Jakarta — World leaders agreed in 2000 to halve the number of people living in poverty by 2015. The poverty line was defined as the purchasing power parity (PPP) equivalent to a US dollar a day, later adjusted to the 2005 PPP equivalent of $1.25 daily in 2008 to the 2012 PPP equivalent of $1.90 daily in 2015.
As the cost of living rise unevenly across the world, the World Bank periodically updates the global poverty line to reflect these changes. Nevertheless, there are many concerns about how the line was defined and has been revised over the decades.
According to the most recent estimates of the World Bank, 12.7 per cent of the world’s population lived at or below $1.90 a day in 2012, compared with 37 per cent in 1990 and 44 per cent in 1981. This means that in 2012, 896 million people lived on less than $1.90 a day, compared with 1.95 billion in 1990, and 1.99 billion in 1981.
Global progress in reducing extreme poverty over the last three decades has been modest and uneven across the regions. East Asia saw the most dramatic reduction in extreme poverty, from 80 per cent in 1981 to 7.2 per cent in 2012, mainly due to rapid growth in China since the 1980s that saw its poverty rate decline from 66.6 per cent in 1990 to 18.8 per cent in 2005 and around 10 per cent in 2012.
In South Asia, the share of the population living in extreme poverty dropped from 58 per cent in 1981 to 18.7 per cent in 2012. But extreme poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa has hardly declined, standing at around 42.6 per cent in 2012.
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‘SOUTH AFRICANS EXEMPT FROM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORTS’ BIOMETRIC SYSTEM’
JOHANNESBURG – The Department of Home Affairs says South Africans travelling abroad will now be exempt from the biometric system at the country’s international airports.
In April last year the Home Affairs Department introduced a biometric system for all travellers leaving and entering South Africa.
The system was met with some criticism from citizens and the tourism industry – who were concerned it would discourage visitors to this country.
Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba says in the space of three days last week, OR Tambo International Airport flights experienced extreme delays due to glitches in the biometric system.
“Even as we introduced the systems, we did not have sufficient personnel.”
He says South African travellers will no longer have to use the current biometric system.
“To be able to navigate and resolve that problem, we are in the process of linking the movement control system with the national population register.”
Gigaba says the new changes will speed up the process for local travellers.
The minister says the biometric system is now working well and the flight delays have declined to zero.
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Botswana: New airline eyes Cape Town-Gaborone-London route
Botswana-registered Kalahari Airways is looking to launch a route between Gaborone and Gatwick as well as Gaborone-Cape Town from November 1.
Chief Executive Officer,Denis Coghlan, toldTourism Update the airline would start the licence application with the Civil Aviation Authority of Botswana (CAAB) shortly. ‘’The routes are freely available to any Botswanan airline that qualifies,” he said. “It is a very expensive exercise. However, all that is required is that we comply with the Civil Aviation Act. Once we are compliant, CAAB will issue our Aircraft Operating Certificate and the requisite Air Service Licences for the Gaborone-Cape Town route and the Gaborone-London route.”
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Barclays Africa Says ‘Africa Is Our Destiny,’ Wants To Lend Small Businesses $88M
Barclays Africa said it plans to raise 1.3 billion rand ($88 million US) to fund loans for small and medium enterprises at a time when U.K.-based parent Barclays plc is selling down its stake in the group.
The bank said the funding is part of a “shared growth” strategy towards improving socioeconomic conditions in 12 African markets where it operates, IndependentOnline reported.
Barclays Africa CEO Maria Ramos said the bank will raise the funds with corporate partners, development finance institutions and global financial bodies by the end of this financial year to let SMEs do business with the bank and its clients.
SMEs involved in producing and supplying goods and services to Barclays clients will be able to apply for loans, said KeaObaka Mahuma, head of Barclays Africa’s enterprise and supply chain development.
The idea is to raise funds and make loans at attractive rates, Mahuma said.
So what’s an attractive interest rate in Africa?
Sub-Saharan Africa has some of the highest interest rates in the world, offering high rates of return for investors, CountryRankers reported.
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Africa: The Geography of Poverty
Jakarta — World leaders agreed in 2000 to halve the number of people living in poverty by 2015. The poverty line was defined as the purchasing power parity (PPP) equivalent to a US dollar a day, later adjusted to the 2005 PPP equivalent of $1.25 daily in 2008 to the 2012 PPP equivalent of $1.90 daily in 2015.
As the cost of living rise unevenly across the world, the World Bank periodically updates the global poverty line to reflect these changes. Nevertheless, there are many concerns about how the line was defined and has been revised over the decades.
According to the most recent estimates of the World Bank, 12.7 per cent of the world’s population lived at or below $1.90 a day in 2012, compared with 37 per cent in 1990 and 44 per cent in 1981. This means that in 2012, 896 million people lived on less than $1.90 a day, compared with 1.95 billion in 1990, and 1.99 billion in 1981.
Global progress in reducing extreme poverty over the last three decades has been modest and uneven across the regions. East Asia saw the most dramatic reduction in extreme poverty, from 80 per cent in 1981 to 7.2 per cent in 2012, mainly due to rapid growth in China since the 1980s that saw its poverty rate decline from 66.6 per cent in 1990 to 18.8 per cent in 2005 and around 10 per cent in 2012.
In South Asia, the share of the population living in extreme poverty dropped from 58 per cent in 1981 to 18.7 per cent in 2012. But extreme poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa has hardly declined, standing at around 42.6 per cent in 2012.
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