Economic Issue - Poverty

Face of Poverty

POVERTY

The most acute economic problem facing the Philippines today is poverty. Millions of Filipinos are living below decency. There is lack in many things: housing, food, clothing, food and education. But poverty is the result of lack of employment opportunities which is in turn the result of very low investment in productive activities such as factories and infrastructures. On the other hand, lack of investment is due to lack of honest and competent leadership. 

The Philippines is a country rich in many natural resources. It consists of more than seven thousand islands and is surrounded by vast waters with many aquatic animals and plants that become good sources of food and other basic necessities. Other countries are not as lucky as we are when it comes to these resources but the present condition of the Filipino people contradicts these facts. Instead of moving forward towards prosperity and advancement, our country is stuck in a condition that is slowly affecting every Filipino’s lives. Other countries in the world that were at the same level with the Philippines in the last decades have already reached peaks of economic growth and improvement leaving the country behind usually placing it at the bottom part of the list.

There are a lot of reasons why people in our country live in poverty despite the abundant resources present. The most common reason is the attitude of the people towards the environment and the lack of knowledge regarding the proper care for these resources. Many people usually fail to see beforehand the long term effects of present actions and this poses a threat to our supposed riches. Dynamite fishing and quarrying are some of the common activities here in the Philippines and these greatly diminish the assets that we could use in order to save ourselves from the difficulties brought about by poverty. These resources might not be enough to supplement and benefit each Filipino, but it will greatly help in our survival. Our resources are important aspects of our existence, and if we maximize these resources it might just save us from poverty.

According to statistics, many Filipinos are unemployed and underemployed and this is one of the major reasons why there are more people in the Philippines living in poverty. Poverty is a major problem in the country that is very difficult to resolve due to a lot of circumstances. Every year, families that characterized themselves as poor greatly increase in number. These people state that they are not earning enough for their family and their salary is not sufficient to support themselves and pay for their basic necessities. Prices of basic goods and other commodities have greatly climbed as compared in the previous decades but the distressing part is that the salary of an ordinary worker in the Philippines remained stationary despite the abrupt increase. 

Because of this, the number of families living in poverty has also increased but many Filipinos find ways to help themselves and free them from the wrath of poverty. More and more Filipinos leave the country of hopes of having brighter opportunities in other countries. They embark on a journey that involves a lot of risks and with no assurance of a better life abroad. They endure the pain of leaving their loved ones and deal with the loneliness just to earn more for their families. If some are lucky enough to find fine jobs with good pay abroad, there are still many families in the country that are unable to buy their own meals and greatly rely on alms giving and programs of the government and NGO’s.

These people usually are left with no option but to do things that are prohibited by the law. Most criminals that rob banks and snatch items from people usually have one reason of doing so, poverty. They do these things just to have something in their dining table and satisfy their craving for food that they cannot afford to buy.

Education is usually a key in achieving our goals as individuals and this is our passport to a better life ahead. This equips us with the things that we should acquire in order to become a successful individual in the near future but many are not privileged to enjoy and experience the excitement of going to school and learning new things. There are many children who spend long hours in the streets working and trying to earn money instead of reading books and going to school.

This is an effect of poverty in our country. These children are dying to experience going to school but because of their situation, they are forced to work to help their parents despite laws forbidding children to do so. The government may have programs that offer free education to these poor angels but many parents living in poverty would opt not to send their children to school because of many other expenses for school supplies like notebook and pencils.

Oftentimes, achievers from different fields are from poverty, and they strived hard to achieve their dreams no matter what. Those who cannot afford become scholars because of good grades and eventually graduate and find a well-off job. This is a good example that every individual should remember and follow. Despite the unending poverty that many Filipinos experience, there is still hope for change and improvement. ( http://www.lovelyphilippines.com/tag/filipinos-poverty/ )

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My personal Reaction

In General,

Poverty is the hottest economic issue in the Philippines, but it is not too late to find a solution. It is due to lack of knowledge; of what was the society's purpose why they have to get educated. Financial Literacy is the right solution, we have a lot of opportunities in our country but sometimes it is disguised with difficulty. 

