what is the solution of poverty essay

Center for American Progress

The Top 12 Solutions To Cut Poverty in the United States

Poverty is a policy choice; so is cutting it.

Advancing Racial Equity and Justice, Building an Economy for All, Strengthening Health, Economic Justice, Poverty +2 More

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Since the 1960s, America has made major strides in poverty reduction, and yet, there are still 35 million people living in poverty in the United States. What’s more, poverty would be twice as high if not for decades of significant investments through Social Security, unemployment insurance, nutrition assistance, and low-income tax credits, among other successful anti-poverty programs. However, the concerning reality is that the COVID-19 pandemic and associated economic fallout obliterated those gains, putting individuals and families at a greater risk of being pushed into poverty.

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As of May 2021, more than  9 million Americans  were unemployed, 19 million adults and up to 8 million children had experienced food insecurity, and more than 10 million renters were behind on rental payments. Communities of color and other underserved families have been hit particularly hard by the pandemic and subsequent economic downturn: Black, Indigenous, and Latinx communities have seen higher rates of infection, hospitalization, and death as well as unemployment . Likewise, the disability community has been disproportionately affected by high rates of mortality at congregate facilities , inequitable vaccine rollouts , and delayed stimulus payouts to individuals on Social Security and Supplemental Security Income.

Navigating through the current crisis and rebuilding better and stronger requires policymakers to take immediate action to provide equitable economic relief to all. Equitable rebuilding not only addresses systemic and institutional racism of past policy decisions but also focuses on inclusive economic transformation that can strengthen the U.S. economy and resilience in the long run. When the government invests in meeting peoples’ basic needs and economic security through a robust safety net and jobs that help build financial security, children, families, and other vulnerable populations see improved outcomes in both the short and long term. The good news is that policymakers already have a range of tools that can prevent further increases in poverty and put all people on a pathway to economic mobility and resilience.

Tell Congress To Take Action on Poverty

Congress must support sustained, bold public investments in programs that support people living in—and on the edge of—poverty.

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This column outlines 12 policy solutions that Congress can use to cut poverty and boost economic security for all in an equitable way.

1. Expand safety net programs to benefit all in need

Safety net programs can help people weather a variety of economic crises by meeting basic needs and providing stability. Yet the pandemic has exposed just how woefully inadequate America’s safety net structure is.

For example, before the pandemic, state unemployment insurance (UI) did not cover monthly expenses anywhere in the country and excluded millions of others due to their work classification, previous earnings, length of employment, or immigration status .

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act provided a temporary $600 weekly boost to UI, lifting millions out of poverty before that provision was allowed to expire at the end of July 2020. The American Rescue Plan continued a $300 weekly supplement to UI that started in December 2020, providing an income to millions of long-term unemployed and self-employed workers, independent contractors, gig workers, and others. Unfortunately, this supplement and the other temporary federal UI expansions are set to expire nationally on September 6, 2021. To make matters worse, at least 26 governors have pledged to end some or all of these programs even sooner, cutting benefits for 4.7 million people and severely affecting their ability to recover from the pandemic.

Similarly, programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), intended for those with the lowest incomes, have not done enough to prevent hunger and food insecurity in America. Even before COVID-19 hit, the inadequate benefit amounts forced 45 percent of SNAP recipients to limit the food they ate or skip meals just to make it through the month; and nearly a third of SNAP recipients had to visit a food pantry to keep themselves fed. From December 2019 to December 2020, the demand for charitable food assistance rose by nearly 50 percent . This was especially prevalent for households of color, households with children, and people with disabilities. Fortunately, the American Rescue Plan contained significant expansions in food assistance programs to help mitigate the high levels of hunger seen throughout the crisis. But more must be done. Lawmakers must expand eligibility for SNAP, ensuring that currently excluded groups—including undocumented immigrants and many college students—are able to receive necessary food assistance. Burdensome work requirements that only serve to push people away from assistance, rather than encourage work , should also be eliminated.

Temporary expansions of the safety net are not enough to help the millions of Americans who are still struggling with the economic and health fallout from the pandemic. Congress must continue to invest in and modernize safety net programs, ensuring that benefit levels are expanded and more accessible than they were before the crisis. It should also consider implementing automatic triggers that would expand benefits during future economic shocks, such as recessions, without the need for legislative intervention. Not only would this prevent people from falling into poverty while Congress argues over how much relief is necessary, having a system that automatically triggers expanded benefits would also help soften the blow of future recessions and stimulate the economy by giving money to people who desperately need it in a timely fashion.

2. Create good-paying jobs that meet family needs

Rebuilding the economy in an equitable way requires the creation of millions of new, good-paying jobs in key industries, with significant worker protections to ease the burden on working families. Before the pandemic shut down much of the country, unemployment stood at 3.5 percent , but by April 2020, unemployment had risen to almost 15 percent . A year later, hiring is on an upward trajectory, but unemployment is at 5.8 percent , which is still considerably higher than pre-pandemic numbers.

While the uptick in employment is a good sign, the same people who struggled before the crisis are still being left behind: The unemployment rates for Black and Hispanic individuals stand at 9.1 percent and 7.3 percent, respectively, compared with a 5.1 percent unemployment rate for white people. Similarly, the disability community continues to experience difficulty regaining employment, with 10.2 percent remaining unemployed as of May 2021. It is not the first time these communities have seen large unemployment gaps compared with their white and nondisabled peers, as such gaps were consistently present even in the months leading up to the pandemic, when unemployment was low.

Women have particularly borne the brunt of job loss because they are overrepresented in the hardest-hit service sector jobs. From February 2020 to May 2021, women lost a net of 4.2 million jobs . Furthermore, since April 2020, the labor force participation rate for women has hovered between 54.6 and 56.2 percent —the lowest observed rate since the late 1980s.

Even though pandemic-related stimulus packages have helped bolster the economy, labor market growth is sluggish , as many Americans are still unable to come back to work due to caregiving challenges or are taking more time to find safe and decent jobs that support their basic needs.

Creating the jobs needed to build an equitable U.S. economy requires federal investment. The American Jobs Plan is centered on investing $2.3 trillion to create new jobs by rebuilding roads and bridges, creating a green energy economy, expanding essential jobs in the caregiving sector, supporting domestic manufacturing, and ensuring that these jobs provide decent wages and benefits and are accessible to Americans from all walks of life. If passed, the American Jobs Plan could reform and rebuild the economy by significantly shrinking the gap of 7.6 million jobs lost since February 2020 and by allowing people to build financial security and save for the future.

3. Raise the minimum wage to ensure economic stability for all

It is time for Congress to raise the federal minimum wage to meaningfully improve living standards for millions of Americans. Today’s federal minimum wage is just $7.25 per hour, which is about $15,000 annually for a full-time job. It has not been raised in more than a decade and is not enough to keep a one-adult, one-child household out of poverty. This is not how the minimum wage was intended to work: In the late 1960s , a full-time worker earned $1.60 per hour at minimum wage, which is equivalent to more than $12 per hour in today’s dollars.

There are also many workers who earn less than minimum wage, or a “subminimum wage.” Tipped workers are only guaranteed a subminimum wage of $2.13 federally, despite evidence from states demonstrating that ending the subminimum wage nationwide would significantly decrease poverty and inequality without hurting employment .

Subminimum wages are also an issue for disabled workers. In 1938, the Fair Labor Standards Act authorized employers, after receiving a certificate from the Wage and Hour Division, to pay below minimum wages to workers with disabilities. Workers who fall under this classification are paid an estimated average of  $2.15 per hour . This is just one of the many reasons why in 2019, at least  1 in 4 disabled people  lived under the poverty line.

