What's the Best Solution?

“…working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world.” –International Monetary Fund (IMF)


"Our mission is to help developing countries and their people reach the goals by working with out partners to alleviate poverty." -World Bank

“Mission of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is to promote policies that will improve the economic social well-being of people around the world.” –OECD

See the similarities? These are the mission statements for the World Bank, IMF, and OECD; international organizations that have strived to reduce global poverty and raise the living standards of those in developing countries for decades. There is no doubt that these economic institutions have helped finance specific projects fostering economic development. They release a plethora of data sets and statistics used by governments to shape important economic policies and decisions, which impact the lives of billions of people around the world. Undisputedly, policy and money loans to developing countries can create economic development and create change in the standard of living for those citizens, but this can be a slow process, especially when dealing with corrupt governments. So what can the common American citizen do today to actually make a difference in a person’s life in third world countries?

Social entrepreneurs like Blake Mycoskie who founded TOMS Shoes have linked the consumer to helping a person in need. The concept of its One for One model is that for every pair of shoes purchased, the company will give a new pair to a child in over 20 different countries. Why shoes? Mycoskie’s main reason is children without shoes are susceptible to health risks such as Podoconiosis a form of elephantis that is transmitted by walking bare foot. Shoes represent one of the most basic solutions that prevent these health risks and diseases. TOMS Shoes also manufactures in Argentina, China, and Ethiopia, providing job opportunities and ensuring that these factories operate under fair labor conditions.

On June 7, TOMS Shoes showcased the expansion of its One for One model through sunglasses. For every pair of TOMS glasses, another person in the developing world receives the eye care he or she needs.

In the video, Blake Mycoskie states that TOMS originated from a single desire to help those in need. When launching the new project, the VP of TOMS Eyewear says that before going into a country (in this case Nepal), the company “works with local nonprofits and NGOs to really understand what the need is in the community before we go in and start giving.” In the words of Blake Mycoskie with “TOMS eyewear we are able to give someone the opportunity to wear a pair of shades with a much greater purpose.” Sometimes it only takes a creative, simple idea that mobilizes the support of the mass consumers to help make a difference in these developing countries.

During the guest lecture we focused on how the role technology plays with education in developing, third world countries. The speaker Mike Trucano spoke of the World Bank’s support for programs like the One Laptop per Child and the success it had in Uruguay. But the One Laptop per Child organization is often criticized for dumping computers and laptops to rural, poorer countries that lack in infrastructure and resources. These computers remain unused and seem like a waste of resources, effort, and money. In the following clip, the Chairman of OLPC Nicholas Negroponte talks about the success of the program.

The Success of the One Laptop Per Child Organization

Mr. Nicholas Negroponte contends that children often lack a passion or learning due to things like rote memorization and that the laptop taps into their passion for learning. At 3:35, he points out that if you hand a closed box to a child that has never seen a computer before, that child will open the box and have the laptop working fairly quickly. Although he states that “obviously some guided experience is going to benefit everybody, and you prefer that,” Negropante does not stress the importance enough of proper training and research involved to ensure that a community will use technology to further education and economic prosperity. In fact, his main argument for proving the success of the program lies in a few anecdotes as he fails to provide hard evidence. 


For many developing countries where computers are abundantly available, there is a problem that has less to do with a lack of computers, but a lack of skills. In the NY Times article “ Computers at Home: Educational Hope vs. Teenage Reality" economists who have measured the computer’s educational impact on schoolchildren in low-income households found that “computers seemed to have further separated children in low-income households, whose test scores often decline after the machine arrives, from their more privileged counterparts.” Economist Ofer Malamud found a “negative effect on academic achievement” and few children whose families obtained computers said they used them for homework… rather computers were used daily for playing games.

Perhaps people are approaching economic development and education in developing countries the wrong way. Shouldn’t children at least have their basic health needs met first before anything else? Sure, a serendipitous computer can provide some benefits, but is the hefty price tag worth it? With barely enough resources in the classroom such as light, school supplies, desks, notebooks, calculators, and literature in these developing countries, more money should be dedicated towards training teachers and providing essential classroom facilities for students.

An acquaintance of mine started a non-profit organization The Supply Education Group that works with local schools and community leaders in developing countries. Their mission is to “secure the education for all children, positively impact the communities, and generate income for schools to become self-sufficient. [Their] hope is that this input of resources will create a long-term ripple effect, creating local leaders, driving economies, fighting corruption and allowing communities to pull themselves out of poverty.” While reading this description from their facebook page, I couldn’t help but think of the American motto of “pulling yourself up by your own bootstraps.” 

In my personal experience, I barely used the computer until middle school and found my interest in education sparked by my elementary school teachers who always used innovative means to engage their students. Of course a computer can give you all the facts you need, but it lacks the personable attention and guidance of a mentor who genuinely wishes for their students’ success and can spark a desire to learn within children. Organizations like The Supply Education Group work with the local communities that build upon long-term goals of entrenching education into the society infrastructure while instilling a strong desire to learn within these students. In my opinion, knowing that my donations to either TOMS and other non profit organizations whom work with a specific village or group of people gives me the confidence that these resources are being effectively used to spur change and improve the living standards of people around the globe. This brings us back to the mission statements at the beginning of this post. How do global institutions like the World Bank, IMF, and OECD work to reduce global poverty? By collaborating with non profit organizations and companies that reach out to the individuals with abundant resources and means, they can help make a life-altering difference one student, teacher, and person at a time.