CHAPTER ONE 1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY No Social or economic problem in the world today, both developed and developing, is more urgent than that of hunger and Poverty. While this distressing and unhappy state of affairs is not new, its persistence in spite of the remarkable technological and productive advances of this century, is a matter of deeper probe into the questions of poverty and hunger.In developing countries, there exists an ‘overdeveloped’ bureaucratic apparatus inherited as a colonial legacy and tackling poverty and hunger is still considered to be an administrative responsibility. It is true that many developing countries are experimenting with decentralization of public service delivery to elected local governments as they are directly responsive to the citizens’ needs. The extent of economic distress experienced by different individuals is to a great extent, a matter of common knowledge within the community.About 13.1 percent of the world’s population is hungry. That’s roughly 925 million people who go undernourished on a daily basis, consuming less than the recommended 2,100 calories a day.Today,The world produces enough food to feed all 7 billion people who live in it, but those who go hungry either do not have land to grow food or money to purchase it. Poverty is the main cause of hunger, and hunger is a cause of poverty. Nearly 98 percent of worldwide hunger exists in underdeveloped countries. Hunger is often passed from mother to child. Each year, 17 million children are born underweight because their mothers are malnourished.Almost 1 in every 15 children in developing countries dies from hunger.While hunger exists worldwide, 62.4 percent of the hunger exists in Asia/South Pacific. When a mother is undernourished during pregnancy, the baby is often born undernourished, too. Every year, 17 million children are born this way due to a mother’s lack of nutrition before and during pregnancy.Similarly, women in hunger are so deficient of basic nutrients (like iron) that 315,000 die during childbirth from hemorrhaging every year. In Africa,the story of Poverty and Hunger is not different from the world situation,UN Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that 239 million people in sub-Saharan Africa were hungry/undernourished in 2010 (its most recent estimate). 925 million people were hungry worldwide. Africa was the continent with the second largest number of hungry people, as Asia and the Pacific had 578 million, principally due to the much larger population of Asia when compared to sub-Saharan Africa. Sub-Saharan Africa actually had the largest proportion of its population undernourished, an estimated 30 percent in 2010, compared to 16 percent in Asia and the Pacific (FAO 2010). Thus almost one in three people who live in sub-Saharan Africa were hungry, far higher than any other region of the world, with the exception of South Asia.In 2008, 47 percent of the population of sub-Saharan Africa lived on $1.25 a day or less. (United Nations 2012). What are the causes of hunger and poverty in Africa?In general, the principal causes of poverty are harmful economic systems, conflict, environmental factors such as drought and climate change, and population growth (WHES 2012). Poverty itself is a major cause of hunger. All are very important as causes of poverty and hunger in sub-Saharan Africa. Ghana,the first country in sub- Saharan Africa to gain independence,is still grappling with the problems of Poverty and Hunger since signing the millennium declaration in September 2000,during which a number of goals were set including the Eradication of extreme Hunger and Poverty in the world.Inspite of the fact that we have made significant gains in eradicating poverty and hunger,a chunk of our population especially in the periphery are still living in extreme poverty.Research has shown that the most poverty-stricken regions in Ghana includes Northern,Upper East,Upper West and Central regions. Ghana ranks 135 out of 187 countries on the United Nations Development Programmes 2011 Human Development Index – a comparative measure of life expectancy, literacy, education and standards of living for countries worldwide. Rural poverty remains widespread in the dry savannah region that covers roughly two thirds of Ghanas northern territory. Unlike the south, where there are two growing seasons, the northern plains are drought-prone and present relatively few economic opportunities.While Ghanas overall poverty rate has declined, the three regions in the north have seen only marginal decreases. Poverty rates in the north are two to three times the national average, and chronic food insecurity remains a critical challenge there.It is against this backdrop that this study seeks to Examine the Causes and Effects of Poverty and Hunger in the Mion District of the Northern Region. 