Reasons Behind Poverty Of African Nations (Sub-Saharan) Essay Examples

Venezuela’s private property rights

The Venezuelan government has been autocratic in snatching land away from their rightful owners and handing it over to others which is clear violation of property rights. The cause behind this action ownes back to a decade when the opposition party to President Hugo Chavez lobbied with business elites and plotted to shrink the economy by controlling agricultural output. This was enabled by big land owners (‘Latifundistas’ in Venezuela) started stalking almost 6.12 Lacs Hectare of land and shunned any agricultural activity on their land (Fuentes 1). This loss in agricultural output started reflecting in terms of fall in GDP for agriculture driven economy and in 2002 Chavez came upon the decree in which government seized land from the ‘Latifundistas’ and allocated it to peasant cooperatives. The government also ensured churning of national wealth by spending in aid provided to such cooperatives for better yield.

The percentage of people who manage their livelihood in less than $1.25 is 41% in sub-Saharan Africa and it is twice more than that of any other developing nation in Asia (Simmons 1). There are many problems which have led to this extreme poverty in this part of the world. Firstly, autocratic political regimes and dictatorial form fof governments have led to improper dispersion of nationa wealth in the country. Secondly, colonial exploitation by the western powers has already eroded the economic statbilty owing to religious conflicts and civil war scenarios. Thirdly, the geographical factors like barren lands, less water led to extremely lesser agricultural productivity in these nations and even famines struck ocassionally. Finally, lack of proper healthcare facilities have destroyed access to sanitation and medical aids for those who are already dwelling under impoverishment.

Works Cited

Fuentes, Federico. " VENEZUELA: Land reform battle deepens".2005. Feb 10. 2016.
Simmons, Katie. " Sub-Saharan Africa makes progress against poverty but has long way to go".2015. Feb 10. 2016.