Rural Poverty - Rural Poverty in Africa Rural poverty is...

Rural Poverty in Africa
Rural poverty is one of the most devastating conditions of this world. Thousands
die each year of starvation because families cannot afford food. Most of the poor people
come from rural areas. “Three quarters of the world, or 1.2 billion extremely poor
people, live and work in rural areas, aid to agriculture, their main source of income, has
fallen by two thirds “(Rural Poverty Report). There are many facts about rural poverty
that are unknown by most. The main part of rural poverty that will be discussed is rural
poverty in Africa. Some of the things that people don’t know are: who is affected by
rural poverty, what gender is poverty related to, how is it created, where does it occur in
Africa, the causes of deepening the poverty in Africa, what has been done to stop it, what
are some of the lessons learned for the future, and also some statistics that go along with
rural poverty.
The first question is who really is affected by rural poverty? “The rural poor
depend largely on agriculture, fishing, forestry, and related small-scale industries and
services” (Khan). Most of the people that are considered rural poor are different types of
farmers in Africa. These farmers would include ones that have lost crop because of
drought or too much rain and ones that don’t have enough land to make a living from
farming. “Many developing countries are stagnating or growing poorer, including their
farmers, who comprise two-thirds of the world’s poor” (The Rural Poverty Trap). In this
group of farmers, they are classified into two more subgroups, cultivators or
noncultivators. Cultivators are the majority in the rural poor in developing countries.

These are the farmer’s who have a small amount of land and have crops and or animals.
Noncultivators have no land at all and are unskilled at their work. This group is the
poorest among the rural poor. These workers rely on different seasonal demands for
labor. These workers find it harder to find work. Also, these people have a low status in
the village and find it hard to support themselves and their families. They are sometimes
not included in receiving safety rations because of their status in life. “Of all the regions
of the world, poverty is most intractable in Africa” (Mule 2). Another main group of the
rural poor in Africa include the sick. This is a major burden if you are not considered
wealthy because you cannot work to receive money to pay for things like food and
shelter. According to Mule in his passage on rural poverty in Africa, he states “more than
2 million people die from malaria in Africa each year” (Mule 2). It is also the same with
HIV/AIDS. There are other diseases that are sweeping through Africa causing deaths and
struggles that include TB, diarrhoeal diseases and measles. The costs are great when
needing medical help. Most do not survive long after being diagnosed with these
diseases. The poor in Africa are also isolated from the development activities that go on
in the villages.