University of Eastern Africa, Baraton

School of Humanities and Social Sciences

Department of History, Geography and Development
Studies

Poverty as it Relates to Development

Instructor: P. Omari

Group Leader: GORETTI APONDI OYOO SAPOGO1511

JOYCE ODERO OKOTH

SOKOJO1511

KWALANDA MASIKA SAMMY SKWASA1521

DHLIWAYO NYASHA SDHLNY1431
STEPHEN STANLEY MSENGA SMSEST1221

Outline
I.

II.
III.
IV.

V.

VI.
VII.

VIII.
IX.
X.

Definition of terms
i.
What is development?
ii.
What is poverty?
iii.
Developed Countries
iv.
Developing Countries
INTRODUCTION
WHAT CAUSES OR CAUSED THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE DEVELOPED
COUNTRIES AND THE DEVELOPING COUNTRIES?
WHAT IS POVERTY AND HOW CAN IT BE ERADICATED?
i.
TYPES OF POVERTY
a.
Absolute poverty
b.
Relative poverty
c.
Situational poverty
d.
Generational/chronic poverty
CAUSES OF POVERTY
i.
CAUSES OF POVERTY CAN BE EXPLORED IN THREE MAIN
CATEGORIES.
a.
SOCIAL CAUSES
b.
ECONOMIC CAUSES
c.
Political causes
SOCIO-ECONOMIC EFFECTS OF POVERTY
POVERTY AS A FACTOR AFFECTING DEVELOPMENT
a.
Poverty stagnates economic development
b.
Poverty weakens the middle class, the engine of economic growth
c.
It weakens or destroys generations of people.
d.
Poverty weakens political systems
1.
Lack of equity
2.
Increased risk of war
3.
Mass emigration of population
4.
Genocide
ERADICATING POVERTY AND ACHIEVING DEVELOPMENT.
CONCLUSION
References

1|Page

DEFINITION OF TERMS.
i.

What is development?
Development is often assumed socioeconomic, political, science and technology
biased. Arguably, the concept of development is a complex one. It is measured in
different ways, GDP (Gross Domestic Product), GNP (Gross Net Produce per
capita), PQLI (Physical Quality of Life Index), and HDI (Human Development
Index) amongst a lot of the measures used.
ii.
What is poverty?
Poverty is the state of being extremely poor, destitution. It is the lack of means
necessary to meet basic needs such as food, clothing and shelter.
(a) According to the UN, Fundamentally, poverty is the inability of getting choices and
opportunities, a violation of human dignity. It means lack of basic capacity to participate
effectively in society. It means not having enough to feed and clothe a family, not having
a school or clinic to go to, not having the land on which to grow ones food or a job to
earn ones living, not having access to credit. It means insecurity, powerlessness and
exclusion of individuals, households and communities. It means susceptibility to violence,
and it often implies living in marginal or fragile environments, without access to clean
water or sanitation.
The latter being the most comprehensive definition of poverty. Poverty is the state
of being unable to afford a decent living with dignity.
iii.
Developed Countries
These are the countries that used to be called the First world countries, but the
term has recently been dropped to developed countries. Countries include Japan
and the greater European nations.
iv.
Developing Countries
Formerly known as third world countries. The term has been dropped for its
derogatory implications. Countries include the greater Africa and other countries
in the same state.
NB: (other terms will be explained in the course of the writing

INTRODUCTION

2|Page

By the latter definition of poverty we can say most of Africa and the rest of the developing
countries are under the plague of poverty. In most if not all of the developing countries poverty is
real, it is the way of life. In fact in most of the countries it is common to the extent that citizens
are used to it, and therefore they are okay or comfortable in that situation. If we take a look at the
average standard of living of developed country citizens to that of developing countries, there is
a wide margin of difference. Based on studies, survey and statistics. Developed countries seem to
have a low poverty index, whilst developing countries seem to have a high poverty index. It is
noted that poverty prevails or is more prevalent amongst developing countries to developed
countries. Statistics has it, Nearly one quarter of the worlds' population are living in conditions
of poverty in developing countries. About a third of the worlds' poor are living in Sub-Saharan
Africa.

WHAT CAUSES OR CAUSED THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE

DEVELOPED COUNTRIES AND THE DEVELOPING COUNTRIES?
i.

