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Economy

Poor Countries: Dumping Sites of Rich Nations

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Animals eating waste

It is always being said that one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. But dumping dangerous waste in poor and developing countries sees no treasure from rich man’s trash. In fact, it is the rich man’s burden that a poor man is forced to bear.

Around the world, waste generation is rising fast with more urbanisation and high consumption.

World Bank estimated that waste generation would exceed 70% from the 2016 level and reach 3.40 billion tonnes by 2050.

Also Read: Global Garbage Crisis: How is the World Drowning in its Own Trash?

High-income countries account for only 16% of the global population but generate more than one-third of the world’s waste.

Annual Municipal Waste generated per capita

Source: The World Bank


The UN’s Global E-waste Monitor 2020 report predicted that e-waste will reach 74 metric tons by the year 2030, doubling waste in just 16 years.

The UN’s Global E-waste Monitor 2020 report predicted that e-waste will reach 74 metric tons by the year 2030, doubling waste in just 16 years.

Also Read: Microplastics: The Miraculous Solutions to the Toxic Danger

E-waste has become the fastest generated waste from households due to higher consumption, short life cycle and less reusability. But the fact is e-waste is the most toxic to human health. It generates carcinogenic fumes and wastes that harm human organs.

Animals eating through waste.

Source: Deutsche Welle (DW)

Ragpickers in Nairobi search for recyclable plastic to earn their living. But these people are always the losers for their health and well-being. Plastic as a non-biodegradable product generally ends up in the oceans and causes harm to the flora and fauna of the water as well. Rivers and inland water sources also become polluted in countries with a lack of waste disposal infrastructure.

A legal dispute between Canada and the Philippines discloses the dark side of the global trade of waste.

Fisherman going through waste in a river

Source: Deutsche Welle (DW)

Here a fisherman in the Philippines tries to remove fish traps from plastic-loaded waters.

United Nations Sustainable Goals urged the nations to work hard to make the world cleaner and environment friendly by reducing the impacts of climate change.

But if the poor countries keep accepting the rags of rich world people, then how will it fulfil the promise of a clean and healthy environment for their own people.

Sub-Saharan countries are specially mentioned where waste generation would be tripled by 2050. Hence it is witnessed that countries which are least capable of managing their waste are dealing with the ever-increasing burden of trash in the world.

European Environment Agency says that European countries do not keep track of their e-waste being generated and exported mostly to Asia and West Africa. While A new study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology suggested that the US shipped its discarded mobile and electronic waste to Caribbeans, Hong Kong and Latin America.

Also Read: Illegal Waste Dumping: How to Tackle This Spiralling Crime?

Africa is witnessing a twin menace from high levels of e-waste generated toxic and environmental pollution and already raised global warming effects due to climate change.

Countries of Africa are already facing the huge effects of climate change and many of these are the dumpsites of Europe. Environmentalists and analysts are fearful that such African countries would not be able to meet the sustainable goals for a clean environment.

African environmental expert Nnimmo Bassey says that Africa is becoming a dumpsite for the West for all kinds of waste. He further emphasised other countries are becoming conscious of the ill effects of waste thus rejecting it.

Bassey added that African governments are not taking serious steps to make laws and stop such dumping because they are probably taking payments to let the waste be dumped onto their lands.

What Does the World’s Waste Do to Poor Countries?

Foremost, it contaminates oceans, clogs drains, causes floods, spreads infectious diseases, stinks and pollutes the environment, harms wildlife and damages the overall flora and fauna of already poor countries.

Tearfund, a poverty charity, estimated that between 400000 and 1 million people die each year in developing countries due to diseases spread by mismanaged waste.

Also Read: Plastic Pollution: How Vulnerable Communities Are Adversely Affected By Plastic Wastes

Although, waste picking provides a source of income to the world’s poorest population and also reduces the cost for municipalities. But undoubtedly this is very dangerous and unhealthy work. Burning and smashing of such harmful wastes release pathogens and disease-causing fines in the air and lead to infectious viruses and bacteria in the surroundings.

In fact, disposal of electronic and chemical waste is cancerous and leads to deaths from cancer if not handled with care and with appropriate waste management techniques.