The Raise the Wage Act would gradually lift the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2025 and index it to median wage growth thereafter so that the minimum wage would automatically increase when wages rise nationally. The bill would also phase out the subminimum wage for tipped employees, teenagers employed for 90 days or less, and disabled workers. These changes would lift up to 3.7 million Americans out of poverty and especially benefit people of color, women, and people with disabilities , who are disproportionately represented in low-wage jobs.

For more information on the minimum wage, see “ Building an Economy That Supports All Children Requires Raising the Minimum Wage , ” “ Ending the Tipped Minimum Wage Will Reduce Poverty and Inequality , ” and “ Raising the Minimum Wage Would Be Transformative for Women .”

4. Provide permanent paid family and medical leave and paid sick days

The United States is the only industrialized nation in the world to not guarantee workers access to any paid leave. As of March 2020, an estimated 25 percent of private sector workers—and 69 percent of workers earning less than $11 per hour—did not have access to a single paid sick day. Additionally, in 2020, 4 in 5 private sector workers lacked access to any paid family leave for longer-term family caregiving needs; and the disparity was worse among the lowest-wage workers, where 95 percent did not have access to paid time off.

This puts workers in the impossible position of having to forgo needed income, or even their job, to recover from an illness or care for a sick family member. Every year, workers and their families lose an estimated  $22.5 billion in wages due to a lack of access to paid family and medical leave. While Congress addressed this need during the pandemic by providing temporary emergency paid sick leave and emergency paid child care leave through the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, loopholes and exemptions excluded millions of workers . The program also became voluntary in 2021, meaning employers can now refuse to offer paid leave again.

Congress must prioritize passing paid sick leave and permanent paid family and medical leave, particularly to support the lowest-income earners. Several proposals—including the American Families Plan , the Family and Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act , and the Healthy Families Act —have been introduced to address this issue. They include comprehensive paid family and medical leave, allowing workers to take time off work to recover from a health condition, care for a child or loved one, or grieve the loss of a loved one.

For more information on paid leave, see “ Quick Facts on Paid Family and Medical Leave ” and “ The Rising Cost of Inaction on Work-Family Policies .”

5. Increase worker power to rebalance the labor market

Union representation is a key protection against the exploitation of and discrimination against workers. Unions help their members to negotiate with employers for decent wages and benefits and to ensure that working people have a voice in U.S. democracy by promoting progressive priorities, including state and local minimum wage increases. Research shows that unions increase workers’ wages and benefits, boost economic mobility in future generations, decrease poverty, improve workers’ general well-being, and close gender and racial wage and wealth gaps . In the midst of mass layoffs as states shut down last year, unions were able to negotiate furlough and work-share arrangements with employers to help members keep their jobs. Yet in 2020, only 12 percent of essential workers were covered by a union contract, and workers seeking to unionize face an uphill battle.

Passing the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act would increase worker power by creating new penalties for employers who retaliate against workers trying to organize, banning forced arbitration agreements that prevent workers from pursuing collective litigation, adopting a new set of employer guidelines to prevent employees from being misclassified as independent contractors, and ensuring that workers can bargain in the modern economy. In addition, the Public Service Freedom to Negotiate Act would provide essential protections for millions of public sector workers to organize and bargain collectively. By ensuring that employers are responsible to their workers during the pandemic, they can share the benefits of recovery as the economy opens back up.

Furthermore, policymakers must build worker protections into at-will employment and just-in-time scheduling to ensure fair labor and workplace standards.

For more information on worker power, see “ American Workers Need Unions ,” “ Combating Pay Gaps with Unions and Expanded Collective Bargaining ,” and “ Unions Help the Middle Class, No Matter the Measure .”

6. Make permanent increases to the child tax credit and earned income tax credit

Two of the nation’s most effective anti-poverty tools, the child tax credit (CTC) and earned income tax credit (EITC), lifted 7.5 million Americans out of poverty in 2019.

Both programs provide a reliable source of income to parents, helping them meet immediate needs and plan for the future while making them more financially stable on a day-to-day basis. These programs also pay long-term dividends by improving infant and maternal health outcomes while boosting the educational, health, and income potential of future generations.

The American Rescue Plan Act was able to close some glaring holes within the tax credits by:

• Making the CTC fully refundable so low-income parents can get the full credit if their tax liability is less than their credit amount by paying them the difference
• Increasing the amount of the CTC to $3,600 for children under 6 and $3,000 for children ages 6 to 17
• Distributing the CTC monthly instead of all at once at tax time
• Nearly tripling the maximum EITC for workers who are not raising children in their home
• Revising the eligibility requirements to make EITC accessible to workers ages 19 to 24, as well as workers who are 65 and older
• Extending the credits or providing supplemental funding to Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories

However, these changes are temporary and will expire in 2022. Considering that the changes to the CTC alone were estimated to lift nearly 4 million children out of poverty , the best way to ensure that these credits continue to support low-wage workers and families with children is to make them permanent. Policymakers must also make the CTC as accessible as possible by removing barriers for immigrant families.

For more information on the CTC and EITC, see “ Now Is the Time To Permanently Expand the Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit .”

7. Support pay equity to create a fair labor market

Equal pay ensures that workers are paid fairly. In 2019, women working full time, year-round earned just 82 cents for every $1 earned by their male counterparts. This pay gap is even worse for women of color: For every dollar earned by white, non-Hispanic men in 2019, Black women earned 63 cents, Native women earned 60 cents, and Latinas earned 55 cents. And while Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) women, on average, earned 85 percent of what white, non-Hispanic men earned, there were much wider gaps for many AAPI sub-populations. Disabled women also struggle with a pay gap , receiving 80 cents for every dollar earned by men with disabilities. If women in this country received equal pay to men, poverty for working women would be reduced by half and $512.6 billion would be added to the economy through additional wages.

What’s more, equal pay is essential to helping workers attain the stability and savings necessary to weather current and future crises. The pandemic has stalled women’s economic progress , as a lack of access to child care and paid leave, coupled with mass job losses, has forced many women out of the workforce entirely, exacerbating the gender wage gap . For example, mothers of young children have lost jobs at three times the rate of fathers during the crisis. This is on top of ever-present compounding factors such as bias and discrimination that may deflate women’s earnings.

Passing the Paycheck Fairness Act would enhance existing equal pay protections, further combat discriminatory practices, and better hold employers accountable for pay discrimination. Pandemic or not, securing equal pay has always been essential to the economic security of women and families.

For more information on pay equity, see “ Quick Facts About the Gender Wage Gap ” and “ When Women Lose All the Jobs: Essential Actions for a Gender-Equitable Recovery .”

8. Invest in affordable, high-quality child care and early childhood education

More than half of all Americans live in a  child care desert , where child care shortages lead to waiting lists, job disruptions, and fewer mothers in the paid labor force. Child care in the United States is prohibitively expensive, with infant and toddler care often costing between $800 and $1,230 a month . While there are subsidies for low-income families, in most states, they reach fewer than 1 in 10 eligible children under the age of 6. As a result, low-income families can spend more than  one-third of their income on child care just to be able to work.

Not surprisingly, the pandemic has eviscerated child care across the United States. About  700,000 parents left the workforce in 2020 to care for young children who were not able to go to school or have access to child care. Since then, only half of the nearly 400,000 child care jobs lost at the start of the pandemic have returned, leading to a 144 percent increase in the number of parents who have missed work to care for children compared with 2019.

The $39 billion for subsidized child care that was already included in the American Rescue Plan will help providers recover from a year of unprecedented revenue losses, but additional funding is needed to expand these services to everyone who needs them. The American Families Plan would make significant investments in  universal preschool for 3- and 4-year-olds , which would help more struggling families obtain the child care they need to work, better meeting their families’ basic needs and building future economic stability. The plan would also cap child care costs for low- and moderate-income families at 7 percent of their income, making it far more affordable and manageable as they juggle other needs.

