Reasons and solutions for poverty

Despite of a recent significant economic development, poverty still does exist as a global issue, even in highly developed countries. There is a variety of causes to poverty, which require different solutions. This essay provides two main reasons and key solutions for poverty reduction with illustrations from Vietnam. In terms of causes, there might be objective and subjective factors which lead to poverty. On one hand, a population group might face financial difficulties because of unexpected factors such as natural disasters and difficult living conditions. For instance, ethnic minorities in Northern Vietnam are poor mainly because they live in high mountainous areas with ineffective cultivation and frequently confront flooding and coldness. On the other hand, subjective elements, including limited access to public services and shortages of required qualifications, can lead families to hardship. This is illustrated by the fact that people in the same residence may vary in level of wealth. In such cases, low income members may be blamed for laziness. In order to reduce the rate of poverty, various actions need to be taken in accordance with specific underlying problems. Subjectively, poor people should be proactive to find their own ways to escape from poverty. This might include efforts in learning a vocation, improving working skills to work more sufficiently. Nevertheless, in most cases, external assistance from the government and community is essential. For example, more public investments in infrastructure and market-chains are considered effective approaches to address poverty in mountainous and remote areas in Vietnam. To sum up, poverty can be caused by various internal and external factors, depending on specific situations. Interventions, therefore, should be made flexibly and effectively to respond to different underlying causes.