Most if not all of the developed countries colonized the developing countries. Africa
was the main target due to its vast resources. These countries only provided resources
without getting benefits from their resources. Whilst their colonizers were rapidly
undergoing industrialisation and growth, their colonies went under very little growth
if at all. When these nations then achieved independence, they were left without much
development except railways and a couple roads that had been used to exploit their
resources. As a result they already had started lagging in development.
Economic growth and population. A lot of writers and researchers have suggested that
the reason why developing world lags behind, is because of its fast growing
population. Theories suggest that a nation has to be able to feed her population before
she can undergo growth. Her produce has to exceed her population for economic
growth to take place.
Adding value to raw materials.
In the developing world raw materials are produced traditionally, meaning that there
is no value added to raw materials and exports before exporting them. The developed
countries buy the raw materials at a very cheap price and process them to produce
goods they then sell back at very high prices. From this we can see that as long as
there is no value added production in developing countries, developing countries are
always going to lag behind in development.

ii.

iii.

WHAT IS POVERTY AND HOW CAN IT BE ERADICATED?

3|Page

Poverty is not only a lack of money to take care of basic necessity of life it creates a
picture of aimlessness, uncertainty and hopelessness at the extreme in the mind of the
poor. Where there is no infrastructure and services, people will lack pipe borne water
supplies, sewage connections or adequate toilet facilities, garbage collection and basic
measures to prevent disease and provide health care. Such deficiencies promote
diarrhoea, dysenteries, typhoid, intestinal parasites and food poisoning and not
development. When combined with malnutrition, these can so weaken the body's defense
system and measles, pneumonia and other common childhood diseases become major
killers (Cairncross 1990).
This is the state or condition in which a person or community lack the financial resources and
essentials to enjoy a minimum standard of life for the well-being thats considered acceptable in
the society.

TYPES OF POVERTY
a.

b.

c.

d.

Absolute poverty: also referred to as extreme poverty. Defines a situation when people
lack the basic necessities of survival. For instance they may be starving clean water,
proper housing, sufficient clothing and struggling to stay alive.
Relative poverty: It is when some peoples way of life is so much worse than the general
standard of living in the country or region in which they live, causing them to struggle to
live a normal life and to participate in ordinary economic, social and cultural activities.
(This can be very serious and harmful).
Situational poverty: People or families can be poor due to some adversities such as
earthquakes, floods and disease epidemics. Sometimes, people can help themselves out of
these situations quickly if given a bit of assistance as the cause of their poverty was just
an unfortunate event.
Generational/chronic poverty: This is when poverty is handed over to individuals and
families over generations. In this case there is usually no escape since people are trapped
since they have no tools or access to help that can get them out of this.

CAUSES OF POVERTY
Cairncross, suggests that poverty is not only a physical state, but it is a state that has been
embedded in the African, and developing worlds mind. It is a state of mind that has grown the
tendency of dependence in foreign aid, ideas and development.
Our dependency on foreign aid and debts is our major stumbling block to world class
development. Based on Dokun Oyeshola,
4|Page

Foreign debts of African states accrued over a period of time as a result of large-scale
borrowing (with nothing to show for it by the way of development) and a dependent form
of growth which was virtually built into the postwar International Economic System
(IES). Although, a lot of the foreign debt of many African countries has been forgiven, the
scar of the wound is yet to heal. In view of the fact that various reforms and World Trade
Organization (WTO) are in place, the African continent does not enjoy fair and equitable
share of the IES. The IES is primarily profit orientated. Consequently, everything could
be sacrificed on the altar of profit to the detriment of development of peoples and
individuals, the often stated corporative responsibility of multinationals towards their
overseas constituencies notwithstanding.

CAUSES OF POVERTY CAN BE EXPLORED IN THREE MAIN

CATEGORIES.
a.

SOCIAL CAUSES

1. Overpopulation: This is the situation of having large numbers of people with too
few resources and too little space. This either results from high population density
or too low amounts of resources or from both.
2. Population density: a countrys level of poverty can depend greatly on its mix of
population density and agricultural productivity. The higher the number of people
the lower the agricultural produce so as the exports that bring foreign currency
which is essential for development.
3. Birth rate: high birth rates contribute to overpopulation in many developing
countries. Children are assets for the poor as they usually provide labour for the
family, but they become a burden to a struggling government.
4. Distribution of resources: In many developing countries, the problems of poverty
are massive and pervasive; most have tried to develop their economies and
technology with varying levels of success. However, many developing countries
lack the essential knowledge and skills gained through formal education and
training. Resources are available in vast amounts and developed countries
extortion them.
5. Lack of education: Poverty has a direct link with lack of education. Illiteracy rates
are high in poor countries. The governments of developing countries often cannot
afford to provide good public schools especially in rural areas. If the literacy rate
cannot be improved or spiked up, hardly will there be significant development in
a nation.

