Causes of poverty - wikipedia Causes of poverty hide This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. ( Learn how and when to remove these template messages ) The neutrality of this article is disputed. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until conditions to do so are met. ( May 2016 ) This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( August 2013 ) This article possibly contains original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding inline citations. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed. ( May 2015 ) Some causes of poverty are changing trends in a country 's economy, lack of education, high divorce rate, having a culture of poverty, overpopulation, epidemic diseases such as AIDS and malaria, and environmental problems such as lack of rainfall. Extreme weather may be a cause of poverty in many countries. Drought, rainfall and flooding are some of the biggest causes of poverty by weather. When natural disasters do not gain media attention raising money becomes more difficult. This is made worse when governments spend money in the capitals instead of the poorest areas which need it most. Almost 50 percent of people in the world today live on less than $2.50 per day. In California, poverty in the elderly was reduced with the creation of the social security program. The poverty rate among seniors in the United States is at 9 percent as of 2010. In 1960 the official poverty rate among the elderly was 35 percent. The Netherlands offers a universal pension and leads the world with a 1.7 percent poverty rate among the elderly. Extreme poverty may affect lifespan, and the lack of money via some type of pension system increases the poverty rate among the elderly worldwide. Issues like hunger, illness and thirst are all causes and effects of poverty. In a BBC discussion, Tony Blair stated that the cause of poverty is inequality of opportunity. Contents 1 Causes of global poverty 2 Primary causes by country 2.1 Bangladesh 2.2 Canada 2.3 Philippines 2.4 United States 2.5 South Africa 3 Main causes of poverty 3.1 Primary causes of poverty 3.2 Historical causes 4 See also 5 References 6 External links Causes of Global poverty The International Food Study Institute had a brief on a collection of extensive studies that analyzed the causes of poverty, analyzing household data and reviewing empirical research in 20 countries. They found that some of the major causes of poverty were the inability of poor households to invest in property and education, limited access to credit, in some cases these instances produce more poverty via inherited poverty. The systematic exclusion of ethnic minorities, scheduled castes, tribes, women and people with disabilities and health issues. Persistence of poverty is partially attributed to these classes not having access to institutions and markets. War and violence may be some of the primary causes of poverty. Political violence and organized crime have affected 39 countries since 2000, in those countries the poverty level is twice that of non-violent countries. These two items, poverty and violence may also feed themselves. When asked why young people joined gangs and rebel groups in half a dozen countries, two thirds of the respondents said that unemployment was their main reason, only one tenth cited a belief in the cause. Colonialism has been cited as a cause of poverty, this idea is rejected by Walter E. Williams citing that not all post colonial countries have high poverty rates. Third World countries have low GDP per capita percent taxed, middle income economies have average levels of GDP per capita taxed and developed countries have higher percent GDP per capita taxed. Places like the Arctic and Antarctic are inhabitable but many people debate how much a role climate plays in Africa 's poverty. Primary causes by country Bangladesh In Bangladesh, the causes of poverty are due to the countries low economy, which leads to the poor being exploited with very low pay, the vast amount of floods that occur and overpopulation. Canada The Fraser Institute, a public policy think - tank reported that characteristics increasing Canadians ' risk of `` experiencing persistent low income '' include `` having a physical or mental disability, being part of a lone - parent family, and having less than a high school education. '' Philippines From 1921 to 2001 food prices increased due to a change in the policies of commodity prices which increased the poverty rate. From 1960 to 2009 slow economic growth has contributed to the persistence of poverty and has also contributed to the non-poor becoming poor. Although poverty has been reduced overall, the inequality of poverty has increased, according to the Asian Development Bank. United States Unemployment is the leading cause of poverty within the US. In 1999 and 2005, 71 percent of the families that were below the poverty line did not have any working family members. Among the families below the poverty line that had at least one family member working, low wages and insufficient benefits were also leading causes. South Africa One of South Africa 's major causes and effects of poverty is unemployment. Unemployment causes families to live in