POVERTY AND SOCIAL DISEMPOWERMENT IN NIGERIA, YOUTH PERSPECTIVE AND IMPLICATION FOR A FLEDGLING DEMOCRACY by Uduak Nta(Youth Health & Development Action Project – YOHEDAP NGO), Calabar- Nigeria.

REFLECTIVE QUESTIONS.
Is poverty simply about the level of income obtained by households or individuals? Is it about lack of access to social services? Or is it more correctly understood as the inability to participate in society economically, socially, culturally or politically.

UNDERSTANDING POVERTY: DEFINITION (WHAT)
To scholars, experienced personnel’s, cso’s, individuals(at urban and rural areas), public and private sectors etc, poverty may mean differently to each of these groups. There is no general agreed definition of poverty but one thing is clear from the different attempts to define poverty the word ‘lack of’.
In my words I would refer ‘hardship that is unacceptable’ to mean poverty. Also another attempt to define poverty led to the conclusion that poverty is ‘a way of life characterised by low calorie intake, inaccessibility to adequate health facilities, low quality education system, low life expectancy, high infant mortality, low income, unemployment and underemployment and inaccessibility to various housing and societal facilities’. In simply terms poverty denies its victims of most basic needs for survival, which are fundamental human right such as water, food, clothing, shelter.
The definition of poverty may be influenced by a lot of factors eg socialisation etc.

WHY POVERTY (CAUSE)
Cause of poverty has been explained in many ways some of which are pathological explanations and structural
PATHOLOGICAL – individualistic explanations shows that poor people are assumed to be inadequate and known to have made bad choices. Familial explained that poverty is believed to run in families from one generation to another.
STRUCTURAL – agency view poverty as failure of public services. Inequality in structure of society, which leads to denial of opportunity. eg inequality in income, wealth, gender etc.
CAUSES OF CONFLICTS INCLUDES BUT NOT LIMITED TO
Income inequality in Nigeria, social exclusion, unemployment etc

MEASURING POVERTY (HOW)
Because there is no agreed definition of poverty, there can be no agreed measure. Even if definitions were agreed, though poverty would be complex and difficult to quantify, measures of poverty have to be indicators.
· The most commonly used measure is based on income. The world bank uses the arbitrary standard of $31 a month( $1 a day)
· Another is ‘subjective poverty test’ to see whether people identify themselves as poor.
· Another is ‘consensual method’ where opinion polls are set to identify what people see as essential
There are indicators in measurement of poverty. However different models of poverty imply different indicators.
· Money metric models require information on income
· Vulnerability models use indicators of wealth and exposure to risk as well as income
· Models concerned with capability and function present indicators of life expectancy, educational achievements.
However, though poverty is multidimensional, it is advised to accumulate a wide range of data conventional and non-conventional sources.

EXTERNAL INFLUENCES ON POVERTY
One should not endeavour to provide a picture of poverty without reference to global economic circumstances that have compounded the inability of developing countries to haul themselves out of poverty.
· Debt mortgages a large part of export earnings and considerably restricts their already limited economic possibilities
· The decline is government expenditure on social services has served to aggravate the incidence of poverty.
· The removal of subsidies on social services meant that the cost of education and health care were seriously affected.
· The policy of foreign – exchange rate conversion forced an increase in the cost of critical goods and services.

WHAT DO WE HAVE ON GROUND
The MDGs, NEPAD, NEEDS and SEEDS documents, different poverty reduction strategies/ programmes, NAPEP (National Agency for poverty eradication programme), NDE etc are policies, documents and programmes that our government have used to try and eradicate poverty. Whether there is a remarkable difference or not is left for us to judge.

SOCIAL DISEMPOWERMENT
Social disempowerment is when you are not socially empowered. It could also mean when the social and basic amenities of life are not within your reach.
Components of social disempowerment include:
Food Insecurity, lack of access to safe water, good roads, good and affordable health services, power (electricity), housing, clothing, security etc

Basic amenities of life cannot be afforded by a large number of people. Therefore those who have, use their resources to influence those who do not have and thus is the case of election violence thereby reflecting the link between poverty and social disempowerment. Youth participation is also greatly affected by poverty. The following scenarios can back up this point
· Lack of access to quality education may make a youth inadequate in terms of knowledge base and information. This can also affect youth involvement in different Poverty Reduction Strategies/Programmes by Government. Education not only upgrades the general living standard of individuals, it also sensitises them to various socio-economic and political changes
· Lack of “what to eat”. Good food is essential for growth and development of an individual.
· Low income; monetarily affect youth involvement and participation. (Please set instances referring to funding to attend programmes for national dev. If any).
· Lack of access to good health services can also affect youth participation (set instances if any or ask participants).


WAY FORWARD
· Youth entrepreneurship
· Youth based micro economic financing
· Economic empowerment
· Provision of basic social amenities.


SAY IT THE WAY IT IS
What do you want as a young person
What do you want to see differently
What role can we play as youths in poverty eradication

SET THE BALL ROLLING NOW!