5|Page

6. Dependency syndrome: This involves looking for aid from donors. People in
developing nations are always looking outside for other people to help them. This
has made people to lose the skill of enterprising.
7. Environmental degradation: This refers to the deterioration of the natural
environment, including the atmosphere, bodies of water, soil and forests. This has
led to shortages of food, clean water, materials for shelter and other essential
resources.
b. ECONOMIC CAUSES
Changes in labour markets contribute to poverty. For instance, the number of relatively
high paying manufacturing jobs may decline, while the demand for workers in service
and technology increase.
Other economic factors include:
1. High rate of unemployment: Unemployment is rampant now that the global
financial crisis has ravaged the worlds economy. With high number of
unemployed people, crime rates in the cities will increase as people grow
desperate to survive. The local government will be forced to provide food and
financial aids to the unemployed majority, because of this finances will be
detoured to sustenance rather than development.
2. Corruption: This is particularly witnessed when leaders are not accountable to
those they serve. More directly corruption inhibits development when leaders help
themselves to money that would otherwise be used for development projects.
3. Unfair trade: Developed countries paying a nugget for valued resources and in
turn whipping the developing countries with hefty prices for now processed goods
and basic needs.
4. Poor infrastructure: Rails, roads and pipe systems are the major structures for
development. If these are poor everything else will go down to its knees.
Infrastructure is the number one step after education, to development.

c. Political causes
These are causes of poverty that stem from governance. Majorly, these issues revolve
around corruption, inequality and centralization of power.
Some other political causes include:
1. Civil war: Constant war and conflict in the world makes it very difficult develop
because of destruction of natural resources. Life becomes impossible as people
are forced to flee their homes.
2. Poor farming policies: In African governments, they are often forced to sell their
crops for a very cheap rate to allow them to remain current on their foreign debt
load

SOCIO-ECONOMIC EFFECTS OF POVERTY

6|Page

a. Poverty induces an increasing number of people to migrate from rural areas to cities in
search of better conditions of life. Unfortunately when most of these people arrive in the
cities, the situation does not change much, in turn it is exacerbated. Consequently the
growth of slums and constant overload of public services (medical assistance, sanitary,
etc.) are evident. Deficiency in public services in health sector ultimately leads to the
increase in birth and mortality rates.
b. Once cities are crowded and the demand for work exceeds the job opportunities people
become desperate and many businesses take advantage of the situation to contract people
at a minimum wage or even less (under paid workers).
c. Another effect of poverty is the increase in criminality rate. Because there are not
enough jobs, and a lot of youth without any occupation or a job. People will turn to
illegal practices such as street-vending, sales and consumption of drugs, theft, prostitution
and other crimes in order to sustain themselves and maintain themselves occupied.
d. Lack of education just as other factors may be considered both a cause and an effect of
poverty. Lack of education leads to an untrained work force, which increase possibility of
one not finding a job that allows a dignified standard of life, but rather under paying jobs.
e. The lack of resources to adequately satisfy even the most basic needs such as food,
shelter, clothing, etc. Health and malnutrition issues.
f. Food is the most basic human necessity, which nature provides in great variety and in
plenty to satisfy human necessities of nutrients. Unfortunately the most nutritious foods
are normally the most expensive, and families living in poverty normally cannot afford
them. Thus families with low incomes tend to live on very poor diets, which leads to
malnourishment. Malnourishment in turn facilitate and lead to many other undesirable
health conditions and diseases. People living in poverty also find difficulties in creating
and maintaining proper habitat with adequate sanitation, which contributes greatly to the
increase of diseases and illnesses; furthermore, the lack of such resources also constitutes
limitations and access to medicine and adequate medical assistance.
g. The combination of factors such as lack of education which limits local advance in
science and technologies; potential labour force being lost in crime and avoidable deaths,
etc.; all contribute to the decrease of production of a country, and economic
development of a country; and thus progress.