unsanitary conditions because a lack of financial means to improve living conditions. If the parents are unemployed, this can also affect how the child is brought up and what kind of education they receive. This issue has been recognized by the South African government and they have created organisations like the Expanded Public Works Program, also known as the EPWP. This program is an important gateway to labor absorption and provides income for poor families. Poverty stricken people now have the chance to receive income thanks to the jobs that the EPWP provides. Main causes of poverty Primary causes of poverty Lack of control in local food Corruption is both a major cause and a result of poverty around the world. Lack of access to education Mental illness, lack of proper psychiatric care World hunger, the economic development in the world Epidemic diseases Over Population Historical causes Slavery Conquest See also Involuntary unemployment Poverty reduction References Jump up ^ Lusted, Marcia Amidon ( 2010 ). Poverty. Edina, Minn. : ABDO Pub. p. 31. ISBN 9781604539578. Jump up ^ Harrison, Paul ( 1993 ). Inside the Third World : The Anatomy of Poverty ( 3. ed. ). New York : Penguin Books. p. 20. ISBN 9780140172171. Jump up ^ White, Howard ; Killick, Tony ( 2001 ). African Poverty at the Millennium : Causes, Complexities, and Challenges ( 1. print. ed. ). Washington, D.C. : World Bank. p. 27. ISBN 0821348671. Jump up ^ McGrath, Matt ( 16 October 2013 ). `` Extreme weather ' keeps people poor ' '' -- via www.bbc.com. Jump up ^ `` Causes of Poverty -- Global Issues ''. www.globalissues.org. Retrieved 2015 - 11 - 02. Jump up ^ `` Social Security is the Most Effective Anti-Poverty Program in the U.S., In One Chart ''. Jump up ^ West, Loraine A. ; Cole, Samantha ; Goodkind, Daniel ; He, Wan ( June 2014 ). 65 + in the United States : 2010 ( PDF ) ( Report ). U.S. Census Bureau. p. 78. Retrieved 21 March 2017. According to data from the 2011 Current Population Survey ( CPS ) Annual Social and Economic Supplement ( ASEC ), 9.0 percent of the population aged 65 and over lived in poverty in 2010. Jump up ^ `` Social Security and the Evolution of Elderly Poverty '' ( PDF ). Jump up ^ `` Poverty among the Elderly '' ( PDF ). Jump up ^ `` Why poverty persists in the 21st Century ''. 26 November 2012 -- via www.bbc.co.uk. Jump up ^ Ahmed,, Akhter U. ; Hill, Ruth Vargas ; Smith, Lisa C. ; Frankenberger, Tim ( October 2007 ). `` Characteristics and causes of severe poverty and hunger '' ( PDF ). 7 International Food Policy Research Institut : 4. Archived from the original ( PDF ) on August 12, 2011. Retrieved 15 July 2015. Jump up ^ `` Root Causes of Violent Conflict in Developing Countries. '' BMJ : British Medical Journal. 324 : 342 -- 345. 2002. doi : 10.1136 / bmj. 324.7333. 342. PMC 1122271. PMID 11834564. Jump up ^ `` The economics of violence ''. The Economist. 16 April 2011. Retrieved 23 July 2015. Jump up ^ Williams, Walter. `` Poverty Is Easy to Explain ''. The Freeman. Retrieved 23 July 2015. Jump up ^ Charles Lammam and Hugh MacIntyre ( 2015 ). An Introduction to the State of Poverty in Canada. Fraser Institute. https://www.fraserinstitute.org/sites/default/files/an-introduction-to-the-state-of-poverty-in-canada.pdf Jump up ^ Balisacan, Arsenio M. ( October 1995 ). `` Anatomy of Poverty during Adjustment : The Case of the Philippines ''. Economic Development and Cultural Change. 44 ( 1 ) : 57. doi : 10.1086 / 452200. ISSN 0013 - 0079. Jump up ^ Poverty in the Philippines : causes, constraints, and opportunities. Mandaluyong City, Philippines : Asian Development Bank. 2009. p. 39. ISBN 978 - 971 - 561 - 857 - 1. Jump up ^ `` What causes poverty ? ''. cpag.org.uk. Child Poverty Action Group. Retrieved 14 July 2015. Jump up ^ `` Welcome to EPWP ''. www.epwp.gov.za. Jump up ^ Thomas Pogge on Global Poverty Jump up ^ Shah, Anup. `` Causes of Poverty ''. globalissues.org. Retrieved 14 July 2015. Jump up ^ Bhattacharyya, Sambit ( 2016 - 05 - 19 ). `` The Historical Origins of Poverty in Developing Countries ''. doi : 10.1093 / oxfordhb / 9780199914050.001. 0001 / oxfordhb - 9780199914050 - e-13. Jump up ^ Factors of Poverty - The Big Five by Phil Bartle, PhD External links The factors causing poverty and suffering Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Causes_of_poverty&oldid=845126312 '' Categories : Poverty Causes of conditions Hidden categories : NPOV disputes from May 2016 All NPOV disputes Articles needing additional references from August 2013 All articles needing additional references Articles that may contain original research from May 2015 All articles that may contain original research Articles with multiple maintenance issues Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2010 All articles containing potentially dated statements All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from May 2015 All pages needing factual verification Wikipedia articles needing factual verification from May 2015 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Add links This page was last edited on 9 June 2018, at 15 : 34. 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Question: what is the biggest cause of poverty in america
Answer: Unemployment