Another bill currently introduced in Congress, the Child Care for Working Families Act (CCWFA), would ensure free or affordable child care for 76 percent of working families with children under the age of 6, expanding quality care for millions of families. As Congress deliberates future funding, it must invest in affordable, high-quality child care and early education, providing parents with the means to foster family security and healthy child development.

For more information on child care and early childhood education, see “ Understanding the True Cost of Child Care for Infants and Toddlers ,” “ Working Families Are Spending Big Money on Child Care ,” and “ Saving Child Care Means Preserving Jobs and Supporting Working Families and Small Businesses .”

9. Expand access to health care

Since it was signed into law in 2010, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has expanded access to high-quality, affordable health coverage for millions of Americans , especially those with preexisting conditions . Today, 31 million Americans are enrolled in coverage through the ACA marketplaces or the law’s expansion of Medicaid. However, 12 states continue to refuse to expand their Medicaid programs to cover adults making up to 138 percent of the federal poverty guideline —placing a heavy burden on families already on the brink. About 2.2 million uninsured people are without an affordable option for health insurance because they live in nonexpansion states and have incomes too low to qualify for marketplace premium tax credits.

Expanding Medicaid would mean more than just access to health care; it would give people financial protection from unexpected medical costs and free up limited household income for other basic needs such as paying rent and putting food on the table. Increases in Medicaid enrollment are associated with reduced rates of medical debt and other unpaid bills among low-income individuals. Studies also link Medicaid coverage to improved access to health care services, greater financial security, lower mortality rates , reduced racial health care disparities , and lower rates of eviction .

While the American Rescue Plan included increased federal Medicaid funding for two years as an incentive to encourage more states to expand their programs, it is unlikely that the remaining nonexpansion states will take up this option. Congress has an opportunity to enact federal policies that ensure people in the Medicaid coverage gap can gain access to affordable, comprehensive health insurance.

For more information on Medicaid, see “ The Pandemic and Economic Crisis Are Wake-Up Call for State Medicaid Expansion ,” “ Expanding Medicaid in All States Would Save 14,000 Lives Per Year ,” and “ Building On the ACA To Reduce Health Insurance Disruptions .”

10. Reform the criminal justice system and enact policies that support successful reentry

Robust changes are needed to restructure and reform a U.S. criminal justice system that incarcerates more of its citizens than any other country in the world , holding about 2.3 million people in prisons, jails, and other correctional facilities. If not for the rapid increase in mass incarceration since 1980, poverty rates would have dropped by 20 percent by 2009. The impact on communities of color is particularly staggering: Black and Latino men are, respectively, 6 times and 2.5 times more likely to be incarcerated than white men; and Black and Latina women are, respectively, 1.7 times and 1.3 times more likely to be incarcerated than white women. Likewise, Native Americans are incarcerated at more than twice the rate of white Americans.

Mass incarceration is a key cause and consequence of poverty. When a person is incarcerated, their family must find a way to make ends meet without a necessary source of income. Additionally, even a minor criminal record or an arrest without a conviction can prevent an individual from getting a job, housing, or certain benefits, contributing to cycles of multigenerational poverty . Currently, there are more than 44,000 legal sanctions that create barriers to housing for people with criminal records. Moreover, various restrictions prohibit justice-involved individuals’ access to SNAP and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits if they have prior felony drug convictions, unless additional requirements are fulfilled. This can include being required to wait for months after completion of a sentence to be considered eligible or to participate in mandatory periodic drug testing, both of which are unnecessary obstacles that hinder successful reentry.

Sentencing reform is essential to addressing mass incarceration. Policymakers should also implement clean slate laws , which help expand access to automated criminal record clearing, and explore alternatives to incarceration, such as diversion programs for individuals with mental health and substance abuse challenges. Additionally, it is critical to review the role of policing in public safety, health, and well-being. There has been a recent move across the nation to divert away from police certain health, public safety, and community care emergency responses and funds—such as responding to people experiencing a mental health crisis—that better fit agencies and social workers. Barriers to employment, housing, education, and public assistance must also be removed. A decades-old criminal record should not consign an individual to a life of poverty .

For more information on criminal justice, see “ A Criminal Record Shouldn’t Be a Life Sentence to Poverty ” and “ Criminal Records Create Cycles of Multigenerational Poverty .”

11. Invest in affordable, accessible housing

One in 4 renter households in the United States is extremely low income, and half of renters are moderately or severely cost-burdened , meaning that they pay more than a third to half of their income on rent and utilities.

Overall, Native American, Black, and Latinx renters are more likely to be extremely low income . A long history of racially targeted policies has worsened housing security for people of color, who are more cost-burdened and face more discrimination in obtaining and maintaining housing. Facing and experiencing eviction, which also disproportionately affects communities of color—and Black women in particular—can lead to negative mental and physical health outcomes , difficulty obtaining future housing , and exacerbated financial hardship, all of which can fuel cycles of multigenerational poverty .

Disparities have persisted during the pandemic, as renters of color and disabled renters report higher rates of housing insecurity. These and other measures of housing insecurity contribute to the ongoing homelessness crises and continue to put the most vulnerable community members at risk. Rates of homelessness, and particularly chronic homelessness , are on the rise. The 2020 point-in-time count conducted by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development estimated that more than 580,000 people experience homelessness on any given night, a number that is likely a vast undercount. Strikingly, of those experiencing homelessness, nearly 25 percent are people with disabilities.

Investments in permanent housing programs, such as Housing First and a national Homes Guarantee , should be supported to provide a path for people experiencing homelessness or living in transitional housing to obtain and maintain long-term, stable housing, while also addressing the shortage of more than 7 million affordable housing units .

Policymakers should also increase renter protections by guaranteeing a right to counsel , investing in tenant-landlord mediation , regulating the use of background checks in rental housing applications, and making the Housing Choice Voucher and rental assistance programs an entitlement that does not sunset. Furthermore, policymakers should prohibit source-of-income discrimination , which creates barriers to obtaining rental housing for households that receive housing vouchers. To further prevent housing discrimination and build more inclusive communities, the disparate impact rule under the Fair Housing Act should be reinstated alongside the revised Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing rule, which is currently set to go into effect at the end of July .

For more information on housing, see “ The Pandemic Has Exacerbated Housing Instability for Renters of Color ” and “ Recognizing and Addressing Housing Insecurity for Disabled Renters .”

12. Modernize the Supplemental Security Insurance program

Supplemental Security Insurance (SSI) is an essential anti-poverty program for the disability community, providing monthly cash assistance for those with little or no income and assets. Nearly 8 million people received benefits in May 2021, and in 2019, 57 percent of recipients reported SSI being their sole source of income. However, little has been done to maintain this program, leaving millions of disabled people farther and farther behind.

Numerous policy adjustments could update SSI and help pull the disability community out of poverty. Raising the minimum benefit to at least the poverty level is a great first step. In 2021, the maximum benefit for individuals was raised to $794 per month , which is well below the federal poverty guideline of $1,073 per month . Asset limits also need to be increased, as they have not been updated since 1989 . Currently, individuals and couples are allowed limits of $2,000 and $3,000, respectively, in assets, such as money in joint or personal bank accounts , investments in stocks or bonds, and life insurance policies with a total face value of more than $1,500. Asset limits have become deadly poverty traps , particularly in times of disaster such as the pandemic, as they prevent recipients from being able to save, forcing them into economic precarity. Other rule changes, including the elimination of penalties for in-kind support from family and friends and an update to income disregards that have not been changed since the program began in 1974 would go a long way toward ensuring that this program remains a strong safety net for disabled adults and children.

