man on the street, give him at least a smile. It can make a big difference in his life.
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What's really happening in Africa?
Africa is a continent of vast beauty, deep history, and rich culture. But it is also a land struggling with famine, poverty, debt and an AIDS epidemic that has already killed millions of people. Learn about the devastating problems affecting the African continent—and what can be done to help.

HIV/AIDS Epidemic
With widespread infection rates and too little prevention education, Africa is at the heart of the global AIDS crisis.


According to recent statistics, over 17 million Africans have died from AIDS. Last year alone, 2.3 million died from the virus. Currently, 28 million Africans are infected with HIV; approximately 1.5 million are children. Studies predict there will be more than 15 million AIDS orphans in Africa by the end of the decade. Because of widespread poverty, infected Africans cannot afford medication or treatment for HIV/AIDS.

Massive Debt
Africa spends $40 million each day repaying old debts to rich countries. This massive debt prohibits African nations from developing the infrastructure and trade agreements they need to thrive. Africa spends four times as much on debt repayment as it spends on health care.


For every one dollar sent to the poorest countries in aid, $1.30 is sent back to the leaders as debt repayment.
Africa spends over $14.5 billion dollars yearly repaying debts. It receives only $12.7 billion in aid.