But as such poor nations mostly do not have planned waste management and disposal systems in place. Hence, unsystematic and unprotected waste disposal causes harm to the rag pickers.

Rich Nations Must Pay!

Countries must pay for dumping their trash in poor nations.

Countries generating waste beyond a limit must take measures to set some budget for making dumping countries a better place for people to live. Companies that are generating waste must source their funding in poor nations that are accepting their waste.

Graph showing average waste per person among OECD countries

Developed Nations that ship their waste to poor countries cannot deny their responsibilities for making the environment polluted, seas choked and a nuisance all over.

Each nation must manage their waste on their own territories instead of luring poor nations to accept toxic waste and dispose of their lands.

Nations must know how to consume less, produce less, recycle waste and reuse.

Also Read: The African Great Green Wall

Countries that dump their waste in poor nations know and understand the health and environmental consequences of their acts and still proceed. Hence, they should be penalised.

What Can be Done for the Future?

South Korea is an inspiration here, it once recycled only 2% of its food waste and now achieves 95% of food waste recycling.

Though almost every country in the world signed a UN pact in 2019 to reduce the export of hard-to-recycle plastic waste and even companies pledged to take efforts to cut the production of such plastics and take recycling steps. Now, the implementation of these pledges in a serious manner is most warranted to gain real results beyond pacts and promises.

Estimate of waste added to oceans each year.

Source: National Geographic

Another solution that can handle the problem of mounting waste is the creation of a circular economy as proposed by World Economic Forum and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, with the use of analytics produced by McKinsey & Company.

This system aims at minimising the waste and reusing almost all what we have produced.

Countries should recycle and dispose of all of their waste within their boundaries without shrugging the responsibility towards the already burdened and poor people. Else, these people would not be able to bear the cost of an unhealthy population, polluted environment and damaged ecosystem.

International organizations can fund more waste management and disposal systems like that by funding of infrastructure of recycling capacities by the World Bank.

The world needs a strategy for more growth and less garbage.

In fact, its the duty of economically affluent nations to provide funds, expertise and encouragement to least developed and developing countries to make their waste disposal and recycling systems develop and work effectively.

Recycling will also save the rare earth minerals for future electronic manufacturing and prove an economically beneficial option.

Finally, a healthy and clean environment is a shared advantage for the world and benefits all. 

Economy

Pakistan Crisis Explained – Looming Threat of a Military Coup

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Pakistan crisis

Pakistan Crisis: struggle with terrorism, economy, and political Dispute – over 850 innocent lives lost in Q1 2023.

The South-Asian country is facing a perilous situation with a staggering toll of over 850 innocent lives lost to terror attacks in the first three months of 2023.
As the economy continues to struggle, with long-term allies like China refusing to provide bailouts and political disputes escalating, Pakistan finds itself at a critical crossroads. The judiciary is also not spared from the ongoing tug-of-war.

Now, the big questions are –

  • Can Pakistan recover from its current economic catastrophe?
  • Why terror attacks are on the rise?
  • And is Pakistan on the route of another military coup?

The Economy in Shambles

Over a dozen people were killed as the crowd rushed to grab a pack of flour. Sadly, it’s not an isolated incident.


Ration distribution in Pakistan
Ration distribution in Pakistan (Source: Samaa English)

With inflation at 30% high – the highest recorded in five decades – the costs of essential goods have surged. But the situation only headed south, with Islamabad forced to remove subsidies as Pakistan’s financial support from the IMF dries out.

And all this is happening in a nation still trying to recover from last year’s flood, ravaging the country’s vast swaths in October. A climate catastrophe that killed 1700 people and cost the nation 15 billion USD in damages.

Read More: Pakistan Flood Puts Climate Injustice in the Spotlight: The Age of Catastrophe

On top of it, the currency is in a tailspin. But nobody is ready to help Pakistan bail out.

Why Nobody is Rady to Bailout Pakistan?

In the past, Pakistan has received significant financial aid from countries like UAE and Qatar, amounting to 24.4 billion USD over the last five years, and Chinese commercial banks have loaned over 30 billion USD. These bailouts were primarily driven by humanitarian, common interest, and economic reasons.

However, due to the government’s inability to fulfill previous promises, the countries are reluctant to help Pakistan.

