|
|||||||||||
|
CAUTION: The following links and
accompanying text have been culled from the web to illuminate the situation
in Russia in the early years of the 21st Century. Some of these links
may lead to websites that present allegations that are unsubstantiated,
misleading or even false. No attempt has been made to validate
their authenticity or to verify their content. HOW TO USE THIS WEBPAGE Students If you are looking
for material to use in a term-paper, you are advised to scan the postings on
this page and others to see which aspects of poverty are of particular
interest to you. You might be
interested in exploring the relationship between distribution of labor and
per-capita GDP, for example. Perhaps
your paper could focus on life expectancy or infant mortality. Other factors of interest might be
unemployment, literacy, access to basic services, etc. On the other hand, you might choose to
include some of the possible outgrowths of poverty such as Human Trafficking,
Street Children,
or even Prostitution. There is a lot to the subject of
Poverty. Scan other countries as well
as this one. Draw comparisons between
activity in adjacent countries and/or regions. Meanwhile, check out some of the Term-Paper resources
that are available on-line. Teachers Check out some of
the Resources
for Teachers attached to this website. *** Extreme Weather *** Russia’s
climate varies significantly across its vast expanse, from icy Arctic regions
to temperate zones. In 2021, Russia faced extreme heat in the Volga River
region and the Ural Mountains, with temperatures soaring up to 37°C (98.6°F) —
8-13°C higher than normal for that time of year. This heat posed health risks
and increased the likelihood of forest fires. – adapted from Microsoft BING Copilot *** ARCHIVES *** The World Factbook - Russia U.S. Central Intelligence Agency CIA www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/geos/rs.html [accessed 17
November 2020] World Factbook
website has moved to ---> www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/russia/ [accessed 8 January 2021] A
combination of falling oil prices, international sanctions, and structural
limitations pushed Russia into a deep recession in 2015, with GDP falling by
close to 2.8%. The downturn continued through 2016, with GDP contracting
another 0.2%, but was reversed in 2017 as world demand picked up. Government
support for import substitution has increased recently in an effort to
diversify the economy away from extractive industries. GDP -
per capita (PPP): $27,900 (2017
est.) Labor
force - by occupation: agriculture:
9.4% industry:
27.6% services: 63% (2016 est.) Unemployment
rate: 52% (2017
est.) Population
below poverty line: 13.3% (2015
est.) Maternal
mortality rate: 17 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.) Infant
mortality rate: total: 6.5 deaths/1,000 live births Life
expectancy at birth: total population: 71.9 years Drinking
water source: improved: total: 97.1% of
population Physicians
density: 4.01 physicians/1,000 population (2016) Sanitation
facility access: improved: total: 90.5% of
population Electricity
access: electrification - total population: 100% (2016) The
Borgen Project - Russia borgenproject.org/category/russia/ [accessed 2 March 2021] The Borgen Project works with U.S. leaders to utilize the
United States’ platform behind efforts toward improving living conditions for
the world’s poor. It is an innovative,
national campaign that is working to make poverty a focus of U.S. foreign
policy. It believes that leaders of
the most powerful nation on earth should be doing more to address global
poverty. From ending segregation to providing women with the right to vote,
nearly every wrong ever righted in history was achieved through advocacy. The
Borgen Project addresses the big picture, operating
at the political level advancing policies and programs that improve living
conditions for those living on less than $1 per day. ~
Combating Elderly Poverty In Russia borgenproject.org/combating-elderly-poverty-in-russia/ ~
How Russia Is Improving Public Health And Education borgenproject.org/public-health-and-education/ ~
5 Facts About Women’s Rights In Russia borgenproject.org/womens-rights-in-russia/ ~
The Process Of Reducing Poverty In Russia borgenproject.org/reducing-poverty-in-russia/ ~
Poverty In The Former Soviet Union Steadily Declines borgenproject.org/poverty-in-the-former-soviet-union-declines/ ~
6 Facts About Hunger In The Russian Federation ~
