7 The common challenge that millions of women face around the world is having to raise a family on their own. Of course there are different reasons for that. In some countries, women run away from their violent husbands, in others the husband died from preventable diseases, sometimes it’s a simple case of divorce and so on.
The real problem comes after when women have to make a living all while raising their kids on their own. Most of the time, this situation creates more family poverty, be it for a few years or for a lifetime. The core of the problem is that in many countries, to begin with the United States, a single salary isn’t enough to sustain a family. That's where they fall into poverty. This is a systemic problem of the labor market that simply doesn’t provide wages high enough at the so-called bottom of the pyramid (i.e. where the poorest are).
7
The education trap
While welfare programs do alleviate poverty, in the case of the US for example, it’s become obvious that they often don’t help actually lifting people out of poverty. They just make life in poverty more livable.
There are several reasons for that and trying to sum up the whole situation in one sentence is just simplistic and idiotic. Why ? Because these families have very different needs. In some cases, the best way out is to invest in children’s education, but most countries have failed to do so and the result is none of these kids go to university.
In other cases, it’s women who need education and by developing a few well-chosen skills they could actually earn a decent living that could reduce family poverty. But training programs aren’t for everyone either, some women already have experience or specific job skills and need economic support while waiting for the job market and the economy to be fixed. Hoping that happens sooner than later. Or maybe they need help with job-hunting, finding and targeting the right sectors which can make good use of their skills (e.g. help with CVs, job search or job interviews).
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