Global Issue: Poverty

Korea: Present

Korea: Past

Internationally: Present

Internationally: Past

Total number of Americans below poverty line (1)


1960s: 39 million


Percentage of Americans below poverty line (2)


1960s: 22%

783 million people live below the international poverty line of US$1.90 a day.

In 2016, almost 10 per cent of the world’s workers and their families lived on less than US$1.90 per person per day.

As of 2016, only 45% of the world’s population was effectively covered by at least one social protection cash benefit.

Source: United Nations

Source: World Book

Nearly 1.1 billion fewer people are living in extreme poverty than in 1990. In 2015, 736 million people lived on less than $1.90 a day, down from 1.85 billion in 1990.

The majority of the global poor live in rural areas, are poorly educated, employed in the agricultural sector, and under 18 years of age.

Source: https://www.socialworkdegreecenter.com/poverty-in-america/
Uses many different .gov, .edu sources for their articles

The Gurdian.com--> current event source

Elderly Poverty is exponentially higher compared to the younger ones: The survey found that 48.6% of South Korea’s elderly were in poverty

While South Korea’s life expectancy's rise is expected to continue, almost half of its citizens aged over 65 now live in poverty, according to OECD data.

Source: Brookings.edu--> current event--> interview

Income was less than $100 which is in today for the poorest south Asian and African countries. The Korean War of 1950-1953 devastated the country, killing and injuring people.

Food was scarce in the 1950s. In the springtime, after the autumn harvest had been eaten and before new crops could be gathered, poor people would scour the hills for edible herbs and plants

Many school children depended on foreign food donations