IMF was another major lender of the South-Asian nation. But, the country finds itself caught in a catch-22 situation due to pressures from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to reduce subsidies and curb inflation. On the one hand, to address inflation, the government needs to provide subsidies, but on the other hand, if they cancel subsidies to increase revenue, it may lead to citizen protests.

But this delay in IMF’s bailout comes in contrast to its approval of a 15.6 billion USD loan for Ukraine and the United States’ decision to print 300 billion USD to save a bank in Silicon Valley.

It clearly shows that the priorities of IMF and Western countries are different – which does not include countries like Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

And while stuck in one of the worst economic catastrophes, terror attacks in Pakistan are also on the rise.

The Alarming Surge of Terror Attacks 

Terrorist attacks in Pakistan have been surging since the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan, and 2023 has been one of the deadliest years yet.

The devastating bombing in January, which marked one of the deadliest blasts in Pakistan’s history, is sadly not an isolated incident. Since then, several more attacks have resulted in loss of life and widespread destruction.

Peshawar Bomb Attack
Peshawar Bomb Attack (Source BBC)

In Karachi, a police headquarters was targeted, resulting in the deaths of four individuals. In Balochistan’s Khuzdar district, at least two policemen were killed in a “remote-controlled blast,” and another attack in a crowded market in Balochistan claimed four more lives.

February alone recorded 58 terrorist attacks that killed 62 innocent civilians, including security personnel, civilians, and terrorists themselves, with 134 others injured. 

The situation again escalated on March 4th when the TTP targeted a mosque in Peshawar, claiming the lives of around a hundred people, including most police officers. Despite the government’s efforts, the TTP continues to defy authority, leaving the situation seemingly helpless.

These ongoing and frequent terror attacks highlight the persistent threat faced by Pakistan, with innocent lives being lost and communities being affected by violence and instability.

How is the Politics Further Worsening the Pakistan Crisis?

The government is stuck in a complex situation. The Shabbat Sharief government blames its predecessors for all the economic woes. While the former prime minister, Imran Khan, keeps challenging the very establishment. Today, Imran Khan is facing over 30 cases, including terrorism charges.

The government is also locking horns with the judiciary for control over institutions. Judges are openly called out for being biased.

Amidst the deterioration of the government institution, all eyes are now on the military front of Pakistan – where the real power lies.

Given the country’s crumbling economy and politics, will the commander step in as they have done thrice earlier (1958, 1977, and 1999)?

Is a Military Coup Under Way in Pakistan?

The recent stampede in aid distribution centers paints a very dire picture of the Pakistan crisis. However, the country has come a long way since its last coups.

The situation on the ground is getting bad to worse. The desperation of the ordinary hard-working people is on the rise.

Experts fear there might be slight interventions in the decision-making process. But while the current upheaval might be ringing military coup bells, for now, the power still resides in the hand of the people.

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Children

244 Million Out of School Children (Where’s Their Right to Education?)

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out of school children

Education is the most basic right of every child. But for a staggering 224 million out of school children, education is a luxury they can’t afford.

That’s why, through this article, we are debunking the false mirage of all the “development in educational” and shedding light on:

  • The current status of such millions of out-of-school children
  •  Major driving forces behind the education crisis globally
  •  Potential solutions

244 Million Out of School Children Globally

In 2022, a UNSECO report displayed that over 244 million children and youth between 6 and 18 won’t start a new school year, with the most out-of-school children in the Sub-Saharn region (98 million).

Research has shown that children are the first to bear the brunt in today’s war-torn world and calamities heightened by skyrocketing inflation and extreme climate events.

Though the numbers have come down after the sharp COVID-19 (290 million), the current wars, inflation, and climate change have left aid organizations responsible for financing universal education without sufficient funds.

Throughout the globe, there are various factors causing children to drop out of school, with some countries being hit harder than others. Nigeria, Yemen, and Afghanistan, in particular, are grappling with a staggering increase in the number of out-of-school children, largely due to the following underlying reasons.

High Inflation – Low Economic Safety

For parents unsure, if they’ll have a next meal, sending children to school is the last thing on their minds. For example, over 80 million people in Nigeria live below the poverty line. This has led the country to one of the worst national education crises.

“I miss my teacher, friends, and all my schoolmates.”

