$3.10 Poverty Challenge

The Problem

According to the World Bank (2015), about 33% of the population in both Uganda and Kenya live on less than $1.90 per day and 63% live on less than $3.10 per day. Reading the figures is one thing; we shake our heads, comment “that’s too bad,” blame exchange rates or buying power, and turn the page with hardly a blink. Really understanding what it means to live in poverty—to live on less than $3.10 each day, to relate to the people we serve in developing countries—requires an all together different approach. This project is the result of much prayer and a lot of research about the $3.10 poverty lifestyle. In the end I will invite YOU to take the $3.10 Poverty Challenge.

At today’s exchange rate, $3.10 USD is equivalent to 10,800 UGX or 320 KES. Buying power between Uganda and the Malindi coast of Kenya, where I will live about a year from now, is about the same so we will use the Ugandan Shilling as we take a look at three very different lives and what is possible with $3.10 per day.

Julius’s Story

Julius is a boda-boda (motorcycle taxi) driver in Kampala and works to support himself and his three children who live in the village with their mother. You can read the details of his story and how his money is spent in the separate blog post. We realized that if Julius was to live on 10,800 UGX per day, and if we subtract what is needed for food, Julius would have 6,100 UGX remaining at the end of the week. With that money, Julius had nothing more than morning tea to drink every day, he did not tithe, did not pay rent, did not care for his children. He was not sick, did not buy clothing, pay licensing fees or bribes. He did not have electricity or candles and matches, he did not have water and soap for bathing, and he did not have airtime. Not only could Julius not pay for the regular daily needs he could not manage if even the simplest inconvenience struck.

Carol’s Story

Carol sells vegetables in the market near my home and is the mother of four school-aged children. You can read the details of her story and how her money is spent in the separate blog post. We gave Carol 10,800 shillings for each of her children too, which meant that she alone had to earn 54,000 UGX per day for her family to live at or below the World Bank’s established poverty level. After subtracting for food, Carol would have 4,100 UGX remaining at the end of the week. With the 4,100 UGX that remains each week, Carol did not pay rent, pay school fees for four children including uniforms and requirements, provide medical care, transportation, airtime, buy clothing and shoes and wash them, nor provide any of the other little necessities of life.

Agnes’s Story

Agnes is probably one of those families living on $1.90 per day (1/3 of the world population, according to the World Bank) which is 6,000 UGX. Agnes is married to Pr Patrick and they have five children, they live on family land and survive on subsistence farming. You can read the details of her story and how her money is spent in a separate blog post. We assigned Agnes 6,600 shillings ($1.90) for each family member, which means she has to earn 42,200 UGX each day to live at the poverty line. After buying food and some charcoal for cooking and soap for cleaning, Agnes remained with 500 UGX each week. As I write, I know full well that the life Agnes leads makes it next to impossible to actually earn 42,200 in a day. None the less, Agnes has not tithed, put her children in school, or provided medical care, bought airtime, clothing, or met other typical needs.

Not All Poverty is Created Equal

With reputable organizations like the World Bank publicizing poverty levels in financial terms, we tend to think that all poverty is defined as a lack of food, clothing, and shelter. However, according to The Chalmers Center (2016), “Not all poverty is created equal.” My own observations within the East African countries support this idea. In reality poverty comes in many shapes and sizes—financial, social, emotional, spiritual—each form requiring a different poverty alleviation strategy. As material poverty is addressed, the social, emotional, and spiritual components of poverty ought to be integrated into alleviation strategies.

Corbett and Fikkert (2014) suggest three poverty alleviation strategies: relief, rehabilitation, and development. Relief is needed in situations where the materially poor require temporary and immediate outside help such as during natural disasters, medical emergencies, or personal traumas. Think in terms of severe drought—a prolonged period of below average water supply—or national insecurity where outside invaders murder and injure hundreds of people. Rehabilitation is needed in situations where the materially poor people participate in returning their lives to the pre-crisis conditions. They contribute to improving their own situation by, for example, digging wells, building water collection systems, or developing safety response protocols.

The development response to poverty alleviation is needed when people want to participate in improving their lives beyond what they have known or experienced in the past. The development strategy includes reconciling the four foundational relationships—with God, with themselves, with others, and with the rest of creation. People begin to recognize that God has given them gifts and abilities and that they need to use those gifts for God’s glory to support themselves through work which is a form of worship.

The Solution

I am not naive enough to think that world poverty is a problem I can solve single handedly. But Surprised by Hope is very decidedly a community development ministry. We recognize the difference between the need for relief, rehabilitation, and development and appreciate the value each strategy brings in the overall fight against poverty. Our place of serving, however, is in the area of development. Therefore, we provide the biblically based education and information needed to build the economic and spiritual capacity of local people who want to participate in improving their lives so that they can start and operate successful businesses using the gifts and resources God has given them.

