Tidgy

tbh i find it hard to empathise with alot of the african countries, 60% or more or the aid they get ends up on buying weapons. Also they have alot of natural resource they have squandered for years. unless they sort the problems out internaly aid is a waste of time.

supose some will say thats a contraversial opinion, but seems pretty valid.

ReallyReallyGoodMeat

I think the term squandered is inaccurate. If you are looking for someone to blame, blame the west. A classic example is the Congo, by all rights Congo should be one of the wealthiest countries in the world with its rich natural resources. It even has > 30% of the worlds estimated diamond supply.

But Corporate influence on politics there has basically made it one of the poorest in the world. Dan Snow did a very interesting documentary on the place earlier this year.

john banks

http://new.ted.com/talks/hans_roslin...ulation_growth

Saxo Boy

John, that is really interesting and the suggested solution is quite counter-intuitive (but well reasoned and logical nevertheless).

Cliff Notes:

To solve world population we must either:

a) Nuke Africa or,
b) Give everyone in Africa a Volvo

Tidgy

o dont get me wrong, corruption, which effectivly what has caused what you say, is the main problem. But untill that is sorted its a pointless endevor.

The Trooper 1815

iTrader: (31)

A cure for cancer or obesity will cause more problems worldwide.

^Qwerty^

Hardly IMO, you're asking the question that no western government wants to talk about, but we continue to ignore at our peril.

A basic question of mine is why would it a bad thing if we no longer have to build new houses, yet it seems to be used a yard stick as to if the country is economically healthy or not?

Martin2005

60%+ ????

Really?

Tidgy

thast the figures i;ve herd branded around, i doubt it can be substantiated, but i bet its alot.

dpb

Bandied


Probably the daily fail

jods

This product from GSK is considered as important as the discovery of penicillin and has the potential to completely eradicate malaria from the planet, which can't be a BAD thing, Shirley.

daveyj

iTrader: (1)

Helium would be my choice for (hopefully) obvious childish reasons.

Maz

iTrader: (34)

There will be a shortage of helium in the near future.

Turbohot

Agree.

There are plenty of other things that African people will still be able to die with e.g. diseases caused due to malnutrition, gastric infections due to bad drinking water, AIDS, Diabetes etc.

dpb

Fantastic, maybe it'll even out the chances for people across the world

LUCKO

iTrader: (3)

yawn, let them starve

if you cant afford to eat/live i would suggest having more children wont solve it

tony de wonderful

Maybe living has been made to expensive then?

We're way more advanced than a subsistence economy so why can't so many people 'afford' to have kids?

Martin2005

You're not getting away with that.

You stated a fact, now it's something you've 'herd' 'branded' around.


This 'fact' is of course utter nonsense, but don't let that stop you!

You just believe what you want to believe.

Suresh

Africa's problem is tribalism. But also the legacy of colonisation that brought sub-Saharan Africa from not even having the wheel to having the internet a with in a few hundred years.. But that truth isn't popular with the shouty PC crowd.

Tidgy

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8535189.stm

in that case it was estimated to be 95%

i doubt the true amount will ever actualy be known, but it doesn't take much searchign aorudn to find alot of it in the news.

even band aid money went for arms, figure varies from low 2 mill to 20% of the 1.5bill raised. fair enough not 60% but there is definatly a substantial amount

dpb

Probably right, they won't as easily indoctrinated as India for example , thus becoming the poor neice/nephew

Therefore theyve fallen "behind"

Turbohot

How is India indoctrinated?

If you mean India learnt a few good things of the West e.g. birth control (no matter how frighteningly and overly populated India still remains) and a bit of practical logic such as wear footwear when the ground is hot- doesn't matter whether Gandhi did that or not, that surely is a good thing? It doesn't make India West's b!tch/ poor relations, does it? The majority in India said 'fcck off' to the West for its attempt to brainwash poor Indian masses with Christianity, whereas in may parts of Africa, Christian missionaries are doing quite well for themselves.

Suresh has stated why Africa has fallen behind, but you comparing Africa to India makes no sense in this way.

dpb

Suresh loves have a go at Africans, just thought I'd give him some back

Suresh

And I never even noticed, so that went well didn't it?


African football has, however, come along in leaps and bounds. Having an African finalist at the next WC isn't out of the question.

SWRTWannabe

I can't believe that it's got to page two without anyone pointing out that Africa is a continent, not a country. The pedantry on this forum has really gone downhill.

Luan Pra bang

Africa is a pretty ****ing big place and the problems facing Morocco or Algeria are Not the same ones facing Tanzania or the Congo or south Africa. Africa as a continent has enough resources for its people, it's just a question of whether it's people ever get access to them. Over population and food shortages will soon be a European problem more than an African one.

DYK

We will eventually go back to the war days of food rations then ? That will make the overweight go on a diet..

Bored Secretary

The lack of humanity is this thread is sickening. Yeah, let's not use science to cure a disease that kills many men, women and children, who are mothers, fathers and people's children, because a bunch of comparatively well-off people in another country thousands of miles away judge them to be less worthy than someone else, based on some 'facts' which they heard from the next person, who heard it from the pub landlord, who made it up.

These people, born into circumstances over which they have no control should die because of this? Get real.

Oh, and before some smart alec chimes in to say 'oh, but they do have a choice', does this child have a choice?



Of course not.

You should all be ashamed.