POVERTY AS A FACTOR AFFECTING DEVELOPMENT

According to the measures used to calculate development and poverty. We can observe that:
a. When the HDI (Human Development Index) is low it inversely affects the HPI (Human
Poverty Index).
b. When the HDI and the HPI are both high, then it means that only a small percentage of
the population is enjoying the benefits of development and the nations resources. This is
in some way is an indicator of corruption, since a high HDI should result in a low HPI.

7|Page

c. In no way can we have a low HDI and low HPI. A country cannot have a low HPI and
yet the development is so low.
From these observation it can be ascertained that HPI and HDI are inversely correlated. One
factor affects the other contra wise.
The repercussions of Poverty may vary in scale, but all carry a negative effect. However, there
are those effects that are specific to development, these are the effects that deal directly with the
economy and the governance that support the specific economy. Using the working definition
that development is the act of improving resources to be more productive, we find that poverty
hinders development as follows:
a. Poverty stagnates economic development.
Economic development is an important factor in reducing poverty and in generating
the resources necessary for human development and environmental restoration.
Poverty of the mind leads to poverty of wealth and decent living, so does it lead to
underdevelopment of a nation. If a greater part of a countrys population are engaged
in informal non-tax paying employment it burdens the countrys economy. A high
HPI (Human Poverty Index) snails a countrys development. Studies done by the
UNDP (Augustin Kwasi Fosu) show that,
Countries where the level of poverty is relatively large tend also to
exhibit low values of human development, thus lowering the mean
values of the development measures. Where inequalities of
development indicators are very large, however, the average values may not
sufficiently reflect the conditions of the poor, requiring the need to
concentrate on poverty per se.
High rates of poverty hurt everyone because it strips limited resources from the
government that could be invested in other areas to promote economic growth. A
working example: As poverty sets in, more and more people face greater financial
woes, those who already have a roof over their heads may experience difficulty
paying rent to their landlords, and those without homes cannot afford a home. This
will greatly affect the nation's tourism trade - A Street full of beggars and homeless
vagabonds is but an eyesore to tourists.
b. Poverty weakens the middle class, the engine of economic growth
An economic strength is based on a strong middle class with purchasing power to fuel
it and workforce contributions to increase our economic growth and productivity. The
increasing number of people who slip from the middle class into poverty places
downward pressure on revenues due to the impact of lower earnings. Additionally,
long periods of poverty produce downward effects on human-capital development by
limiting access to education and training and proper health care. As a result, when
8|Page

individuals who have experienced long periods of poverty enter the workforce, their
contributions may be restricted or minimal, while others may not enter the workforce
at all. The result is low productivity from millions of under skilled labour alongside a
significant reduction in the purchasing power and savings among poor individuals.
This results in lower demand from a large segment of our population and less
investments to expand and grow the economy.
c. It weakens or destroys generations of people.
Poverty poses a great impact on the affected childrens development, both physically
and mentally. Lets take a look at some shocking facts and figures. Children from
poor families are:
1)
1.7 times more likely to be born with low birth weight,
2)
2 times more likely to repeat a grade in school
3)
3.1 times more likely to have an out-of-wedlock birth than children from
wealthy families.
Poverty takes a toll on poor childrens development. For example, poverty causes
malnutrition which would affect the development of a childs mental thinking and
healthy body.
Poverty, being a difficult-to-end cycle, will only make the poor even poorer. This is
detrimental to a countrys economy, as children in poor countries are unable to fill
their stomachs, not mentioning to receive education. Hence, there would be a lack of
intelligentsia and educated intellectuals to run the country since there are less people
prepared for the high-skilled jobs of the future. Therefore poverty issues will recycle.
d. Poverty weakens political systems
1. Lack of equity
Disparities of income, wealth, and access to opportunity are growing more sharply
due to poverty. The result is a system with unequal voices in which millions of lowincome earners do not fully exercise their rights as citizens. Those who enjoy higher
incomes are more likely to make their values known to government officials.
Consequently, when earners with different income levels differ on policy preferences,
the policy outcomes strongly reflect the values of the wealthy at the expense of the
middle class and the poor.
2. Increased risk of war
Nations that are unable to keep up with world economy, lack raw materials and
markets. Therefore they may turn to war in a bid to obtain new markets for its goods,
and simultaneously acquire raw materials from the state as well. (This can be learnt
from the tumultus relationship the Lords Resistance Army had with their
counterparts in DRC.) If these wars do take place, then poverty is not only spread out
longer but development is hindered and postponed to a far future.
3. Mass emigration of population
9|Page

