Part B - Activity 3 - Doing something about poverty

Poverty is a complex and multi-dimensional phenomenon, involving people's lack of empowerment, as well as their lack of income and basic services. There are many programs that address the whole range of factors that contribute to poverty. These programs seek to:

  • increase food security
  • improve the availability and quality of shelter and basic services
  • generate opportunities for employment and sustainable livelihoods
  • empower women and men through access to assets and productive resources such as land, credit, technology, training and markets; and
  • enable people to participate in the political forces that shape their lives.

 

It’s thumbs up for peace. Children from Mataruka in Guadalcanal celebrate the handing in of weapons at a community ceremony. Photo: Dominic Morice/AusAID.Strategies to reduce poverty

A number of strategies have been developed over time to reduce poverty and will differ from country to country. In its World Development Report 2000/2001, the World Bank identified some major strategies based on program successes from the past. The following links look at the specifics of each of the major strategies and provides examples where each has been used effectively in different countries.
  1. Promoting opportunity
  2. Facilitating empowerment
  3. Enhancing security

Open your workbook.

Question 1

You will read many examples of programs and activities that aim to reduce poverty. Choose only one example from a country in which you are particularly interested. Make brief notes in your workbook to summarise how each priority is aimed at reducing poverty.

BANGLADESH: Collecting arsenic-free water from a rainwater tank provided by AusAID. Photo: Simon Buckley/AusAIDQuestion 2

Which of the three main priorities do you think is the most important to achieve poverty reduction - give a reason for choosing this solution. Identify a solution you think would be very difficult to implement and give your reason.

Question 3

Identify 9 programs you read about in the priorities which you feel were the most successful. Complete a diamond ranking activity to rank specific strategies in order of importance.

Question 4

Identify one suitable teaching and learning activity that could be used for each of the three main strategies. (Refer to other activities in this program for ideas). Note: there may be several ways of teaching about the specific strategies - choose only one for each. You may like to work on this activity with another student in the mailing list that is available for you to interact with other course members.

Members of a cooking group from Navua, about one hour’s drive west of Suva, with samples. The women are on the brink of expanding their market. Photo: AusAIDQuestion 5

Identify three case studies you have read about that Australia has supported and you would like to use with your students. For each case study, outline some of the teaching strategies you would use.

  1. identify the issues concerned?
  2. understand the strategies used to reduce poverty?
  3. understand the success of the project?

Question 6

Read this activity and summarise:

  1. its value as a learning experience for your students.
  2. Its value as a teaching strategy.

You may like to trial this activity with one of your classes or a class you teach during teaching rounds..

Save and close your Workbook and then return to Part B: Poverty Reduction .

Distributing grain. Photo: Jill Bell/AusAID