$3.10 Poverty Challenge

To better relate to the people we serve, to understand what it means to live in poverty to the best of our ability, and to best serve them through Surprised by Hope, I am going to take the $3.10 Poverty Challenge. For 10 days, I will live on $3.10 or 10,800 UGX each day. What this means is that in everything I consume, I will not spend more than 10,800 UGX in a day AND I will continue to minister to God’s people in whatever way possible given these constraints (rather than stay at home doing nothing that requires energy or effort).

Here’s how you can get involved.

1. Pledge $3.10 to Surprised by Hope for each of the 10 days I successfully complete, and challenge your friends to do the same. I would love to have 100 pledges.
2. Take the $3.10 Poverty Challenge yourself and live on $3.10 per day, and find at least 10 people to pledge $3.10 for each of the 10 days YOU successfully complete.

WHEN: Any time between now and June 1. Funny, I can chose when it’s convenient to me to sacrifice for 10 days in a row, but those who actually live in poverty don’t get to chose when to start and when to stop. They can’t save their laundry till after the 10 days to avoid spending money on water and soap, they don’t have the luxury of waiting to purchase clothing until after the 10 days.

Make your commitment publicly on Facebook and email me to get more details.

References

The World Bank (2014). Poverty & Equity. Online at http://povertydata.worldbank.org/poverty/region/SSA

The Chalmers Center (2016). What is Poverty? Online at https://www.chalmers.org/our-work/redefining-poverty/what-is-poverty

Corbett, S. & Fikkert, B. (2014). When Helping Hurts. Chicago: Moody Publishers.

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$3.10 Poverty Challenge: Agnes’s Story

I’m telling Agnes’s story because our mind and heart wants to find SOME way possible to feel good in doing nothing about the 2/3 of the word population living at the daily poverty level. Agnes’s lifestyle is probably the only way to make it possible…probably. We begin with the reasonable assumption that Agnes and her family live at the $1.90 per day rather than the $3.10 per day poverty line because she lives deep in the village.

Agnes is married to Pr Patrick and they have five children. They live on family land in the village, which means they don’t pay rent or taxes on their land or homes. They farm cassava to provide food and sell some in the local market. Let’s say they have $1.90 or 6,600 shillings per person leftover after selling some food from their farm. This is how Agnes meets the poverty line for her seven-person family, which means she has 46,200 UGX each day. I know for a fact that Agnes actually has less than 10,000 UGX each day, remember only she and Pr Patrick actually earn money while the kids are in school; but let’s just see what happens.

Let’s presume Agnus prepares tea for her family as Carol did. With all the details, she will spend 8,800 UGX. For lunch Agnus will provide cassava from her farm and beans rather than rice and beans so she’ll spend 10,400 UGX. And for dinner rather than matoke Ages provides cassava from her farm and a chicken from her coop (she does not enough to eat one every day). Obviously two means of cassava every day will not provide for the nutritional needs of the family, but we press on. Agnes will spend 17,900 UGX for dinner for her family of seven. Remember that one chicken scarcely feeds four people.

In all, Agnes estimated that she would spend 37,100 to feed her family of seven in one day. To live at the poverty line, Agnes ought to have 46,200 UGX each day and spends 37,100 on food which leaves 9,100 remaining. She earns six days each week and rests on Sunday, which means she has 54,600 – 37,100 for Sunday meals = 17,500 UGX remains per week.

Agnes needs to keep her family of seven clean and spends about 10,000 on charcoal to heat water for drinking and soap for bathing as well as washing clothing and blankets (2,000 per week). Agnes and Pr Patrick need not pay rent for their home given that they own the land, but certainly those four mud huts (sleeping, kitchen, sleeping, and storage) need regular maintenance most of which can be done using materials and labor right from the land; however the grass roofs require purchased materials (5,000 per week). They sleep on mats that Agnes makes from local fibers and need blankets to stay warm at night, but we’ll just save those seldom replaced items for later.

Before covering the educational needs of their five school aged children, Agnes has 500 shillings per week left over. Agnes still needs to tithe, pay school fees for five children including uniforms and requirements, provide medical care, buy airtime, buy clothing and shoes, and provide all the other little necessities of life. Once again it’s easy to see that 500 UGX is not enough to cover even one dose of malaria medication (11,000) let alone these standard needs.

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$3.10 Poverty Challenge: Carol’s Story

Carol is the mother of four school-aged children and sells vegetables in the market near my home. She actually snorted when I told her that 63% of people in Uganda live on less than 10,800 shillings per day. “Impossible,” she said. Selling vegetables in the market is a common work in Uganda because their primary industry is farming, so we can safely assume that Carol’s work could be considered normative for our research.

Assuming each of Carol’s four children is also living on 10,800 UGX per day, Carol and her children would need 54,000 per day to live at or below the World Bank’s established poverty level. Okay, “now we have a bit of money to play with,” you are thinking. If and only if Carol is able to earn 54,000 shillings each day, keeping in mind that her children are not actually earning money, here is how she would spend it (again, starting with food).