10-years old Treasure, Nigeria (source: Frace 24 English)

Security threats, extreme poverty, and lack of public schools contribute to Nigeria’s education catastrophe. Like Treasure, 20 million Nigerian children are out of school, making them highly vulnerable to child labor, abuse, and underage marriages.

8-Year Long Civil War

In Yemen, out-of-school children are at increased risk of exploitation – being forced into civil war (child soldiers), early marriages, and child labor.

Mansour, a 16-years old boy, broke his spine in an accident at work in 2019 and has been unable to walk since. Once, Mansour went to school, studied, and regularly met his friends. Now, he is completely dependent on his mother for everything.

And Mansour is not alone.

Yemen’s war has forced 2 million children out of school, wrecking their future. Moreover, 3.7 million Yemen students consistently miss school due to the withholding of teachers’ salaries (almost 2-3rd of Yemen’s teachers have not received their salary in seven years).

Taliban Takeover

Since Taliba’s takeover in 2021, Afghan women over the age of 12 have been banned from school. With the new academic year starting in March, hundreds of thousands of teenage girls remain barred from classes.

Today, 80% of Afghan girls and young women (2.5 million) are banned from school. Out of which 30% have never even gained a primary education.

Despite repeated claims of reopening schools and universities for women, the Taliban (the de facto government) has failed to follow through. The group made similar claims during its previous rule from 1996 to 2001, but the girls were banned throughout the five-year rule.

“(the ban)takes away their ability to participate in their community in a way where they can ultimately have jobs, become doctors or teachers.”

Catherine Russell, Unicef (Source: al Jazeera) 

While the international community has made the right to women’s education the critical condition for aid negotiation, the Taliban is only giving empty promises in return.

Can Out of the School Children Crisis be Solved?

The out-of-school children problem is multifaceted and diverse. Almost every country’s fraction of students don’t go to school, but the numbers are significantly high in war-torn and under-developed countries. Even for students who are going to school, the quality of education and learning opportunities in such countries is vastly different.

According to a recent study by the world bank, these children are at the Irish of losing $17 trillion in lifetime earnings. And unless actions are taken, learning losses will continue to endanger the future of these children, nations, and the world.

Experts advise that providing school meals to students will encourage poverty-ridden families to send their children to school for food. But this will need funding from international governments and organizations.

Education- A Fundamental Right

The world has come a long way in making education a fundamental right. From only 1 out of every ten literate individuals two centuries ago to today’s 9 in 10 adults with essential reading and writing skills – we’ve made progress.

But, to tackle the current and looming world problems in the 21st century and beyond, we’ll need a strong team of educated people. It’s hard to imagine that even today, millions of children are growing up without the opportunity for education that we had. But the reality remains the same.

So, yes, we’ve come a long way, but a lot of work is still left to make education a fundamental right for every child globally.

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Climate Change

Shein Exposed – The Dark Side of China’s Fast Fashion Giant

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fashion hauls

Shein – one of the world’s top fast fashion websites, popular for its cheap and trendy clothing, has enjoyed explosive growth over the past years. Courtesy of thousands of sponsored fashion hauls and cheap laborers, the company is more popular than ever.

But there’s a dark side Shein doesn’t want you to know – the real cost of fast fashion. In this article, we will unveil the reality of how Shien is providing ultra-cheap fashion, the toll it has on the environment, and how it’s shaping today’s mindless consumerism.

Shein – More than a Fast Fashion Brand

Over the years, She-in has gone from being a low-cost Chinese apparel merchant to a global online fashion giant. Its sales skyrocketed from $10 billion in 2020 to over $100 billion in 2022. The biggest Unique Selling Point (USP) of the brand is low-price trendy clothing, majorly catering to Gen Z women.

The company mass produces thousands of products daily in its 6,000 clothing factories across China. According to Rest of World, the brand includes 2,000 to 10,000 new styles each day, a majority of which are copied from other popular brands or small-scale designers.

But behind the glamourous shield of Shein lies the dirty reality about how the company is able to produce so much at low prices. Blue color laborers forced to work 75-hour shifts with very little time off, and mostly under unfit conditions, are at the heart of the company.

