How Can Lack of Education Cause Poverty?

The World Bank and UNESCO have determined that “53 percent of children in low- and middle-income countries cannot read and understand a simple story by the end of primary school. In poor countries, the level is as high as 80 percent.”[1] This is not just a correlation; it is a causation.

How can lack of education cause poverty? Without an education in even the basics of reading, writing and simple math, a person cannot seek work beyond unskilled manual labor. Most manual labor does not pay enough to move a person out of poverty, especially in regions where poverty has a deep grip on communities.

“Simply put, education has a direct correlation with income,” writes Global Youth Ambassador Taha Fathima Khan. “The higher the level of education, the less likely the person is to fall below poverty line. This is because education imparts skills and knowledge associated with higher wages.”[2]

The sooner a child begins their education, the better chance they have to improve their economic situation in the future. This is why GFA created the Child Sponsorship Program. The program aspires to lovingly embrace children at risk, providing them with basic needs like nutritious food, clean water, medical care and toiletries as well as helping them go to school and excel.

Many children in areas of extreme poverty cannot afford the school fees or uniforms necessary to even enter school. GFA, through its sponsors, provides what is needed to gain them access to study, knowing that education is essential in combatting poverty. From there, a child is nurtured and tutored outside of school, trained in good study habits and learns to value their education and the hope it affords.


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