The continued disinvestment in SSI has essentially reduced its efficacy, putting disabled people on the brink of poverty and destitution. Prioritizing the economic security of such marginalized communities helps ensure the security of all communities. Congress must act now to help the disability community not only weather the pandemic but also build a stable financial future.

For more information on SSI, see “ A Deadly Poverty Trap: Asset Limits in the Time of the Coronavirus .”

It is possible for America to dramatically cut poverty. From 1959 to 1973, a strong economy, along with investments in family economic security, helped cut the U.S. poverty rate in half . Investments in nutrition assistance have resulted in improvements in educational attainment, food insecurity, and health outcomes. Expansions of public health insurance have contributed to lower infant mortality rates and better overall health and health care access for children at a reduced out-of-pocket cost. Rental assistance programs have been shown to decrease stress, eviction, and homelessness among low-income renters. And expansions in tax credits for poor families have helped boost incomes for the next generation, on top of improving educational and health outcomes.

Poverty is preventable. America has the power and ability to ensure that all people residing within its borders can build financial stability and live their lives with dignity. The policy priorities detailed above are essential for preventing poverty and promoting economic opportunity for all. As a nation, we simply need to build the political will to enact these intersectional policies so that all residents can attain their American dream.

The Latest Poverty, Income, and Food Insecurity Data Reveal Continuing Racial Disparities

Dec 21, 2022

Kyle Ross , Justin Dorazio

The authors would like to thank Lily Roberts, Mara Pellittieri, Mia Ives-Rublee, Jaboa Lake, Areeba Haider, Justin Schweitzer, Seth Hanlon, Diana Boesch, Robin Bleiweis, Karla Walter, Laura McSorley, Rasheed Malik, Emily Gee, and CAP’s Editorial team for their contributions.

The positions of American Progress, and our policy experts, are independent, and the findings and conclusions presented are those of American Progress alone. A full list of supporters is available here . American Progress would like to acknowledge the many generous supporters who make our work possible.

Arohi Pathak

Former Director, Policy

Policy Analyst, Inclusive Economy

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Solutions to poverty that actually work

We're behind on progress towards ending poverty, but that doesn't mean that it's impossible. Here are nine solutions that work.

Aug 28, 2024

Last year, the United Nations announced that the world is “nowhere near” meeting the Sustainable Development Goals , a series of humanitarian targets to reach by 2030. This includes the number one goal: “End poverty in all its forms everywhere.” 

However, that doesn’t mean that we can’t end poverty . Every day, countless initiatives, interventions, and projects are led by Concern, our partners, and the communities we work with that help thousands of families break the cycle of poverty , once and for all. Here are nine solutions to poverty that actually work.

Learn more about how we're working to end poverty

Every year, Concern reaches tens of millions of people around the world with proven methods and programs that reduce poverty. Learn more about our work — and how you can be a part of it.

1. Foster equality

One of the main causes of poverty is inequality — the systemic barriers that lead to groups of people going without representation in their communities. For a community or country to work its way out of poverty, all groups must be involved in the decision-making process — especially when it comes to having a say in the things that determine your place in society. 

One key example of this is gender equality. According to the UN , the cost of women’s unpaid labor adds up to $10 trillion per year. That’s 13% of the global GDP. In parts of Africa and Asia , women own less than 20% of agricultural land, yet make up 60% of the agricultural workforce. Former FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva said in 2016 that “women are the backbone of our work in agriculture… when women have opportunities, the yields on their farms increase – also their incomes. Natural resources are better managed. Nutrition is improved. And livelihoods are more secured.”

Gender is just one of the many inequalities, and many people face more than one form of marginalization at a time. While correcting these inequalities won’t be a solution to poverty in and of itself, it’s essential to every other solution we work towards.

2. Build resilience

Poverty is most likely to occur when there is a high combination of inequality and risk. In this case, risk being the hazards a person or a group faces, combined with their level of vulnerability within a community. 

For instance, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has suffered decades of ongoing conflict. Millions of Congolese have been displaced to temporary camps and shelters, and still face the threat of violence. Those hazards are compounded when you take into account other crises currently affecting the country, and are even greater for internally-displaced women and children, as well as the elderly and disabled. 

This is why emergency and humanitarian responses are key to fighting poverty in fragile contexts such as the DRC. With health and nutrition emergencies, such as the protracted hunger crisis in the DRC or the rising cholera epidemic in the country, we work to ensure that communities (and especially the most vulnerable members of each community) have the resources they need, including food assistance, cash transfers, and medical care, as well as longer-term development solutions that help build resilience — giving even displaced communities the material and financial safety nets they need to handle uncertain situations. 

3. Focus on communities most affected by the climate crisis

When we talk about “ resilience ” in the context of Concern’s work, more often than not we are speaking about climate resilience. According to the World Bank , climate change could force an additional 100 million people into extreme poverty over the next decade without any urgent action taken. Climate resilience comprises a series of responses to climate change that help the communities most affected by the crisis to weather the storms (and every other weather event that may threaten their safety and way of life). 

At Concern, many of the communities where we respond to the climate crisis are affected largely through agriculture and pastoralism, which they rely on for both their livelihoods and food. Solutions like Climate Smart Agriculture are proven to help farmers adapt to the changing ecosystem on their land and improve both the quality and quantity of their harvests. Early warning/early action (EWEA) and other disaster risk reduction strategies help communities avoid excessive loss and damage when a disaster hits.

What we talk about when we talk about resilience

“Resilient” isn’t something we call people we work with in order to downplay their suffering. It’s something we help them cultivate at a community level.

4. Increase access to education

According to UNESCO, if all students in low-income countries had just basic reading skills (and nothing else), an estimated 171 million people could escape extreme poverty. If all adults completed secondary education, we could cut the global poverty rate by more than half. Education develops skills and abilities, corrects some of the inequities that come from marginalization, and decreases risk and vulnerability. 

Some of the key areas of focus for making sure that education is truly for all involve breaking down the barriers to education — creating access in remote areas and supporting teachers in their work to deliver quality education . We also ensure that education is available to children living in fragile contexts, which often adapts to the events that they’ve faced (such as violence, conflict, and displacement) to ensure that they have the proper psychosocial support to really learn, rather than fall behind. 

5. Improve food and nutrition security

Poverty is fueled by inequality, vulnerability, and hazards, and hunger is a driving force behind vulnerability. When a person doesn’t have enough to eat, their immune system is more easily compromised, they don’t have the physical or cognitive strength to make it through the day, and they often lack enough energy to work. This creates a vicious cycle between poverty and hunger . 

Stark evidence now demonstrates the enormous scale of nutritional issues in low-income countries, as well as their human and financial costs. As a result, Concern — along with many other NGOs and governments — has made an unprecedented commitment to prioritizing nutrition in the fight to end poverty. Many of our livelihood programs also include nutrition components, such as our recent work in Ethiopia and Kenya with Lifesaving Education and Assistance to Farmers . Getting the right amount of calories and nutrients every day can go a long way to ending poverty. 

6. Increase access to clean water, sanitation, and hygiene services

Like hunger and malnutrition, contaminated water can lead to debilitating illnesses. What’s more, over the last 20 years, the lack of safe drinking water and basic sanitation has gone up  — from affecting 197 million people in 2004 to 211 million people in 2024. This adds up: The waterborne illnesses that result from this shortage contribute to 1.4 million deaths per year, as well as 50% of global malnutrition. 