In the face of a nation's poor economy and weak rule of the government, the
population may seek to migrate to areas with a better-faring economy, where the trade
is more profitable, where there is low cost for all. Since the people of such povertystricken nations choose to migrate in search of better living/job/social conditions, it
may undermine the nation's ability to recuperate from the far-reaching effects of
poverty.
4. Genocide
This is a most extreme case of poverty, where there has only been one example in
history - Uganda under the regime of the totalitarian and brutal Idi Amin, army
colonel turned leader. In this case, Idi Amin spending spree quickly landed
the beleaguered nation to total economic collapse. It is known that he
systematically organized a mass killing pogrom of his fellow countrymen. Relatives
of the victims were to pay an exorbitant sum to "recover" the bodies, and this was
how he kept Uganda's battered economy afloat.

ERADICATING POVERTY AND ACHIEVING DEVELOPMENT.

Organizations have tried to increase development and reduce poverty by creating projects that
would help a country increase its exports and acquire enough capital for development. Some of
the development projects have deprived the poor of access to the natural resources on which their
livelihoods depend on. For example, farmers have been evicted from their lands by dams,
logging concessions, and large scale agricultural and industrial projects. The financial cost of this
destructive approach to development is immense. Financial institutions while aiming to reduce
poverty through development may be, in fact, creating poverty. With a rise in poverty, a country
has to find other alternatives to feed its growing population thus channelling more funds to
human sustenance instead of development.
The question is the how do we achieve development?
For a country to effectively develop, its HPI should be low and GNP (Gross Net Produce) should
be high. In order for this to be achieved, since HPI and GNP are inversely correlated a country
has to make sure that there is physical capital, human capital.
Physical capital which is infrastructure, roads, equipment etc. is as essential as Human Capital.
Often the labour force in less developed countries is illiterate or lacks necessary training thus she
remains underdeveloped. They are illiterate due to the debt acquired by developing countries
through loans for development. Consequently, the nation imposes heavy policies on the people in
order to raise enough money to pay its debt. This affects the poor. In many countries, the impact
10 | P a g e

of these policies on the poor has been devastating, since they have implied a drop in wages and a
slashing of education and health services. In order for the countries to service their debts, they
must earn foreign exchange, they are encouraged by the international financial institutions to
reduce domestic expenditure and to export more.
Education is one of the most effective tools to development. With an educated society, poverty
will definitely reduce as the population has the know-how and a tactical mind to evade poverty in
a legally accepted manner. Alongside education stands total independence, i.e. independence of
the physical, the nation, people and its resources and independence of the mind. It has been
stated and proved that as long as Africa as continent will continue taking in aide from developed
countries, it might never live to see genuine development; its always going to be lagging behind.
The term independence stresses total standing alone and managing own affairs for living and
development. As long as developing countries are lured to the bait of aide, they will never
develop. The only way for developing countries to develop is to learn the art of self-sufficiency
like a toddler learns to walk, and if only they do this soon they will be able to sprint.

CONCLUSION
A study on development cannot be done without putting poverty under scrutiny. From the study
we observe that there is a symbiotic relationship between poverty and development in
developing countries. In developed countries poverty is an indicator demanding action, but in
developing nations, it seems like society is comfortable with poverty. Poverty is a common thing
that is seen on a daily basis to the extent that it has become a lifestyle. Poverty exacerbates
development in the developing world and it demands action in the developed world, and as long
as the developing world is going to rely on aide from the developed world, poverty is always
going to be a reality in the developing nations. As a result underdevelopment is always going to
be an actuality.

11 | P a g e

References
Oyeshola, D. (2007). Development and Poverty: A Symbiotic Relationship and its Implication in
Africa. African Journal of Traditional, Complementary, and Alternative Medicines, 4(4), 553
558.
UNISA ABET Department, (Accessed on, 17 Feb, 2016) Understanding Development:
Understanding Poverty and Development.
http://www.etu.org.za/toolbox/docs/development/poverty.html
UNESCO. (Accessed 16 Feb, 2016) Learning to Live Together: Poverty.
http://www.unesco.org/new/en/social-and-human-sciences/themes/internationalmigration/glossary/poverty/
Allen, T and Thomas, A. (1992). Poverty and development into the 21st century.

12 | P a g e

Fafchamps, M. (2003). Rural poverty, risk and development.

Cheltenham, UK; Northampton, MA: E. Elgar, c2003

13 | P a g e