Hans Rosling's Insights on Ending Poverty

Hans Rosling, doctor and researcher, seeks to change perceptions about the developing world and dispel myths and common misperceptions. In his latest TED Talk, Rosling shows trends in health and economics, ultimately seeking to explain how countries are pulling themselves out of poverty. The dimensions of development, or the tools necessary to move away from poverty, include human rights, environment, governance, economic growth, education, health and culture. He asserts that economic growth is the most important means to achieve development, but should not necessarily be the most important goal. The primary goals should be the promotion of culture and human rights.

As the world changed over time, most developing countries moved towards being the developed countries and demonstrated trends of low fertility rates and high life expectancy. The only real exception to this trend has been Africa, which still exhibits large families and low life expectancy due to the HIV epidemic.  The trends of child mortality rates and GDP per capita show that the countries in the world slowly grew richer and by the 20th century, for the first time, more than ninety-percent of children survived the first year of life. 

Compared to the U.S. and Sweden overtime, it becomes apparent that countries in Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East have achieved advances in health, education, and the possession of human resources faster than developed countries of the West. In the emerging economies of the world, health progress is preceding economic progress.

 Rosling then moves on to discuss poverty, how to get out of poverty, and finally how to move away from poverty to reach permanent development. When an individual is in poverty, everything is about yields—it is about survival and having access to food. To get out of poverty, technology becomes essential. However, for a country to permanently develop, there is a need for a market and human resources specifically schools, health, infrastructure, credits, and information.

Drought is a function of nature.  Famine is man-made.