Citizenship Stage 2: PovertyCPL/3 John ChuaCPL/3 Joel LeeCPL/3 Lucas Foo

• Definition:A fundamental denial of choice and opportunity, and a violation of human dignity. It

encompasses factors of deprivation of food, water, sanitation, healthcare, and education, among others (UN, 1998)

• Statistics• Almost half the world live on less than $2.50 a day.

• 22.000 children die each day from poverty

• Nearly 1 billion people entered the 21st century illiterate

• 1.8 million children die each year from diarrhoea

• 1 billion children are in poverty

• 121 million children are not receiving an education

UnescapableEconomic decline

Low personal income

No food and clean water

Hunger, poor sanitation

Disease, malnutrition,

death

Depleted workforce

28 June 1940

Born in village of Bathua

Father Hazi Dula Mia ShoudagarMother Sufia Khatun

1944 moved to the city of Chittagong

Muhammad Yunus

• In 1976, as a professor and economist in Chittagong

University (See picture).

• Yunus led a group of students to a poor village, Jobra, for a

field trip. Interviewed a woman in poverty, whose

occupation was making bamboo stools. She had to borrow

up to 15p in order to purchase the raw bamboo needed to

make one stool.

• However, after repaying the middleman at high rates, she

had a penny profit margin. If she had been able to borrow at

more advantageous rates, she would have been able to

make enough profit to generate an economic buffer,

allowing her to break out of poverty.

Set up Grameen Bank in 1976

Lit. "Bank of the Villages"

Expanded in 1979

Established as an independent bank on Oct 2, 1983

2100 branches by 2006

2006 Nobel Peace Prize“Muhammad Yunus has shown himself to be a

leader who has managed to translate visions into

practical action for the benefit of millions of

people, not only in Bangladesh, but also in many

other countries. … Yunus has, first and foremost

through Grameen Bank, developed micro-credit

into an ever more important instrument in the

struggle against poverty.”

Learning Points• We learnt the importance of a sensitive view of our surroundings to

identify places for improvement or avenues for our contribution• We learnt to be creative and practical in our resolution such that it

is feasible and addresses the problem directly• We learnt to be perseverant and not to give up should we face

tribulations in the course of the execution of our solution• We learnt to be flexible in our solution and to think on our feet to

adapt to the changing situations and resources at hand• We learnt to have a focused aim to ensure that our solution can

address the root of the problem• We learnt to empathise for the people around us, putting ourselves

in their shoes so that we can understand how they may feel as well as interpret what type of issues they face in their day-to-day lives

• We learnt to go out of our comfort zones to care for others, putting their interests ahead of our own and doing our utmost to assist them

Learning Points• We learnt that we can exert great impact on others when we extend

a helping hand, providing emotional support and encouragement that could go a long way

• We learnt that many people around the world face very difficult situations daily, such as poverty, insufficient resources such as water and food, as well as the high potential for the spread of diseases

• We learnt that we have a responsibility to act upon such situations in our surroundings, and we should do all that we can to make life easier for those facing tough times

• We learnt that if we try to find creative solutions and collaborate with others, we can make a huge difference

• We learnt that there are many individuals and organisations all over the world that are working together to try and counter poverty, and we can do our part by simply donating some money or by raising awareness of poverty in our surroundings

• We learnt that despite a lack in resources and position as youths, we should not be discouraged from helping out in whatever avenues we may find, to contribute to the overall cause to improve life for others