Why Business?
The United Nations has made eradicating poverty the cornerstone of its Sustainable Development Goals for 2030. These goals build off of the success of the MDG’s which saw, since 2000, the proportion of people living with on less than US$1.90 per day falling from 26.9% to 9.2%.* But today, the number of people living in poverty is still more than 750 million.*
* This data is taken direct from the United Nation’s SDG’s for 2030. Educate and Inform yourself below. https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/poverty/
Alternativ’s Business Essentials Training Program works to promote the principals presented in all of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals but directly impacts achieving the objectives set forth in the seven highlighted goals below.
The UN states that, “a lack of decent work opportunities leads to poverty [which] is often passed from one generation to the next, as young parents who are poor cannot afford to invest in the health and education of their children, leading to a vicious cycle of intergenerational poverty.”
Business education is a critical component of economic stability and social empowerment—on both an individual and communal scale. For every 1% increase in a nation’s entrepreneurship growth, there is a 2% decrease in the poverty rate.
By equipping people with business skills and confidence, they are presented with new economic opportunities. These opportunities lead to financial stability, and financial stability leads to critical solutions in eradicating systemic poverty—increased food security, access to education, and life-changing movement for individuals, families, and entire communities.
“Poverty is more than the lack of income and resources to ensure a sustainable livelihood. Its manifestations include hunger and malnutrition, limited access to education and other basic services, social discrimination and exclusion as well as the lack of participation in decision-making.” — United Nations Report on the World Social Situation 2018
It’s natural for generous people to want to help the poor. However, more often than not, charity and relief efforts provide a short-term fix without a long-term solution. Local communities, like the ones Alternativ trains, are often excluded from general society, marginalized, and unfortunately, grow dependent on foreign aid. “Poverty eradication is only possible through stable and well-paid jobs.” That’s where Alternativ Global Entrepreneurs comes in.