Atrocious Working Conditions

Multiple reports and investigations have exposed how the company consistently violates Chinese labor laws. Journalists have uncovered concrete evidence that Shien’s $7 crop tops were made by workers in unsafe workshops working on minimum wage (often without contracts.)

Inside The Shein Machine,” a Channel 4 documentary, revealed the harsh reality of factory workers through undercover footage. These workers were made to work 17-hour shifts to produce hundreds of garments daily. In one factory, they were paid a base salary of $20 per day, which would be deducted by $14 for every garment with mistakes.

Environmental Impact

The cheap, readily available fabric of choice from Shein is virgin polyester, a material that is not only highly polluting but also incredibly persistent. Its production process releases three times more carbon than cotton, and unlike biodegradable cotton, polyester never breaks down. This is a devastating reality, and it’s Time for a change.

Fast fashion garbage dumps
Fast fashion garbage dumps

According to Time, the company releases over 6.3 million tons of CO2 per year. However, Shein is not alone climate culprit here. Across the board, the fashion industry accounts for about 10% of carbon emissions.

Landfills are overwhelmed with a staggering 93 million tons of textile waste annually, much of which is burned and releases harmful pollutants into the atmosphere.

The Impact of “Fashion Haul” Influencing

Social media is filled with influencers packing huge boxes of fashion-forward, cheap polyester clothing. For those unfamiliar, fashion hauls are young social media creators showing off their latest fashion purchase, rating the product, and recommending the right one to their millions of followers. Titled “Summer fashion haul” and “Bought all this under $50 only”, these videos are mostly targeted to GenZ with the aim to spark a desire to buy the displayed look.

The result – mindless consumerism!

Evoking FOMO in the viewers, these hauls play a crucial part in glorifying fast fashion and normalizing shopping in large quantities. A majority of which is disposed of after a few times.

Shein fashion haul

Promoting driven-to-shop psychology, these fashion hauls have become immensely popular with the hashtag #hauls over 13 billion views and #clothinghaul about 1 billion on TikTok. A majority of these hauls are powered by Shien, with the hashtag #sheinhauls 3.8 million views on the platform.

The fashion hauls are Shein’s critical marketing strategy. Their affiliate collaboration with influencers who gets a 10%-20% commission on each purchase is one of the key reasons why the fast fashion website became the giant it is today.

Shein is on a Decline

Shein, the fast-fashion brand known for its cheap and trendy clothing, has seen a meteoric rise in recent years. However, its sales took a sharp turn in 2022 for the first time since the pandemic, with a few reasons behind the drop.

The slowing post-pandemic economy has left shoppers with less disposable income to spend, and persistent accusations of poor clothing quality, worker mistreatment, and unethical business practices may have finally caught up to the brand.

According to Brandwatch, 70% of online conversations about Shein were negative between 2020 and 2023. However, despite these challenges, Shein remains optimistic and reportedly seeks $3 billion to fuel its expansion in 2023.

The Problem is Bigger than Just Shein

Reports of Shein abusing its workers, producing harmful clothing, and worsening the planet have been circling for years. Still, the brand is thriving with more customers than ever.

This sparks the question – Is Shein really the problem?

And we know the answer. Shein, or any fast fashion brand, has transformed the fashion industry because of multifaceted factors, including affordability, convince, emotional connection, and above all, social pressure.

We are contributing to the exploitation of minimum-wage laborers

We see it, we are engaging with it every day on social media, and we are ridden with negative emotions like addiction and guilt. According to ThredUP, one in three Gen Z feels assisted to fast fashion, whereas one in five feels pressured to keep up with the latest fashion trends.

But that’s not what fashion is about. Created as a medium of self-expression and creativity – today, the industry has taken a 180-degree turn. And sadly, it’s no foreseeable end to the trend. However, a huge section of the population is standing up against fast-fashion brands like Shein.

The Need to Adopt Responsible Fashion

The industry is huge, and Shein is not the only culprit. By engaging in the fast fashion trends, we are giving the green light to brands like Shiens to continue labor exploitation and release humongous amounts of toxic chemicals.

But by educating and supporting ethical and truly sustainable fashion brands, we stand a chance to snowball a positive change in the industry. Fortunately, the trend of responsible fashion is already catching on with young shoppers.

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