Poverty in Jamaica

I decided to review poverty in Jamaica. The three major things that stood out to me in the article was that the population as a whole was growing at an annual rate of 0.5% in 2005, having declined steadily from an annual rate of 1% in 1997. The population growth rate has been moderated by migration, but that rate too has been declining. From a high for the last decade of 23,900 in 2001, the number of migrants fell to 17,200 in 2005. The main flows have been to North America - USA and Canada - and to a lesser extent the UK. I think the main reason for the decrease in population is for one people could be moving to different countries where they have a better chance of surviving and not living in poverty - better life for the family as a whole.

Jamaica is classified as a country of medium human development according to its Human Development Index. It is in the top half of this group, ranking 101st of the 177 ranked countries. Life expectancy at birth was 72.2 years, but the literacy levels for the population 15 years old and over of 79.9% was among the lowest of the Anglophone Caribbean countries.

The most widely used definition of child poverty is that of UNICEF: "Children living in poverty experience deprivation of the material, spiritual and emotional resources needed to survive, develop and thrive, leaving them unable to enjoy their rights, achieve their full potential or participate as full and equal members of society." There are material items that children and families need to live above the poverty line such as income, food, education and health. Spiritual things are stimuli, meaningfulness, expectations, role models and peer relationships. Emotional things would be love, trust, feelings of acceptance, inclusion and lack of abuse.

References:

Child Poverty and Disparities in Jamaica. (n.d.). Retrieved from UNICEF Social Inclusion, Policy and Budgeting: http://www.unicef.org/socialpolicy/files/Jamaica_Child_Poverty_and_Disparity.pdf