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As part of my communication merit badge, I was tasked with stating my opinion on a major issue.
Since world hunger continues to plague many, I thought I would state my opinion on the real problem with the amount of hunger in underdeveloped countries. I think the amount of food and money we are sending is not the problem.
In fact, the U.S. Agency for International Development stated that in 2022 the “United States provided $2 billion in humanitarian assistance to the people of Africa.”
This number does not include all of the donations people have in place.
However, I think the real problem lies deeper than the amount of money we send. Because of different government styles and corruption in many countries, a lot of the money does not reach needy people. Instead, it gets taken by the governments, who sanction what resources given to its population. This can be seen by vendors selling food that was supposed to be a direct donation.
Because of the underlying problems, I think we should put more energy into addressing government corruption that prevents people from receiving the money and food we send.
Jordan Mackintosh