The link between improved water access and declining poverty rates goes beyond health. When communities have better access to safe and clean water, those who often spend their time collecting water from further away will have more time to spend on other, more meaningful pursuits. Water is also an issue of gender equality : Current estimates suggest that women and girls collectively spend 200 million hours every day walking long distances to fetch water.

7. Provide quality and affordable healthcare for all

One of the knock-on effects of nutritional or waterborne diseases is that the most vulnerable people — people who are often more likely to get these illnesses in the first place — usually lack affordable and quality healthcare options, both for treatment and preventative care. This is also true for people who sustain injuries that may prevent them from working. 

What’s more, maternal health is a huge link in the chain of how we end poverty. Pregnant people need regular checkups and more nutritional care to ensure that their child is born with the best possible future for their health and development (malnourished mothers often pass that on to their unborn child). Concern helps to train local healthcare workers who in turn work within their communities, monitoring childhood nutrition , and providing health demonstrations. We’ve also found mobile clinics to be an effective way of providing regular care in hard-to-reach communities, whether they’re in the remote Lake Chad Basin or on one of Bangladesh’s many islands . 

8. Achieve lasting peace

While estimates around data for the country vary, Syria ’s poverty rate has increased from approximately 12% in 2007 to 83% in 2019. On the other hand, the end of conflict in Cambodia helped to grow its middle class: The country’s poverty rate dropped from 47.8% in 2007 to 13.5% by 2014. 

Ending all wars and conflicts is a tall order, but conflict is one of the biggest contributors to poverty, and ending poverty will ultimately become a political issue and part of a larger peacekeeping mission.

9. Give people cash

Cambodia’s transition from wartime to peace included the repatriation of over 300,000 refugees. This could have been a disaster, placing a strain on resources and creating financial dire straits. One of the reasons the transition was so smooth, however (and one of the reasons that Concern worked itself out of a job in Cambodia) was cash and credit. 

Concern worked with many Cambodian returnees and local governments to establish a microfinancing model in the country, including village savings and loans and cash transfer services. People were able to get the tools and resources they needed to rebuild their lives and homes, without falling into further debt due to high interest rates. Between 1998 and 2018, Cambodia’s economy grew by an average of 8% each year, and its middle class began to flourish. This is an example of how Concern was able to hand over its programming entirely to local partners to continue the work to end poverty. 

While the traditional image of humanitarian aid may be crates of supplies like food, water, and tents, distributing cash has become more common. It’s cheaper and faster to get into a country, gives its recipients the autonomy to make their own purchasing decisions, and supports local and national economies. Sometimes, a small startup grant (even as small as $100) is all it takes to help a family living below the poverty line to launch a new business, while keeping on top of their bills and keeping their children fed and in school. 

Ultimately, this is the theory that underscores all of our solutions to poverty: Help people get the resources they need to offset risks and work with communities to reduce the inequalities and vulnerabilities that many of their members face, so that when emergencies strike, they aren’t left further behind.

Concern’s work to end poverty

At Concern, we work to sustainably end poverty by addressing inequality and risk, tailoring solutions that support the specific forms of inequality and vulnerabilities faced within each community. 

Equality, particularly gender equality, is a pivotal part of all of our programs, and we work with community members and leaders to question and challenge the underlying assumptions that perpetuate equality gaps while designing solutions that accommodate people of all genders, levels of ability, ages, races, social status, and more. We aim for equality of outcomes, not equality of inputs. 

From there, we look at the specific risks and conditions that cause poverty in a specific country, region, or community. Often our solutions to poverty work with families to build livelihoods that include more than one source of income. We mentor program participants and train them on business management, marketing, bookkeeping, and other essential skills. We also provide cash grants and help to establish local Village Savings and Loans Associations (and other similar committees) to help create community safety nets. 

What we have found through more than 55 years of work is that the communities and individuals we work with already know what they want to do, they just need a few resources to make it happen. We provide those resources, along with some sustainable means of keeping them up long after we’re needed.

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Solutions to Poverty

Subscribe to the center for economic security and opportunity newsletter, isabel v. sawhill isabel v. sawhill senior fellow emeritus - economic studies , center for economic security and opportunity.

April 26, 2007

Thank you for inviting me to testify on what might be done to reduce poverty in America. As a Senior Fellow and Co-Director of the Center on Children and Families at Brookings, I have done extensive work on these issues; although I should note that the views I will express are my own and should not be attributed to other staff, trustees, or funders of the Brookings Institution. Let me first summarize my testimony.

First, I strongly believe that reducing poverty requires a focus both on what government needs to do and on what individuals need to do. We need a combination of responsible policies and responsible behavior.

Second, although there are many things that might be done to reduce poverty in the U.S., I want to argue for a focus on three priorities: getting a good education, not having children before you marry, and working full-time. Government should expect people to make real efforts to comply with each of these norms. When they do, then government should reward such behavior by making sure that those who play by the rules will not be poor. The analysis we have done at Brookings shows that individuals who play by these rules are much less likely to be poor than those who don’t.

Third, one of the most effective policies we could put in place to ensure that everyone gets a good education would be to provide very high-quality early education to all children from low-income families. Many people believe that education in the preschool years only affects young children. In fact, the evidence from both neuroscience and from carefully done program evaluations shows that preschool experiences have long-lasting effects and may be the most cost-effective way to insure that more children are successful in the K-12 years, graduate from high school, go on to college, and earn more as adults. The federal government could further this goal by providing matching funding to states that are willing to invest in high-quality early education for those living in low-income neighborhoods, starting in the first year of life.

Fourth, too many of our teens and young adults are having children before they are married and before they are ready to be good parents. In my view, the solution to this problem resides as much in the larger culture-in what parents, the media, faith communities and key adults say and do-as it does in any shift in government policy per se. However, government can help by providing resources to those fighting this battle in the nongovernmental sector, by insuring that its own policies do not inadvertently encourage childbearing outside of marriage, and by supporting programs that have had some success in reducing early, out-of-wedlock childbearing.

Finally, encouraging and rewarding work is also very important. I support the idea of work requirements in welfare, and perhaps in other programs as well, but I fear that the kind of increased employment we’ve seen among welfare mothers will be a Pyrrhic victory if we don’t find ways to provide more assistance in the form of a higher minimum wage, a more generous EITC, and additional child care and health care assistance. In my testimony today-at the suggestion of your staff-I will focus especially on preschool education and on the need to decrease childbearing outside of marriage and increase the share of children growing up in two-parent, married families. But I have written elsewhere about the importance of providing additional work supports for low-income working families.

Economic Studies

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• Poverty and How This Problem Can Be Solved Words: 650
• World Poverty as a Global Social Problem Words: 1204
• Poverty: Causes and Reduction Measures Words: 1146
• Poverty, Its Social Context, and Solutions Words: 826
• Global Poverty: Tendencies, Causes and Impacts Words: 1697
• Child Poverty Assessment in Canada Words: 2325
• Poverty and Homelessness in Canada Words: 2561
• Global Poverty and Factors of Influence Words: 1465
• Wealth and Poverty Sources in America Words: 2266
• Poverty: Behavioral, Structural, Political Factors Words: 850
• The Issue of the Poverty in the USA Words: 2049
• Poverty as a Social Problem Words: 834
• Poverty Elimination in Perspective Words: 1099
• Social Policy and Welfare – Poverty and Deprivation Words: 1426
• Global Poverty and Human Development Words: 564
• Brazil’ Poverty and Inequality Words: 578
• Poverty and Homelessness: Dimensions and Constructions Words: 859

Poverty: Causes and Solutions to Problem

Introduction, the causes of poverty, inclusive economic growth as an answer to poverty, employment opportunities and entrepreneurship.

