UN Report: 71 Million More People Reported to be in Poverty
2022-07-18
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1As many as 71 million more people are reported to be in poverty as a result of increased food and energy prices.
2These prices rose in the weeks following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) said in a recent report.
3The UNDP estimates that 51.6 million more people may have fallen into a poverty level defined as living off of $1.90 a day or less in the first three months after the war.
4An additional 20 million people dropped to the poverty line of $3.20 a day.
5UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner said at the launch of the report,
6"The cost of living impact is almost without precedent in a generation... and that is why it is so serious."
7Precedent means a similar event that happened at an earlier time.
8The speed at which this many people experienced poverty went beyond the economic pain felt during the worst part of the pandemic.
9The UNDP noted that 125 million additional people experienced poverty over about 18 months during lockdowns and closures.
10In comparison, around 71 million hit poverty in just three months after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in late February.
11"The speed of this is very quick," said George Molina, UNDP chief economist and writer of the report.
12Among the countries hit hardest by inflation are Haiti, Argentina, Egypt, Iraq, Turkey and the Philippines.
13Rwanda, Sudan, Ghana, Kenya, Sri Lanka and Uzbekistan are also in the group.
14More people in these countries, some of which have had political problems like Sudan and Sri Lanka, are facing poverty, noted the UNDP.
15In countries like Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Mali, Nigeria and Yemen, the effects of inflation are felt deeply by those already at the lowest poverty line.
16In Ghana, where the daily minimum wage is $1.80 a day, people are struggling under the weight of inflation.
17Albert Kowfie, a 27 year-old security guard in Accra, Ghana, said a loaf of bread costs over $2 and travel to work costs another 20 cents.
18"It means that by the end of the first week, everything is gone," he said.
19Kowfie expressed frustration at the government for not doing more to deal with the issue.
20"I don't answer my mother's calls anymore because I know she needs help since she is not on any pension, but what can l do?"
21Another U.N. report released Wednesday said world hunger rose last year with 2.3 billion people facing moderate or severe difficulty obtaining enough to eat - and that was before the war in Ukraine.
22The UNDP's Steiner said the world economy needs to step up.
23There is enough wealth in the world to deal with the crisis, he argues.
24"But," he said, "our ability to act in unison and rapidly is a constraint."
25The UNDP advises that governments spend more to reach the most affected people through targeted direct payments to them.
26These payments are known as cash transfers.
27For developing countries to do such transfers, the UNDP called for an extension of debt payments that had been in place during the pandemic among the world's richest nations.
28I'm John Russell.
1As many as 71 million more people are reported to be in poverty as a result of increased food and energy prices. These prices rose in the weeks following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) said in a recent report. 2The UNDP estimates that 51.6 million more people may have fallen into a poverty level defined as living off of $1.90 a day or less in the first three months after the war. 3An additional 20 million people dropped to the poverty line of $3.20 a day. 4UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner said at the launch of the report, "The cost of living impact is almost without precedent in a generation... and that is why it is so serious." 5Precedent means a similar event that happened at an earlier time. 6The speed at which this many people experienced poverty went beyond the economic pain felt during the worst part of the pandemic. 7The UNDP noted that 125 million additional people experienced poverty over about 18 months during lockdowns and closures. In comparison, around 71 million hit poverty in just three months after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in late February. 8"The speed of this is very quick," said George Molina, UNDP chief economist and writer of the report. 9Among the countries hit hardest by inflation are Haiti, Argentina, Egypt, Iraq, Turkey and the Philippines. Rwanda, Sudan, Ghana, Kenya, Sri Lanka and Uzbekistan are also in the group. 10More people in these countries, some of which have had political problems like Sudan and Sri Lanka, are facing poverty, noted the UNDP. 11In countries like Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Mali, Nigeria and Yemen, the effects of inflation are felt deeply by those already at the lowest poverty line. 12In Ghana, where the daily minimum wage is $1.80 a day, people are struggling under the weight of inflation. Albert Kowfie, a 27 year-old security guard in Accra, Ghana, said a loaf of bread costs over $2 and travel to work costs another 20 cents. 13"It means that by the end of the first week, everything is gone," he said. 14Kowfie expressed frustration at the government for not doing more to deal with the issue. "I don't answer my mother's calls anymore because I know she needs help since she is not on any pension, but what can l do?" 15Another U.N. report released Wednesday said world hunger rose last year with 2.3 billion people facing moderate or severe difficulty obtaining enough to eat - and that was before the war in Ukraine. 16The UNDP's Steiner said the world economy needs to step up. There is enough wealth in the world to deal with the crisis, he argues. 17"But," he said, "our ability to act in unison and rapidly is a constraint." 18The UNDP advises that governments spend more to reach the most affected people through targeted direct payments to them. These payments are known as cash transfers. 19For developing countries to do such transfers, the UNDP called for an extension of debt payments that had been in place during the pandemic among the world's richest nations. 20I'm John Russell. 21Aya Batrawy reported on this story for the Associated Press. John Russell adapted this story for VOA Learning English. 22_______________________________________________________________________ 23Words in This Story 24impact - n. a powerful or major influence or effect 25frustration - n. a feeling of anger or annoyance caused by being unable to do something; something that causes feelings of anger and annoyance 26pension - n. an amount of money that a company or the government pays to a person who is old or sick and no longer works 27unison - n. (in unison) the act of doing something together to achieve something 28constraint - n. something that limits or restricts someone or something