Running Head: Global Macro Practices in Human Services

Global Macro Practices in Human Services Samantha Pope, Erin Heck, Lolita Moseley, Heather Oetzel, Stacy McDonald August 9, 2012 Laura Franceschi BSHS/302

BSHS/302

Running Head: Global Macro Practices in Human Services

World hunger is a constant problem throughout the world. It always has been around and until unemployment decreases, it will be around for a while. The reason unemployment needs to decrease is that world hunger goes along with poverty. If a family grows up in poverty it is because there is a lack in employment and proper funds. The unemployment rate has gone up in the past few years and because of that so has poverty and world hunger. If a person is not working they will not have the proper funds for bills, a home, and food. If they do not have the funds for food then world hunger comes into play. There are billions of people who are struggling every day with hunger. However, children are recognized as the largest population to suffer. Starving is worse for children because they are still growing. If they do not have the proper nutrients their growth slows down and so does their mental growth which will make them fall behind educationally. In 2010, there were more than 925 million hungry people in the world. Of those, 19 million were in developed countries, 37 million in Near East and North Africa, 53 million in Latin America and the Caribbean, 239 million in Sub-Sahara Africa, and 578 million in Asia and the Pacific" (Food and Agriculture Organizaion Of The United Nations, 2012). Two-thirds of the hungry live in just seven countries, including Bangladesh, China, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, and Pakistan (Food and Agriculture Organizaion Of The United Nations, 2012). There are approximately seven billion people in the world and one in seven people are hungry. Children are recognized as the largest population of the hungry. Without proper nutrition, not only is their physical growth stunted, so is their mental growth. Because their mental growth is impaired, they will lag behind in education. The results are lower paying jobs and an inevitable cycle continues when they reach adulthood because they remain in poverty and their children are

BSHS/302

Running Head: Global Macro Practices in Human Services

no better off than the previous generation. The impact of hunger reduces school attendance, especially for girls, and impairs cognitive capacity. It is associated with 60% of child deaths and increases risk of maternal death (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 2002). In areas where hunger is severe, many do not reach adulthood. Because of malnutrition children are more susceptible to other illnesses and diseases. Their bodies cannot build immunities to protect them. Approximately six million children under the age of five die each year as a result of hunger. Even if food is available, many remain in a state of malnutrition because of insufficient varieties of food containing necessary vitamins and minerals. There is a direct correlation between poverty and hunger. The lack of employment or income of some sort causes the poor to be unable to purchase or grow food. Often the poor live in rural areas where jobs and resources are limited. Oppression is a root cause of poverty, and therefore, hunger. The wealthy and those in power own and control the land and make the laws. Oppression thrives, not only in third world countries, but also here in the United States of America. People often think of oppression in terms of the poverty stricken images we see on television and in the newspapers of the people in Africa. These people are so poor they will never be able to escape hunger without intervention. However, the people in power do not do enough, if anything, to help. Here in the United States oppression is visible on the streets of the larger cities. The poor, hungry, and often homeless, are treated badly, sometimes beaten or arrested, just because they are in a public place. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), there is enough food produced globally each year to feed every person in the world; however, the problem is getting it to those who need it. There is no legitimate reason for people to be starving.

BSHS/302

Running Head: Global Macro Practices in Human Services

To explain social issues confronting world hunger or even remedies to decrease or end world hunger a person would have to first look at ways to end world poverty. Nearly one in four people, 1.3 billion-a majority of humanity-live on nearly $1 per day. ("The World Hunger Problem: Fact, Figures and Statistics 2000) Imagine using one dollar per day to feed a person, much less a family. If it were possible to teach people how to be more successful, or to prosper in making more food than one can eat there would not be a hunger problem in the world. World Aid programs are set in place to teach these self preservation techniques to people throughout the world. The only problem is that although the individuals are taught how to help the community survive long-term there is still an expectation of that persons duty in the community in which they live whether it be a nine to five job or helping in the home. Other social issues confronting World Hunger can be far more dangerous. Looking at the world today there are many areas of turmoil and conflict. If hunger is already an issue in the area and violence breaks out it is hard for people to sustain the life they once had. Also if an area is overrun by rebels or is governed by a strong armed militia people run the risk of losing what crops, animals or other means they had. It can prove too difficult teaching people to sustain the life they had because of the fear of their means being taken from them or being killed for their crops, water or animals. Often times people are forced into joining groups or giving their means to the groups in order to simply survive. In the United States we do not see the threat of violence as a concerning factor effecting social issues when discussing world hunger, but as a nation we have our fair share of people who go to bed hungry every night. In the United States hunger may take on many faces. It could be the quiet child in class, or a coworker who is too proud or too embarrassed to ask for help or it could be the man people walked by who was sleeping on a park bench. The face of the hungry come in every shape, size, color, or ethnicity it is not subject to only other countries or only to