Poverty is a global economic and social problem that has persisted throughout the centuries. Attempts to establish the causes of poverty and the solutions to the issue have been made since the emergence of early civilizations. Despite the significant drop in the numbers of the extremely poor in the past few decades, particularly in developing countries, poverty remains one of the most serious challenges to governments worldwide. Economic growth can help alleviate many issues that cause poverty. Creating new jobs and improving universal access to education and medical care can considerably enhance the quality of life for low-income households. However, the research proves that economic development benefits the deprived groups only when governments implement targeted socio-economic policies and keep track of their efficiency.

There are multiple theories that try to establish the causes of poverty. Some of those explain it using solely economic models; others consider social factors as well. The first kind focuses on how low per capita income creates intergenerational poverty caused by inadequate access to education and health care (Sabah et al., 2017). However, these theories are somewhat limited, as, for example, in countries lacking quality education and health care, higher income does not necessarily guarantee a better life. Other theories point out the significance of social (ethnic, gender, religious) disparities as a limiting factor, especially in developing countries (Sabah et al., 2017). Several studies have established the relation between poverty and the size of the household. Islam et al. (2016) note that households with more than five members, a young head of the family, and female-headed households are the most vulnerable. Overall, most scholars agree that poverty is defined by limited access to vital resources. It is a complex phenomenon caused by a multitude of economic, political, and social factors, which requires a holistic approach in its analysis.

Numerous scholars have questioned the impact of economic growth on poverty levels over the last few decades. However, multiple studies prove that the economic boom at the end of the 20th century helped resolve long-standing poverty issues in developing countries. Khan et al. (2019) state that “economic growth at macro-level consequent better health services and improved quality of education, whereas at micro-level it consequent increased individual’s income and provided employment opportunities, thereby reducing poverty” (p. 769). Fosu (2017) attributes the significant change in poverty levels in Latin American and Asian countries in the last quarter of the 20th century to high GDP growth. However, GDP growth is not necessarily indicative of lower poverty rates. Fosu (2017) notes that “income is generally a better reflector of poverty than GDP is” (p. 313). According to Škare and Družeta (2016), economic growth in China and India resulted in a significant increase in per capita income, despite soaring income inequalities. While the perception of the relation between economic development and lower poverty levels has evolved significantly throughout the last decades, most researchers agree that growth is essential to fighting poverty.

Nevertheless, income inequality is a major factor that can reduce the positive impact of a healthy economy. Fosu (2017) states that income disparities in Botswana have persisted despite rapid GDP growth, while lesser progress in the Ghanaian economy had a more significant impact on poverty levels. Corruption is another factor that can hinder the positive effect of growth. Niyimbanira (2017) notes that in many African countries, economic development primarily benefited the elites and did not change much for low-income households. Škare and Družeta (2016) conclude that the original “trickle-down” theory of the post-war period, which implies that a healthy economy guarantees lower poverty levels, needs serious reconsideration. The latest research shows that while economic growth is essential in order to alleviate poverty, its impact can vary significantly depending on other social and political factors. Therefore, it should be used to implement social policies and make investments in jobs, education, and health sectors that target the most deprived and vulnerable groups.

Economic development contributes to the creation of new jobs, which can significantly reduce poverty levels. Nguyen (2016) states that “there is a positive relationship between high unemployment and widespread poverty” (p. 115). Therefore, the reduction of unemployment rates should be one of the governments’ main priorities in developing countries. Nguyen (2016) observers that the Caribbean states with a high focus on human capital have been far more successful in handling the poverty issue than other countries in the region. Niyimbanira (2017) underpins the significance of creating job opportunities that can provide a decent stable income for unemployed youth. Along with job creation, increasing the minimum wage is crucial to reduce poverty in developing countries (Niyimbanira, 2017). The poor are often inclined to accept any job offers, even those that do not provide sufficient income (Ramadhani & Putra, 2019). However, it is important to notice that in countries where a significant fraction of the labor force is employed unofficially, raising the minimum wage will not change much (Ramadhani & Putra, 2019). Overall, sustainable job creation is arguably the most important tool in eliminating poverty.

In developed countries, policymakers often emphasize the crucial role of entrepreneurship in fighting poverty. Lee and Rodriguez-Pose (2020) note that “rapid growth forces firms to be more inclusive when hiring” (para. 9). However, as previously noted, lower unemployment does not guarantee a reduction in poverty levels, and the impact of entrepreneurship on the poor has to be studied in more detail. Lee and Rodriguez-Pose (2020) state that only entrepreneurship in tradable sectors contributes to reducing poverty. Thus, governments should prioritize investment in manufacturing, financial services, and research and development as entrepreneurship in these sectors might be of the greatest benefit to low-income families.

Education is another key factor that impacts average income growth. Ramadhani and Putra (2019) state that insufficient education limits one’s job opportunities and reduces potential income. Economic development can be used to improve access to high-quality education for the poor and increase their employment opportunities. Niyimbanira (2017) argues that low skills and the absence of decent education are the driving forces of unemployment and poverty in developing countries. For example, in South Sudan, over 80 percent of the earners in low-income households have no formal education (Shimeles & Verdier-Chouchane, 2016). However, despite the importance of universal primary education, poor families in African countries are often reluctant to send their children to school. According to Shimeles and Verdier-Chouchane (2016), “low returns to primary education reduce incentives for households to send children to school, thereby limiting the poverty mitigating scope of primary education” (p. 168). Targeted income subsidies for primary education could solve this problem (Shimeles & Verdier-Chouchane, 2016). However, to implement these initiatives, stable economic growth is required.

Higher education plays an equally important role in alleviating poverty. In the 2000s, Surin and Si-Saket provinces in northeastern Thailand have shown significant GDP per capita growth; however, only Surin managed to significantly reduce poverty levels (Moore & Donaldson, 2016). The success of the policies implemented in Surin was largely a result of well-educated local youth engagement in NGOs that offered support to local farmers and prevented the implementation of harmful initiatives (Moore & Donaldson, 2016). This case shows how economic growth can contribute to reducing poverty through better education, and how quality education, in turn, can lead to economic growth.

Ensuring universal access to medical care is a measure that can significantly improve the quality of life for the most marginalized groups. The inefficiency of the healthcare industry remains one of the most pressing issues in African countries. Health issues decrease individuals’ chances of getting well- paid jobs and contribute to poverty. Bawah et al. (2019) cite the Community Health and Family Planning Project (CHPS) as an example of a successful policy that addresses poverty issues in Ghana. The study confirms that qualified professionals in rural communities helped lower child mortality rates and decrease health issues among the populace (Bawah et al., 2019). Providing access to quality medical care, in this case, helped reduce the gap between the rich and the poor through decreasing the economic pressure on low-income households.

While poverty is a phenomenon usually associated with developing countries, it remains a pressing issue even in the US. In the developed countries, high costs of medical care can contribute towards higher poverty levels, especially among the minorities (Remler et al., 2017). Implementation of social policies in healthcare in the US is an example of the inclusive economic growth approach that can lead to poverty alleviation. Remler et al. (2017) state that “Medicaid reduced poverty among its recipients by a remarkable 17.1 percentage points” (p. 1834). Overall, the benefits of public health insurance programs have a significant correlation to poverty reduction (Remler et al., 2017). Therefore, in the developed countries, policymakers should seek to implement public programs and premium benefits, as they have proven to be efficient in the fight against poverty.