Yes, education is a tool to have a better life in the future but not everybody could really have a happy satisfying life ahead. Filipino's believed that you have to study hard so that you could find a job that could sustain your needs; but how about your wants and your DREAMS? This mindset have been transferred from generations to generations and that's the reason why the progress in our society is so slow. Let me change your mindset, even if you are not able to go to school, you still have the chance to change your life but if you want to change your life right now you should change the way you think. I have read success stories of business people specifically Bill Gates, Henry Sy and Howard Schultz and I found out that they didn't finish their education but still they are able to live in leverage meaning you could multiply your time, money and effort to other people. Wondering why they are able to become successful? It is because they don't work hard; they work smart. They even start from scratch and made their own rags to riches story. I know everybody could make their own success story. "If others can, why can't you? Anything is possible, we can do anything. We can find a solution  about poverty but here's the hint before you could help other you help yourself first, so get up and go out in your comfort zone, you must be at the courage zone. With this generation everybody should have an initiative that if we could inherit riches on the other hand we could also inherit poverty and that is why there are still lots of people nowadays who suffer because they inherit it from their parents. My advise is that if you don't want that the next generation will not anymore suffer from poverty, all you have to do is to decide weather you will continue what you are doing right now or you will find a way to bring your family out from poverty.

Based on the book that I have read by Robert Kiyosaki we could build a pipeline to wealth by basing on the CASH FLOW QUADRANT as illustrated below.

The illustration shows that quadrants "E" and "S" is called active income which means you work for money. On the other hand quadrants "B" and "I" is called as passive income in which your money works for you. In order for  you to understand more I have posted below the explanation of each quadrants.

Source: http://www.millionaireacts.com/48/robert-kiyosaki-rich-dad-poor-dad-cashflow-quadrant.html

Personal Point of view

I am already engaged with quadrants "B" and "I", I am still a college student but for me it doesn't matter how young you are, what matters most is how you think. I am studying not because I want to find a job after graduation but I am studying to continue my business after school. I am not saying that employment is not good but there is a better way to achieve financial freedom and thus you could escape poverty.






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MIDTERM BLOG

Philippines urged to ratchet up infra spending

The Philippines, along with other developing countries in Asia, must invest heavily in education, technology and infrastructure—such as those for transportation, power and telecommunications—if it hopes to escape the “middle income trap.”

Middle-income trap is used to describe a country which, after emerging from poverty, tends to linger quite a while in the middle income level.

Factors that are commonly cited for this problem are inadequate investments in technology, lack of access to quality education, poor infrastructure and governance problems.

Haruhiko Kuroda, president of Asian Development Bank, said the institution would like the Philippines and its neighbors to adopt the strategies of four newly industrialized Asian economies—South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore—which were able to escape the middle-income trap by investing heavily in things that could help boost production.

Kuroda also said that heavy investments in areas that matter must be combined with measures to improve the integrity of government, promote rule of law, and provision of social services to reduce poverty incidence.

“Utilization of natural resources and abundant labor force are some of the things that will help a low-income country become a middle-income one. But for one to become a developed economy, it needs technology, better institutions, rule of law, and overcoming of social hurdles,” Kuroda said during one of the ADB forums held at the Philippine International Convention Center.

To that end, he said, the ADB is open to extending more financial assistance to countries in support of relevant programs.

Jeffrey Sachs, an American economist, said in the same forum that investments in science and technology would be crucial for the Philippines and other countries aspiring to attain newly industrialized status.

If enterprises were to maximize the potentials of technology, Sachs said, growth of an economy would easily accelerate.

Sachs also said middle-income countries must ensure that the benefits of economic growth would trickle down to the poor.

“Economic growth must be inclusive,” he said, explaining that if a sizeable number of people were to remain poor, then the country would have difficulty going on to the next level.

Sachs is a director of Earth Institute of Columbia University and is known for his advisory role in the transition of Eastern European countries from communism to open market systems.—Michelle V. Remo http://business.inquirer.net/57207/philippines-urged-to-ratchet-up-infra-spending

My personal Reaction

this article is really a must. Philippines should invest heavily in education, technology and infrastructure. Since our country belongs to the third world countries, we should not let our country live with the usual.

As a filipino citizen, for me, everybody should go out within their comfort zone and should shift to courage zone. If you want something new for our country, then we should do the things we have never done before.

mediocrity is really a problem. most of the filipino's settles for less, not knowing that our capabilities are unlimited, thus, we could do more. It's a matter of paradigm shifting.


As we venture investment, it would serve as a stepping stone, for our country to step up among other countries, thus it would serve as a positive sign that we could do more and hand in hand we could create a big change within our lives and bring a great impact within our country, philippines.