1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT About half of the population oh Ghanas population today still live below the poverty line.ie below US$1 a day?People below this line do not have enough income to meet the barest minimums of food, clothing, and shelter. Almost all those in poverty were located in the rural areas, and rely on agricultural production from small family farms or herding family-based livestock for their livelihood.According to the Ghana Living Standard Survey(2012).conducted by the Ghana Statitical Service,Ghanas Poverty rate in the last two years stood at 26%. There are 842 million undernourished people in the world today. That means one in eight people do not get enough food to be healthy and lead an active life. Hunger and malnutrition are in fact the number one risk to health worldwide — greater than AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined. The good news is that hunger is entirely solvable. There is enough food in the world to feed everyone and no scientific breakthroughs are needed. Today’s knowledge, tools and policies, combined with political will, can solve the problem. Ghana is poor despite all the natural resources because we are unable to give our children good basic education, we are not able to impart relevant skills that matter most in the 21st century to our young men and young women, and as a result we are unable to get productive work out of them. In addressing extreme poverty, the government should think of reforming the educational system to place more emphasis on the acquisition of relevant technical skills and also improving basic education. The attention now is on the poor but the middle class should not be ignored. The overall objective is to enable as many as possible to join that class. Currently the middle class in Ghana is suffocating under a huge burden of taxes. They are in fact overburdened with taxes. So the government should consider cutting and streamlining taxes to spur growth and should launch bold moves to open up the economy and make it an attractive destination for foreign direct investment. The sharpest reduction in poverty will come about when not the government spend most but when the economy grows the most. Small-scale farmers in Ghanas poor rural areas have very limited access to the assets that would facilitate a shift from subsistence farming to modern, commercial agriculture. Major constraints to their livelihoods include a lack of infrastructure and equipment – such as facilities for storing and processing products – as well as poorly functioning markets and inadequate skills development, financial services and technical assistance.In addition, population pressure and short fallow periods lead to soil erosion, loss of fertility and land degradation, all of which pose a long-term threat to farmers livelihoods and incomes. With few employment options available, many rural young men and some women leave their villages for urban centres. This migration leads to an aging and generally less dynamic population in rural areas. High rates of youth unemployment and social disparities also heighten the dangers of social tension.A cursory look at the physical resource base of the Mion District in the Northern region,ie availability of arable land,the presence of Shea trees among others are clear reasons why people in the area must not continue to swim in poverty and hunger which happens to be the first goal of the Millenium Development Goals. 1.3 MAIN RESEARCH OBJECTIVE The overall objective of the study is to Examine the causes and effects of Poverty and Hunger in the Mion District of the Northern region 1.3.1SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES The Specific objectives of the research include 1.To Examine the causes of poverty in Mion District. 2.To Examine the effects of poverty on the people of Mion District 3.To Examine the causes of Hunger in Mion District. 4.To Examine the effects of Hunger on the people of Mion District 1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS 1.why are some households in the Mion District unable to afford three meals a day? 2.What reasons account for the impoverished lifestyle of the people of Mion District? 3.Why is it difficult for pregnant women and children to acquire a well balanced diet in the Mion District? 4.What percentage of the people of Mion District live above the Poverty-Line? 1.5 JUSTIFICATION This research becomes necessary as a result of the excruciating Poverty and Hunger the people of the Mion District are faced with.It is also meant to add up to the existing research findings that have been made in the field.It is also intended broaden the horizon of the researcher in the field of Poverty and Hunger,and also serve as relevant reference material for students in their respective fields of study. 1.6 Delimitation of the Study The study is limited to the Mion District of the Northern region of Ghana where Poverty and Hunger keep soaring Inspite of its arable land and abundant Shea trees 1.7.0 RESEARCH METHOLOGY The research shall employ both qualitative and quantitative research design processes in carrying out the study with regards to the causes and effects Poverty and Hunger in Mion District. This shall aid in providing a holistic view of the phenomenon to be investigated and help in finding lasting solutions in curbing it. 1.8.0. ORGANISATION OF THE REPORT The report shall be of five chapters. The first chapter is the general introduction comprising the background of the study, problem statement, research questions, objectives and methodology, significance of the study, scope and organization of the report. Chapter two shall comprise the community profile, chapter three shall be the literature review whiles chapter four and five consisted of analysis and presentation of data and summary, conclusion and recommendation respectively.
Posted on: Fri, 14 Mar 2014 10:11:03 +0000