Poverty alleviation is a complex issue that requires a systematic approach. As the causes of poverty can vary significantly across the globe, empirical research is necessary to find efficient policies in every specific case. While economic growth arguably had a significant impact on poverty levels in less developed regions at the end of the 20th century, the research has proven that an increase in GDP has not benefited the poor in many countries. Numerous examples of inefficient use of political and financial assets in Africa, Latin America, and Asia show that economic development leads to a reduction in poverty only when the governments implement targeted pro-poor policies. Employment and education opportunities, as well as accessible health care for low-income households, should be prioritized. Numerous studies confirm that targeting these areas leads to a significant reduction in poverty levels in the long term, and it helps to close the gap between the poorest and the rich. The most recent research established that inequality has a strong impact on poverty levels. Therefore, it is vital to ensure that low-income households actually benefit from economic growth, and it does not lead to larger income discrepancies instead.

Bawah, A. A., Philips, J. F., Asuming, P. O., Jackson, E. F., Walega, P., Kanmiki, E. W., Sheff, M. C., & Oduro, A. (2019). Does the provision of community health services offset the effects of poverty and low maternal educational attainment on childhood mortality? An analysis of the equity effect of the Navrongo experiment in Northern Ghana . SSM – Population Health, 7.

Fosu, A. K. (2017). Growth, inequality, and poverty reduction in developing countries: Recent global evidence . Research in Economics, 71 (2), 306-336.

Islam, D., Sayeed, J., & Hossain, N. (2016). On determinants of poverty and inequality in Bangladesh . Journal of Poverty, 21 (4), 1-20.

Khan, H. U. R., Nassani, A. A., Aldakil, A. M., Abro, M. M. Q., Islam, T., & Zaman, K. (2019). Pro-poor growth and sustainable development framework: Evidence from two step GMM estimator . Journal of Cleaner Production, 206, 767-784.

Lee, N., & Rodriguez-Pose, A. (2020). Entrepreneurship and the fight against poverty in US cities . Environment and Planning A: Economy and Space, preprint.

Moore, J. D., & Donaldson, J. A. (2016). Human-scale economics: Economic growth and poverty reduction in northeastern Thailand. World Development, 85, 1-15. 

Nguyen, H. Q. (2016). Relationship between economic growth, unemployment and poverty: Analysis at provincial level in Vietnam . International Journal of Economics and Finance, 8 (12), 113-119.

Niyimbanira, F. (2017). Analysis of the impact of economic growth on income inequality and poverty in South Africa: The case of Mpumalanga province. International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, 7 (4), 254-261.

Remler, D. K., Korenman, S. D., & Hyson, R. T. (2017). Estimating the effects of health insurance and other social programs on poverty under the Affordable Care Act . Health Affairs, 36 (10), 1828-1837.

Ramadani, F., & Putra, F. S. (2019). Having a job is Not enough to escape poverty: Case of Indonesian working poors. IPTEK Journal of Proceedings Series, 6, 58-64.

Sabah, A, Rusdi, O., & Mohd Udin, M. (2017). Theories of poverty to the integrative theory. A comparative analysis: Accordance to the situation of Iraq . IOSR Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 22 (5), 47-50.

Shimeles, A. & Verdier-Chouchane, A. (2016). The key role of education in reducing poverty in South Sudan . African Development Review, 28 (2), 162-176.

Škare, M., & Družeta R. P. (2016). Poverty and economic growth: A review . Technological and Economic Development of Economy, 22 (1), 156-175.

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Poverty Essay for Students and Children

500+ words essay on poverty essay.

“Poverty is the worst form of violence”. – Mahatma Gandhi.

How Poverty is Measured?

For measuring poverty United nations have devised two measures of poverty – Absolute & relative poverty.  Absolute poverty is used to measure poverty in developing countries like India. Relative poverty is used to measure poverty in developed countries like the USA. In absolute poverty, a line based on the minimum level of income has been created & is called a poverty line.  If per day income of a family is below this level, then it is poor or below the poverty line. If per day income of a family is above this level, then it is non-poor or above the poverty line. In India, the new poverty line is  Rs 32 in rural areas and Rs 47 in urban areas.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

Causes of Poverty

According to the Noble prize winner South African leader, Nelson Mandela – “Poverty is not natural, it is manmade”. The above statement is true as the causes of poverty are generally man-made. There are various causes of poverty but the most important is population. Rising population is putting the burden on the resources & budget of countries. Governments are finding difficult to provide food, shelter & employment to the rising population.

The other causes are- lack of education, war, natural disaster, lack of employment, lack of infrastructure, political instability, etc. For instance- lack of employment opportunities makes a person jobless & he is not able to earn enough to fulfill the basic necessities of his family & becomes poor. Lack of education compels a person for less paying jobs & it makes him poorer. Lack of infrastructure means there are no industries, banks, etc. in a country resulting in lack of employment opportunities. Natural disasters like flood, earthquake also contribute to poverty.

In some countries, especially African countries like Somalia, a long period of civil war has made poverty widespread. This is because all the resources & money is being spent in war instead of public welfare. Countries like India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, etc. are prone to natural disasters like cyclone, etc. These disasters occur every year causing poverty to rise.

Ill Effects of Poverty

Poverty affects the life of a poor family. A poor person is not able to take proper food & nutrition &his capacity to work reduces. Reduced capacity to work further reduces his income, making him poorer. Children from poor family never get proper schooling & proper nutrition. They have to work to support their family & this destroys their childhood. Some of them may also involve in crimes like theft, murder, robbery, etc. A poor person remains uneducated & is forced to live under unhygienic conditions in slums. There are no proper sanitation & drinking water facility in slums & he falls ill often &  his health deteriorates. A poor person generally dies an early death. So, all social evils are related to poverty.

Government Schemes to Remove Poverty

The government of India also took several measures to eradicate poverty from India. Some of them are – creating employment opportunities , controlling population, etc. In India, about 60% of the population is still dependent on agriculture for its livelihood. Government has taken certain measures to promote agriculture in India. The government constructed certain dams & canals in our country to provide easy availability of water for irrigation. Government has also taken steps for the cheap availability of seeds & farming equipment to promote agriculture. Government is also promoting farming of cash crops like cotton, instead of food crops. In cities, the government is promoting industrialization to create more jobs. Government has also opened  ‘Ration shops’. Other measures include providing free & compulsory education for children up to 14 years of age, scholarship to deserving students from a poor background, providing subsidized houses to poor people, etc.

Poverty is a social evil, we can also contribute to control it. For example- we can simply donate old clothes to poor people, we can also sponsor the education of a poor child or we can utilize our free time by teaching poor students. Remember before wasting food, somebody is still sleeping hungry.

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Solutions to poverty to get us to 2030

We’re just a few years away from the deadline to meet the United Nations’  Sustainable Development Goals . Number one on the list: “End poverty in all its forms everywhere.”

This is no small feat, but it’s also not impossible — even if we may need a deadline extension given the economic impact of COVID-19 . 

What would that look like for the world? How do we even begin to sustainably break the cycle of poverty that, as of 2023, has trapped more than 719 million people? There are some key solutions to poverty that help make this goal a reality. Here are the top seven. 

1. Equality and representation for all

One of the main causes of poverty is inequality — the systemic barriers that lead to groups of people without representation or a voice in their communities. In order for a community or country to work its way out of poverty, all groups must be involved in the decision-making process — especially when it comes to having a say in the things that determine your place in society. 

According to the UN’s High-Level Panel for Women’s Economic Empowerment , women’s unpaid labour adds up to $10 trillion per year — 13% of the global GDP. Likewise, according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation , women own less than 20% of agricultural land, yet make up 60% of the agricultural workforce in parts of Africa and Asia. Former FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva said in 2016 that “women are the backbone of our work in agriculture… when women have opportunities, the yields on their farms increase – also their incomes. Natural resources are better managed. Nutrition is improved. And livelihoods are more secured.”

Ensuring that all marginalised communities have a seat at the table and are given the tools they need to succeed is key to all other solutions to poverty. 

