Asia 2008: Background brief

Asia is in the midst of dynamic and rapid change. Yet, one thing has not changed – poverty. Despite the impressive economic growth in the region led by India and China, Asia is home to two-thirds of the world’s poor. More than 800 million people, more than Africa and Latin America combined, live on less than $1 a day – 70 per cent of those are women and girls.

As in the rest of the developing world, women and children in Asia suffer the most. In Afghanistan, one in six women will die during childbirth in the course of her lifetime – the highest reported rate in the world. And for every four infants who lose their mother during delivery, three will not survive.

South Asia has the highest rate of undernourished children in the world; 42 per cent of children suffer low nutrition, putting them at risk of poor performance in school, stunting, and predatory illness.  While the vast majority of Asians have access to improved drinking water, only one-third of people use adequate sanitation facilities, and that drops to just a quarter in rural areas. Combine that with high levels of undernourished children who are more susceptible to water-borne illness such as diarrhea, and Asia’s rural poor face an increased health threat.

The percentage of children enrolled in primary education in Asia is among the highest in the developing world, but there are still more than 600 million people in the region who cannot read or write. In South Asia alone, 57 percent of women are illiterate, and in countries like Afghanistan and Pakistan, education for girls is not seen as a priority. No reliable statistics exist for Afghanistan, but enrolment figures are as low as 35 per cent for girls – levels comparable only to the poorest African nations.

Asia continues to suffer more severe and numerous natural disasters than the rest of the world. In 2006, nearly half of the world’s disasters occurred in Asia, destroying homes, livelihoods, and putting increased strain on already fragile health care systems and infrastructure. Nearly 200 million people are affected each year by natural disasters in Asia.

New threats such as avian influenza are jeopardizing the livelihoods of millions of poultry farmers across the continent; Indonesia has had the highest number of human cases and deaths (124 and 101, respectively), but small-scale farmers in countries like India have suffered huge financial losses as outbreaks force governments to cull millions of birds.

With more than 60 years’ experience working in Asia, CARE is working to help the people of Asia overcome these challenges. CARE works with communities, local governments and partners in 15 countries across Asia to address the underlying causes of poverty and provide emergency relief to victims of disaster and conflict. As it is clear that gender inequalities and power imbalances are one of the key determining factors of deprivation, CARE in Asia has begun to shift its focus to women and girls in its battle against poverty.

For more information on how CARE is fighting underlying causes of poverty and providing emergency relief in Asia go to http://www.careinternational.org.uk/asia.