In the world today, around 1.4 billion people live in extreme poverty. Many of them lack both food for the day and the power to change their lives. It doesn’t need to be like this. We have the resources required to eliminate poverty. What is needed now is the political will, and leaders with the courage to make decisions that will lead to just and sustainable development.

The responsibility of the rich world

The issue of poverty is also about wealth. Today, people in the rich parts of the world consume the majority of the world’s natural resources. Many of the global regulatory frameworks that govern the world economy and political decision-making favour the already rich countries – and disadvantage the poorest countries.

Diakonia is working to for structural change

This is why Diakonia is working to change the political and economic structures that cause poverty and prevent people from living a dignified life. The issue of global regulatory frameworks that take into consideration the poorest people in the world is even more pressing after the global financial crisis, and the looming climate crisis that is particularly a threat to the survival of the poor and their livelihoods. Hardest hit of all our women, who comprise approximately 70% of people living in extreme poverty.

If global regulatory frameworks and institutions put the needs of the poorer countries in focus, it would be a giant leap forward in the work of wiping out poverty. For this reason, Diakonia has identified a number of areas in which we work to effect change that will favour and benefit women and men living in poverty.

The people of South Africa bear a heavy external debt since the years of apartheid. Photo: Robban Andersson

In many countries international development aid is necessary in order to create possibilities for a long term sustainable development. Photo: Markus Marcetic/Moment Agency

If the agreements on international trade were fair, then more people on earth would have food for the day. On the picture: Kalandar Sakeena Umma in Sri Lanka, who is running a small shop. Photo: Markus Marcetic