The Geography of Poverty
by: Jeffrey D Sachs
1. Adam Smith- The Wealth of Nations and how free market is the key to economic prosperity.
2. Smith stated that the countries on the shore proper more due to access of trade overseas.
3. Recent studies show that geography definitely plays a key role in the distribution of world income.
4. Both coastal areas and regions with better ways to acquire goods.
5. Tropical climates often have a hard time due to higher rates of diseases and poor soil quality.
6. Gross National Product (GNP): Total value of a country's economic output.
7. Vast majority of poor countries are located between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn (those are the tropical regions).
8. Coastal Temperate Zone= Less transportation cost and higher agricultural productivity.
9. Five categories:
Tropical-Subtropical
Desert-Steppe
Temperate-Snow
Highland
Polar
10. According to the Word Health Organizations 300 to 500 million cases of malaria occur annually.
11. High rates of disease can dramatically alter a country's life expectancy, low productivity, and ultimately low rates of literacy.
Author's purpose:
Economic growth directly correlates with the region of the specific country. Economical growth problems are not simply due to the inability of a country to control their income or even their economy; sometime there are issues such as poor soil that affect the GNP of the country. Many tropical countries are poor due to the poor soil and agricultural monotony. Poor countries are also deprived of good productivity due to lack of workforce, this is caused by low life expectancy due to lack of education, sanitation, and ultimately increase of diseases. The disease can eliminate the workforce and leave children orphaned hence the lack of education. There are extreme cases of these in Africa. Also the uneven distribution of wealth is affected by countries near coastal regions; they are often well off due to their access to trade and far reaching resources. These allow for higher education, birth control, planning, sanitation, and ultimately a higher GNP.
My opinion:
I think that the poor nations are partly to blame for their situations; although it is hard to get out of poverty, there are also ways to make things better. There are options that the countries must take in order to make their citizens prosper and ultimately help their economy to grow. Steps such as adapting to their environment by cultivating plants that flourish in that particular region. They can regulate poverty by pushing for education and innovation. The government can also add safety regulations for work and even allow for health care. To push for medicine for their people. These take time, however they are also effective in pushing the poor countries into the right direction.
2. Smith stated that the countries on the shore proper more due to access of trade overseas.
3. Recent studies show that geography definitely plays a key role in the distribution of world income.
4. Both coastal areas and regions with better ways to acquire goods.
5. Tropical climates often have a hard time due to higher rates of diseases and poor soil quality.
6. Gross National Product (GNP): Total value of a country's economic output.
7. Vast majority of poor countries are located between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn (those are the tropical regions).
8. Coastal Temperate Zone= Less transportation cost and higher agricultural productivity.
9. Five categories:
Tropical-Subtropical
Desert-Steppe
Temperate-Snow
Highland
Polar
10. According to the Word Health Organizations 300 to 500 million cases of malaria occur annually.
11. High rates of disease can dramatically alter a country's life expectancy, low productivity, and ultimately low rates of literacy.
Author's purpose:
Economic growth directly correlates with the region of the specific country. Economical growth problems are not simply due to the inability of a country to control their income or even their economy; sometime there are issues such as poor soil that affect the GNP of the country. Many tropical countries are poor due to the poor soil and agricultural monotony. Poor countries are also deprived of good productivity due to lack of workforce, this is caused by low life expectancy due to lack of education, sanitation, and ultimately increase of diseases. The disease can eliminate the workforce and leave children orphaned hence the lack of education. There are extreme cases of these in Africa. Also the uneven distribution of wealth is affected by countries near coastal regions; they are often well off due to their access to trade and far reaching resources. These allow for higher education, birth control, planning, sanitation, and ultimately a higher GNP.
My opinion:
I think that the poor nations are partly to blame for their situations; although it is hard to get out of poverty, there are also ways to make things better. There are options that the countries must take in order to make their citizens prosper and ultimately help their economy to grow. Steps such as adapting to their environment by cultivating plants that flourish in that particular region. They can regulate poverty by pushing for education and innovation. The government can also add safety regulations for work and even allow for health care. To push for medicine for their people. These take time, however they are also effective in pushing the poor countries into the right direction.