STIPENDS DONT ERADICATE POVERTY. KNOWLEDGE, SKILL AND ATTITUDINAL EDUCATION DOES.

My simple Google powered  desk research  has shown that between 1980 and 2018, China moved 800 million people out of poverty and Nigeria moved 140 million people into poverty.
What worked differently for the two countries?

One sent everybody to the factory,  the other kept giving out stipends and subsidies. 

Why do African countries seek comfort in poverty?

Before I go into the meat of this piece,  let me first say that the first proper  place I ever worked in a formal organisation,  asides cutting hair as a teenager,  was at an organisation known as NIRADO ( NIGERIAN Rural Accelerated Development Organisation). The organization was a member of the Institute of Cultural Affairs International. It is known as ICAG in Ghana,  ICAU in  uganda,  ICASA in South Africa but not so in Nigeria. 

Why did the founders of the organisation decide to use the name NIRADO for it's Nigerian part ?  In 1976, there had been a violent coup that led to the death of the then Head of State , General  Muritala Muhmed.  So when some Nigerians returned from a self funded trip to India and the USA to attend the ICAI convention  events,  they decided to start the Nigerian unit modelled after the global institute but they were denied the name ICA because the military authorities felt it could be a CIA organisation disguising as something else. 

That is not the story.  The story is that this organisation was basically in existence to empower individual members of the society to live the best life possible,  influence governments and organisations policies positively for the good of human beings worldwide,  through partner organisations. 

It was indeed a membership driven organisation with dues payable on a monthly/ annual basis,  but largely funded by the aides and grants from international and multinational organisations lik MISSEREOR in  Germany,  USAID in the USA,  DFID UK, IFAD of UN and others. 

The organisation has now lapsed in Nigeria,  even though it continues to support people across the world. 
I made friends with the Former World President Mr.  Dick Alton from the USA and former world 1st Vice President,  Mr. Lambert Okra from Ghana who now , to the best of my knowledge,  lives in Canada doing good for the world. 

This defunct NIGERIAN organisation I am talking about is an one that has had prominent Nigerians as Presidents.   The former MD of NNPC,  late Mr.  Aret Adams and Prof.  Oyewusi Ibidapo-Ope are a few of the names of citizens that chaired the organisation while it was in existence. 

Make no mistake about it,  I was the most junior staff at the time,  but the habit of reading nearly anything I saw in the organisation's bookshelf/ library helped me know a whole lot about the organization's works,  methodologies,  operations and funding sources. 

I mean,  I was basically an Office Assistant,   but my eyes were wide open to learning.  I once predicted the demise of the organisation based on the way it was being run.  Today,  that prophesy has unfortunately come to pass, many years after I left the place to work in ICT and now into Public Relations and Brand management. I am talking about 20 years ago. 

The world bank and other organisations spend billions of Dollars across the world every year hoping to fight poverty and engender development.  USAID,  DFID,  MISSEREOR ,DIDP of Japan and other powerful countries,  Including most recently China,  continue to donate and give aides to developing countries that ends up, oftentimes,  in the pocket of citizens of those countries where the monies are sent.

Governments and their various agencies in developing countries also keep throwing monies at this same problem,  but they never go away.  Like Muhammad Abdoulaye once wrote in a world bank development journal,  "Poverty is like a heat.  If you don't pass through it,  you can never understand  it. "

I have since said to the many organisations and development professionals working for the poor everywhere I see them,  that - The Rich will never be able to help the poor out of their poverty.  At best,  they will help them with a sofa that comforts their burning  poor asses. 

Whenever we talk about poverty eradication and state that 10k  or 50k cannot take people out of poverty,  we say it with all sense of patriotism,  experience and best wishes to the poor of our country.  After all, it's not like we have totally escaped from the dangerous axe of poverty which continues to threaten us daily through poor medical services,  poor security services,  substandard schools and erratic power supply.  The average NIGERIAN,  research has proven to be just one ailment away from scorching poverty!

Despite the fact that The World Bank has been working with Nigeria since 1958, Nigeria is now number 1 poorest country in the world with 67 % of its population living below the poverty line of 3.1 USD per day.  Nigeria moved from its 3rd position in 2014 to number 1 in 2017!

On the other hand,  China has moved over 800 million people out of poverty in less than two decades.  The story started even before the 1990 process of opening up the economy to accept integration to the global market.

How did China do it?

It dates back to the work of Chairman Mao ZeDong, former Premier of China who led the country from 1949-1976 when he died. 

It was he who conceptualised the Chinese Power we see today when he closed the borders of the country and basically put all chinese people to work through communism,  which is almost now out of fashion to global leaders. 

Regardless of what it is called, be it democracy,  dictatorship,  socialism,  communism or Confucianism, the point is that taking a country out of poverty,  requires putting the people to work and not by giving them stipends.  History has shown that stipends don't get people rich but gets them temporary comfortable in poverty.

How will we get our of poverty?

My solution-
Every state in Nigeria has a resource that can help her become great. 
Build industrial parks with training departments across the 36 states of the federation with the help of state governments. 

Send the greater majority of our secondary school students who can't get admitted into universities,  and those who chose to into the training units of those industrial parks. 

All the people who get admitted into those industrial parks where products will be developed,  must be given certifications that will help them grow their careers and also move on should they chose to,  into other jobs.

Well,  the rest of the solution is available to anyone who cares to probe further. 

For now,  I just want to show the reader that stipend didn't get 800 million Chinese out of poverty and that it won't 140 million Nigerians.

I hope you have enjoyed reading this as I have writing it. 

Thank you.

©Ogedengbe Ayo Moses
IG @ayoozovehe