BSHS/302

Running Head: Global Macro Practices in Human Services the people who sleep on the streets. Modern day hunger can also affect work productivity

because people are too proud to admit when they may need help. When a person is malnourished or lacking enough food the body does not perform as well as it would fully nourished, the same can be said for a persons mental abilities. If a person is hungry it is difficult to perform at a higher standard, thus making ones productivity lower than expected. Finding ways to put an end to the stigma of world hunger and teaching people viable ways to survive is detrimental to the cause to put an end to world hunger. The greatest obstacle to combating world hunger is the cost of feeding the millions of men, women and children born in countries who are struggling financially. Civil war and genocide contributes to the problem because many involved in these circumstances are displaced from their home and become the responsibility of other neighboring countries. Countries who are engaged in war or who have suffered natural and man-made disasters do not focus the needed resources on improving the unbalanced diets in third world countries and eradicating hunger(Antimo, 2009). Those born into poverty are more likely to suffer malnutrition, illness and, premature death. When an individual does not have a balanced diet it prevents them from learning and growing and results in them too weak to work and provide for their family. This will affect the growth of the economy in the country which increases the problem. In Africa and the Middle Eastern countries the aid that has been given has only scratched the surface of the problem of hunger. In order to break the cycle of poverty and hunger there should be more joint efforts between local and international governments to develop strategies that work for each particular region (Antimo, 2009).

BSHS/302

Running Head: Global Macro Practices in Human Services

Strategies to reduce world hunger should include interventions that will be effective in making substantial changes in the outcome for the poverty stricken countries of the world. Focus should start with pregnant and breastfeeding women and children in their first two years of life. There are indications that malnutrition in the womb can cause damage to the fetus linked to inferior intellect and reduced physical ability, which in turn reduces productivity, slows economic growth, and perpetuates poverty. Stunted mothers perpetuate malnutrition from generation to generation because they are more likely to have underweight children. During the first 2 years of life malnutrition contributes to decreased growth, development and learning disability and the damage is irreversible (Klaus von Grebmer, 2010). Countries need to investigate the underlying causes of hunger and under nutrition. These areas should focus on the reasons for poverty such as sexual discrimination, inequality, political conflicts, and, lack of access to education. Women in Africa produce between 60 to 80 percent of the food in rural yet they and their children are most likely to go hungry because male relatives can take away their land. Women in Africa do not inherit property, when their husband dies a woman and her children can be evicted. Giving women the right to own property would be the cheapest way to ensure better food security and guarantee access to a reliable food supply (Gerntholtz, 2009). Local agencies require the support of their government and other nations resources to improve nutrition and make it a priority for state and local funding. In order for a nation to feed its people food needs to be produced and available to the poor and needy. The ability to produce food is directly related to the ability to earn an income and build industry and revenue for a community. Government in third world countries have to allocate sufficient funds to utilize land and produce nutritious and affordable food (Buttel, 2000).

BSHS/302

Running Head: Global Macro Practices in Human Services Although there are many world aid programs throughout the different countries, individuals are still expected to participate within the community. They can help in the

community by either working at home or getting a job. There are many issues going on in the world today; world hunger being one of them. If an individual or family is suffering from hunger and another problem comes into play it will become harder for an individual to get back into the routine they once had. There are different ways people can help with world hunger. There are numerous organizations that can help if enough people would donate money or food. If the country can minimize the poverty level, world hunger would not be as drastic as it is now.

BSHS/302

Running Head: Global Macro Practices in Human Services

References

Food and Agriculture Organizaion Of The United Nations. (2012, August 7). FAO Statistical Yearbook 2012. Rome, Italy, Europe: FAO Statistics Division. Retrieved from World Hunger Education Services and Hunger Notes website: http://www.worldhunger.org Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. (2002, October 2). The State of Food Insecurity in the World 2002. Retrieved from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations: http://www.fao.org/docrep/005/y7352e/y7352e03.htm#TopOfPage

Atinmo, T. (2009). Breaking the poverty/malnutrition cycle in Africa and the Middle East. Nutrition Reviews, 67S40-S46.

Global Hunger Index The Challenge of Hunger Focus on the Crisis o Child Under nutrition Retrieved from http://www.acted.org/en/2010-global-hunger-index

Gerntholtz, L. (2009) Women's land rights can help battle hunger in Africa Retrieved from http://www.hrw.org/news/2009/03/19/womens-land-rights-can-help-battle-hunger-africa

Buttel, F. H. (2000). Ending Hunger in Developing Countries. Contemporary Sociology, 29(1), 13-27.

BSHS/302

Running Head: Global Macro Practices in Human Services The World Hunger Problem: Fact, Figures and Statistics. (2000). Retrieved from http://library.thinkquest.org/C002291/high/present/stats.htm

BSHS/302