10 Facts About Sanitation In Russia borgenproject.org/sanitation-in-russia/ Russia to invest more than $200 billion in fighting poverty Russia Today - RT News Network, 25 December 2020 www.rt.com/business/510731-russia-poverty-reduction-spending/ [accessed 26 December 2020] The
Russian government is to spend a total of 15.3 trillion rubles (nearly $207
billion) over five years to reduce poverty and boost citizens’ real incomes,
the country’s Accounts Chamber has said in its latest report. According
to the analysts’ calculations, poverty levels could fall by 2.32 percentage
points, while real disposable incomes would increase by 1.04 percent from
poverty levels. Additional help to poor families could further alleviate the
situation, leading to a reduction of poverty by 1.99 percent and growth of
real disposable incomes by 0.82 percent, the document envisages. As many
as 20 million Russians are living in poverty, Russia’s President Vladimir
Putin pointed out during his marathon news conference earlier this month. He
said that the country must cut these levels by half by the end of the next
decade, from 13.5 percent to 6.5 percent of the population. Putin initially
wanted to reach the ambitious goal by 2024, but some politicians later
asserted that this could be too hard. How SOS Children’s Villages Helps Address Poverty in Russia Borgen Magazine, Moscow, 21 December 2020 www.borgenmagazine.com/how-sos-childrens-villages-helps-address-poverty-in-russia/ [accessed 22 December 2020] About
19.9 million Russians are still living below the poverty line in 2020 with a monthly
income of 10,890 rubles, or $154 dollars. Several reasons account for this
high poverty rate. First, the unequal distribution of wealth has affected
Russian society for decades. Rural regions are often the poorest while urban
regions are the richest. The fact that not all districts in rural areas of
Russia have access to improved drinking water and sanitation facilities has
contributed to this division. Additionally, government officials also
primarily implement modernization efforts in urban areas. The
second factor that accounts for the high poverty rate in Russia is increasing
food prices. Significant Russian staples, such as sugar, buckwheat, tomatoes
and garlic, have risen in price by a third. One reason behind this
development is because the rise in oil prices in Russia’s stock market
depreciated the ruble. Plus, the ruble has fallen in value further due to the
coronavirus pandemic. In addition, the Western embargo placed by Russians in
2014 is causing a rise in food prices. The embargo was a response to
sanctions by Western countries. However, this embargo has made it hard for
Russians to obtain certain staple needs, which has caused a rise in prices. A third
factor that accounts for the high poverty rate is the increasing number of
Russian orphanages. More than 600,000 children in Russia do not have parental
care. Since parents in Russia have fewer job opportunities, those who are
unable to provide for their children abandon them. This perpetuates the cycle
of poverty as the orphanages are typically overcrowded and lack access to
basic sanitation facilities. The
World Bank in Russia www.worldbank.org/en/country/russia/overview [accessed 21 April 2021] After a
prolonged recession, Russia’s economy has continued to grow since 2017,
supported by stronger global growth, higher oil prices, and solid macro
fundamentals. However, economic growth is projected to slowdown in 2020 due
to the coronavirus pandemic and falling oil prices. Looking back a few years … Advameg, Inc., Encyclopedia of the Nations www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Europe/Russia-ECONOMY.html [accessed 8 December 2020] Russia's
economic situation deteriorated rapidly after the breakup of the Soviet
Union, which destroyed major economic links. President Yeltsin's 1992
economic reform program slashed defense spending, eliminated the old
centralized distribution system, established private financial institutions,
decentralized foreign trade, and began a program of privatizing state owned
enterprises. Success was not immediate, however, as the GDP declined by over
12% in 1994 and 4% in 1995. By then, 25% of the population was living in
poverty, corruption was rampart, and segments of the economy had gone
"underground" to escape backbreaking taxes and bureaucratic
regulation. All
material used herein reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC § 107
for noncommercial, nonprofit, and educational use. PLEASE RESPECT
COPYRIGHTS OF COMPONENT ARTICLES. Cite this webpage as: Prof. Martin
Patt, "Poverty - Russia", http://gvnet.com/poverty/Russia.htm,
[accessed <date>] |
