According to a slew of scientists speaking at an annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), world starvation rates are on the rise. So much so, in fact, that by 2015, 100 million more people will face starvation. Most speakers argued that the key to reducing this number is greater financial investment, new technology and improving agriculture.

All of these strategies have been employed for decades with no discernable benefits whatsoever, billions upon billions have been poured in to technology assistance, technology transfer and investment programs throughout the developing world, yet mass poverty and mass starvation remain everyday facts of life for a growing number of people. While not implicit from the AAAS speeches, hidden below the surface is the familiar tone of blame. Blame for the west for “exploiting” the developing world. Blame for the west, especially America, for not giving more in foreign aid. Blame for not reducing trade restrictions. But one group, conveniently, is never blamed, that group being those who created such conditions in the first place.

Yes improvements in technology and investment can improve agricultural yields, but this only attacks a symptom, it does not strike at the root cause of global hunger across the developing world. These countries continue to grapple with devastating poverty and hunger because its citizens and government lack personal responsibility. If these scientists were truly interested in reducing the increase in the number of people starving, perhaps they would ask themselves why will there be 100 million more people in the grips of poverty by 2015. It might have something to do with the fact that many countries in the developing world have astronomically high birth rates. There is nothing more irresponsible than to bring a child into a world of poverty and despair. Are these people so in need of sexual gratification that they will do so at the risk of creating a new generation of malnourished victims of bad decision-making? Apparently so, as the cycle continues unabated.

During this meeting, speakers highlighted China and Vietnam as proof that progress can be made in improving the lot of hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people. In lighting the examples of China and Vietnam however, they further disprove their supposed solutions to the problem of hunger. Neither China nor Vietnam improved their peoples’ lives by begging for handouts. Foreign aid and technology transfer will not solve the problem of hunger, just as social welfare programs don’t lift people out of poverty in the developed world. If they did, the problem of poverty would no longer exist in America or any other western nation. Poverty is eliminated through hard work, personal responsibility and the rule of law. Countries where people continue to have children without letup are destined to remain in poverty. Nations that are plagued with persistent violence and turmoil will never remove the yoke of starvation.

Who’s to blame for 3rd world poverty? The 3rd world is to blame. No nation that emerged from the shadow of the third world has done so through foreign aid, when it was not coupled with a commitment to taking control of one’s own destiny. If any nation is to overcome such conditions they must set aside petty violence, class warfare and civil war. They must embrace personal responsibility, which includes a commitment to hard work and responsible family planning. Above all, stop having children you can’t afford to take care of.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/4724282.stm