howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
#1
courtesy of the independent, a shocking report which seems to indicate that the world's poor are no better off despite all the promises from the politicians.
A global plan to halve by 2015 the number of people without access to sanitation is failing so badly that some of the world's poorest countries will not have this basic necessity for another 200 years.
Almost 900 million people worldwide live without access to clean water and more than two and a half billion people live without adequate sanitation - more than a third of the world's population. But, says the charity WaterAid in a report due out this week, aid given to solve this problem is not reaching the people who need it most.
Ninety per cent of people without access to sanitation facilities live in just 29 countries, with the highest absolute numbers in India and China. But new research by the charity shows that the top 10 recipients of water, sanitation and hygiene aid ("Wash") over the past decade have not been those in greatest need, but largely middle- or upper-middle-income countries.
Barbara Frost, chief executive of WaterAid, said: "Historical and strategic interests still influence where aid is going, rather than the countries and communities where poverty and need is highest. Over the past decade, least developed countries have received only 30 per cent of aid for water, sanitation and hygiene. With an increase of aid focused on the poorest countries in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, hundreds of thousands of lives could be saved every year, and a major step will have been taken towards ending the global water and sanitation crisis."
Guest 653- Registered: 13 Mar 2008
- Posts: 10,540
#2
That is sad but not surprising.
India and China, which are major players in the developing world should be investing more in their own people's welfare and international pressure should be applied to them to do so.
Africa, sadly, is a product of its various countries corrupt governments and until those corrupt governments become less corrupt (very doubtful), not much will change - unless the charities involved, put their money into projects, rather than governments.
I do understand that is changing, but again, international pressure from the countries who give aid, should be leading on this.
We give hundreds of millions for overseas aid, Tony Blair had an international meeting about it "Saving Africa" I think it was called, but I wonder how much has changed since then ? Our Government has, but has our policy ? Probably not, apart from increasing the amount we give.
Roger
Guest 655- Registered: 13 Mar 2008
- Posts: 10,247
#3
I really do not know the answer to Africa's problems and quite frankly, no-one does. We have seen £billions of aid pumped in over decades with little apparent impact. There was one report a couple of years ago that suggested aid itself was a problem (the small proportion that does not get into the pockets of dictators that is...) It said that aid was itself an export of Africa as a result of which African countries did not have the incentives to address the core issues they have. They certainly do not have the leadership. The big problem is a real catch 22 though. Stop aid and people will die but, if the report is right, it could force long term changes that could save millions in the future. But what a decision to make and with no certainty of success.... It is a very sad situation indeed.
Many of these countries were far better off under British colonial rule. One example is North and Southern Rhodesia, once the breadbaskets of Africa and now they are ruled by tinpot dictators while their people in Zimbabwe and Uganda starve.
Guest 653- Registered: 13 Mar 2008
- Posts: 10,540
#4
What you have said about Rhodesia and Zambia is very true Barry and really all the other countries where the white man ruled, the majority of the peoples (whatever colour) of those lands, were better off.
All the British-led ones were not racist, nor had aparthied, but with Harold MacMillan's speech in 1959 about "The Wind of Change" blowing through Africa, the ordinary people were doomed and where despots like Mugabe were installed, all races suffered so much.
The people of Africa deserve better.
Roger
Guest 725- Registered: 7 Oct 2011
- Posts: 1,418
#5
The reason so many people are in water poverty is because billions in cash has been and is still being diverted towards the climate change scam. Add that to the millions who die from malaria and other diseases you can see the outcome of the obsession with carbon dioxide as a threat to the planet.
Greenpeace, WWF and other green lobby groups tend to see water and disease as a minor problem compared to the peril faced by polar bears. They tend to put animals before humans and so we see so many people die.
Guest 710- Registered: 28 Feb 2011
- Posts: 6,950
#6
Ah, these poor poor-people. Don't ya just love 'em?
I'm sure the thrust from both the EU and the IMF, on-the-water-front, is to dictate to governments around the globe that 'utilities' should first be privatised. I dare say any and all money expended/invested in this way can count as water-aid that does not directly improve matters for the populations involved, alas.
http://academic.evergreen.edu/g/grossmaz/VANOVEDR/Ignorance is bliss, bliss is happiness, I am happy...to draw your attention to the possible connectivity in the foregoing.