2. Building resilience…

Poverty is most likely to occur when there is a high combination of inequality and risk — with risk being its own combination of a person or group’s level of vulnerability and the hazards they face. For instance, the Democratic Republic of Congo has suffered ongoing conflict since declaring independence from France in 1960. 

This means that millions of Congolese are already vulnerable, being away from home in temporary shelters while still facing the threat of conflict. Those hazards are compounded, however, when you take into account other crises that affect the country which, in the last few years, has endured the world’s second-largest Ebola outbreak, a volcanic eruption, and a growing hunger crisis. 

To offset this, we need to ensure that the most vulnerable people and communities are able to build resilience — whether it’s preventative education and treatment support during an epidemic, recovery and resilience interventions in the face of climate disasters, or health, nutrition, and shelter resources for refugees and IDPs . 

3. …especially climate resilience

Resilience against climate change is especially important and deserves its own mention. According to the World Bank , climate change could force an additional 100 million people into extreme poverty over the next decade without any urgent action taken. 

From drought in the Horn of Africa to floods in Pakistan and monsoon season in Bangladesh , we can’t prevent the natural disasters that are becoming more frequent and destructive year after year. But we can help the communities most vulnerable to these crises become better prepared in order to protect their farms, their homes, their loved ones, and their livelihoods. Eco-friendly farming techniques such as Climate Smart Agriculture preserve vital topsoil, allowing land to recover from degradation, and better adapt to extreme weather. 

4. Increase access to education

According to UNESCO, if all students in low-income countries had just basic reading skills, an estimated 171 million people could escape extreme poverty. If all adults completed secondary education, we could cut the global poverty rate by more than half. Education develops skills and abilities, corrects some of the imbalances that come out of marginalisation, and decreases both risk and vulnerability. 

Some of the key areas of focus for making sure that education is truly for all involve breaking down the barriers to education — creating access in remote areas, supporting teachers in their work to deliver quality education, and making sure that education is available to children living in fragile contexts.

5. Improve food security and access to clean water

Simply eating three meals a day and getting a healthy amount of calories and nutrients can go a long way to addressing the cycle of poverty. When a person doesn’t have enough to eat, they lack the strength and energy needed to work. Contaminated water can lead to debilitating illnesses. 

What’s more, improving access to clean water can mean that those who live in rural communities (often women and girls — see our first point on inequality) will save time walking to their nearest water point. Current estimates suggest that women and girls collectively spend 200 million hours every day walking long distances to fetch water.

Adequate healthcare options for all goes hand-in-hand with this solution, and represents a larger need for governments to offer the basic social protections and services to keep their citizens healthy, and give them affordable treatment options when they aren’t. 

6. End war and conflict

We’ve seen this play out time and again: While estimates around data for the country vary, Syria ’s poverty rate has increased from approximately 12% in 2007 to 83% in 2019. Conversely, in Nepal, a decade-long civil war came to a close in 2006, which correlates with a sharp increase in gross national income (GNI) and gross domestic product (GDP) year over year. Likewise, the establishment of a United Nations peacekeeping operation in Cambodia in 1992 (following a deadly civil war and war with Vietnam) helped to forge stability within the country and grow its middle class: The country’s poverty rate dropped from 47.8% in 2007 to 13.5% by 2014. 

No war means that budgets allocated to cover the cost of conflict can be used to deliver public services. It also reduces risks faced by the most vulnerable communities, and ensures that goals towards equality and inclusion can be maintained. 

7. Embrace cash and microfinance

One of the ways Cambodia’s transition from wartime to peace (including the repatriation of over 300,000 Cambodian refugees) was so smooth was thanks to the idea of buying on credit. While such an influx of returnees could place a strain on resources and create financial dire straits, microfinancing models introduced into the country helped to establish savings, loans, insurance, and cash transfer services in communities that need them the most, allowing people to purchase the tools and services they need in order to become self-sufficient. Between 1998 and 2018, Cambodia’s economy grew by an average of 8% each year, and its middle class began to flourish. 

Cash seems like an even more obvious solution to poverty. While the traditional image of humanitarian aid may be crates of supplies like food, water, and tents, distributing cash has become more common. It’s cheaper and faster to get into a country, gives its recipients the autonomy to make their own purchasing decisions, and supports local and national economies. 

Sometimes, a small startup grant (even as small as $100) is all it takes to help a family living below the poverty line to launch a new business while keeping on top of their bills and keeping their children fed. The net effect is that they are able to lift themselves out of poverty, for good. 

It’s a small step — but one that promises a ripple effect of change. 

Solutions to poverty in action

Climate Smart Agriculture: Back to basics to fight climate change and hunger

“I don’t have to worry”: How cash transfers are helping vulnerable mothers in Somaliland

How the "Umodzi" approach is uniting couples in tackling gender inequality

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Home / Essay Samples / Social Issues / Poverty / What Is Poverty: Causes, Effects, and Solutions

What Is Poverty: Causes, Effects, and Solutions

• Category: Social Issues
• Topic: Poverty

Pages: 2 (843 words)

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Defining Poverty

Causes of poverty.

• Income Inequality: Widening income inequality within societies can result in a significant portion of the population living in poverty while a small elite accumulates vast wealth.
• Unemployment and Underemployment: Lack of access to stable employment opportunities, as well as underemployment (jobs that do not provide a livable wage), contribute to poverty.
• Lack of Education: Limited access to quality education can perpetuate cycles of poverty, as individuals may struggle to acquire the skills and knowledge needed for better-paying jobs.
• Healthcare Disparities: Inadequate access to healthcare and healthcare disparities can lead to health-related expenses that push individuals and families into poverty.
• Discrimination and Marginalization: Discrimination based on factors such as race, gender, ethnicity, and disability can limit opportunities and reinforce poverty.
• Geographic Factors: Poverty can be concentrated in certain geographic regions, where limited economic opportunities and resources are available.
• Social Safety Nets: Inadequate social safety nets, including unemployment benefits and food assistance programs, can leave vulnerable individuals without a safety net when they face economic hardships.

Effects of Poverty

• Health: Poverty is linked to higher rates of chronic illnesses, malnutrition, and limited access to healthcare, resulting in poorer overall health and reduced life expectancy.
• Education: Children living in poverty often face barriers to quality education, leading to lower educational attainment and limited future opportunities.
• Psychological Impact: Poverty can contribute to stress, anxiety, and depression, as individuals grapple with financial instability and uncertainty.
• Crime and Violence: High levels of poverty are often associated with increased crime rates and violence within communities.
• Social Exclusion: Poverty can lead to social exclusion and limited participation in civic and community life.
• Inter-generational Cycle: Poverty can be transmitted from one generation to the next, creating a cycle that is difficult to break.

Solutions to Poverty

• Economic Policies: Implementing policies that promote economic growth, equitable income distribution, and fair wages can reduce poverty rates.
• Education and Skills Development: Investing in education and skills training programs can empower individuals to access better job opportunities.
• Access to Healthcare: Ensuring universal access to quality healthcare can mitigate the health-related consequences of poverty.
• Social Safety Nets: Expanding social safety net programs, such as unemployment benefits and food assistance, can provide a safety net for those facing economic hardships.
• Affordable Housing: Addressing housing affordability issues can prevent homelessness and improve overall living conditions.
• Eliminating Discrimination: Enforcing anti-discrimination laws and promoting diversity and inclusion can reduce barriers to economic opportunities.
• Community Development: Investing in marginalized communities through infrastructure development and job creation can uplift entire neighborhoods.
• Global Cooperation: Addressing global poverty requires international collaboration to reduce inequality, promote economic development, and provide humanitarian assistance.

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