Breakfast for all ages consists of tea with sugar and bread with Blue Band. Carol will purchase and use a whole loaf for her family each day (4,000) along with a portion of a kilo of tea and sugar (500) and Blue Band (400). To heat the water (200), Carol will need charcoal and a match (500) as well as a jiko stove, a kettle, cups, plates, and silverware. These latter items can be reused so for this example we’ll not include costs for purchasing them. To clean up, Carol will need water (200) and soap (500) at a minimum. Breakfast for her family of five costs Carol 6,300 UGX.

Lunch for all consists of rice and beans. Carol indicated that 1 kilo of rice will feed four so she needs a bit more (4,400) and beans (3,000). Included in the beans are some small vegetables for flavor: onion (500), tomato (500), and salt (50). She also needs a bit of water (200) and oil to cook with (200). Again Carol needs more charcoal because beans take long to cook and a match (1,000) as well as the jiko stove, sauce pans, utensils, bowls, and silverware. To clean up, Carol needs water (200) and soap (500) at a minimum. Lunch for her family of five costs Carol 10,550 UGX.

Carol suggested preparing chicken and matoke for dinner. She indicated that matoke (boiled banana) costs 7,500 for five people and that a chicken for four people costs 15,000 (they’ll skimp to make one chicken work for the five of them). The various cooking accoutrements are similar to lunchtime and cost 2,450 and clean up costs 700. For dinner Carol makes fresh juice which requires water (200) and fruits (3,000). Dinner for her family of five costs 28,850 UGX.

For food alone, in a single day with no deviation, food costs Carol 45,700 UGX. Recall that living at or below the poverty line gives Carol 54,000 UGX each day and spending 45,700 UGX on food leaves her with 8,300 left over each day. Not working on Sunday means that Carol has to save that leftover income each day and will have 49,800 to spend on Sunday minus 45,700 for food that day remaining with 4,100 UGX for the week.

Keep in mind that Carol alone needs to sell 54,000 UGX of vegetables every day to live at the poverty line (not including cost of goods). After food she has 4,100 remaining each week (or 16,400 per month). Carol still needs to pay rent, pay school fees for four children including uniforms and requirements, provide medical care, transportation, airtime, buy clothing and shoes and wash them, and all the other little necessities of life. Once again it’s easy to see that 4,100 UGX is not enough to cover even one dose of malaria medication (11,000) let alone house rent or any other necessity.

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$3.10 Poverty Challenge: Julius’ Story

To begin my research about what it means to live on 10,800 shillings per day (the World Bank stated poverty line), I interviewed a boda-boda driver whose name is Julius. Julius drives a motorcycle taxi for a living and he is my trusted driver in Kampala when I need more than a quick jaunt. Julius’ story is common to the tens of thousands of boda-boda drivers all around Uganda and Kenya. He and his wife are no longer together and his children live with their mother. For the purpose of this story, we will view Julius as a single man, always keeping mind the financial responsibility he has for his children, which he takes very seriously.

To begin our interview, I naturally started with the issue of food. The minimum Ugandan or Kenyan breakfast is tea with sugar and three slices of bread covered with Blue Band (margarine). Julius indicated that it is far less expensive for him to purchase all of his meals than to prepare food himself and a quick estimation on my part reveals that he is correct. So, Julius pays 2,000 UGX for breakfast (bread and tea), 3,000 UGX for lunch (rice and beans), and 3,000 UGX for dinner (matoke or ugali and meat). In total, Julius spends 8,000 UGX on food, assuming no deviation, and has 2,800 shillings remaining at the end of the day.

Julius works six days each week. Sunday is the Lord’s Day and customers are few so he takes this day to rest. Assuming that Julius is very frugal and manages to save the remaining 2,800 shillings every day for six days, Julius should have 16,800 UGX for Sunday minus 8,000 for food which leaves 8,800 UGX. On Sunday Julius needs to purchase a sachet of soap (500) and a jerry can of water (200) for his laundry. He will use the laundry water along with an old piece of clothing to mop his room. He needs to service his boda-boda with an oil change every week (2,000) and prays no other service is needed. What remains at the end of the week is 6,100 UGX.

Keep in mind that, based on the budget and food purchases we itemized, Julius has had nothing to drink all week save morning tea, he did not tithe, he did not pay rent for his small room, and he did not give any money for the care of his children. He was not sick, did not buy any clothing, pay licensing fees for driving his boda, or get stopped by traffic police and have to pay for the officer’s tea. He did not buy a Bible, pay for electricity or candles and matches, water and soap for bathing, airtime for his phone, or any other thing. While these items were not itemized, I think you can easily see that 6,100 UGX is not enough for a 10% tithe on total income (64,800) let alone these or other normal expenses. And if Julius gets malaria and needs treatment, which he will eventually, he will need 11,000 for medicine, which isn’t there if Julius is to live on $3.10 per day.

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