Revision notes for RS ethics - A WORLD DIVIDED

A WORLD DIVIDED

Poverty means that people cannot meet basic needs for survival, such as food, water, clothing, shelter, sanitation and health care.

The worlds resources are not equally shared:

1% OF THE WORLDS RICHEST OWN 40% OF THE WORLDS RESOURCES
40% OF THE WORLD OWNS 1% OF THE WORLDS RESOURCES

How are the lives of the rich and the poor different?

FOOD
MEDCs - cheap and easy to come by
               - over eating is a problem
LEDCs - difficult to come by and expensive
              - malnutrition is common

WATER
MEDCs - taken for granted
              - available on tap
LEDCs - 1.2 billion people do not have access to safe drinking water
             - women and girls spend hours collecting and carrying water

EDUCATION
MEDCs - free to all
              - the law
LEDCs - 855 million people are illiterate
             - 73 billion children receive no education

HEALTH
MEDCs - free access to local GPs and hospitals
              - medication and treatments are subsidised
LEDCs - in parts if India, 15 in every 1000 die before they turn one
             - drugs and treatments must be paid for so diseases often get worse

WORK
MEDCs - more jobs with higher income
             - working conditions are monitored and controlled to keep them safe
             - financial support for the unemployed
LEDCs - low-paid, low-skill jobs with few opportunities
             - long days working in unsafe conditions
             - mo support for the unemployed
     

CAUSES OF POVERTY

• Frequent natural disasters
• Lack of basic health care
• Warfare and civil strife between countries
• Corruption and mismanagement by the governments
• HIV/AID
• poorer countries have to borrow from richer ones and get into debt
• Unfair trade rules benefit only richer countries 
• Greed in MEDCs

THE POVERTY CYCLE

FAITH IN ACTION

Christian Aid

Christian Aid is a Christian organisation that insists the world can and must be swiftly changed to one where everyone can live a full life, free from poverty.

They work globally for profound change that eradicates the causes of poverty, striving to achieve equality, dignity and freedom for all, regardless of faith or nationality. They are part of a wider movement for social justice.

They provide urgent short-term and practical assistance where need is great, tackling the effects of poverty . And provide long-term aid for development as well as tackling its root causes.