The Need to Re-focus Global Spending
The latest issue of Utne has an outstanding section on feminine power. One of the articles, "Women Make a Difference" includes some very important statistics:
1. Every minute a woman dies of pregnancy and childbirth related complications. That is 500,000 women a year.
2. 70% off the 1.3 billion people in the world who live on less than $1.00/day are women.
3. 90 million of the 150 million children who do not go to school are girls.
4. Gender-based violence kills and disables more women between the ages of 15-44 than cancer, malaria, traffic accidents and war combined.
The current issue also includes a "Budget for the Human Family" to provide for non-military needs. The budget includes shelter, food, clean water, eliminating illiteracy, providing refugee relief and many other items. The total annual cost was $105.5 billion (versus the $900 billion that is spent on military spending each year).
Imagine what a little shift in our spending priorities could accomplish!
1. Every minute a woman dies of pregnancy and childbirth related complications. That is 500,000 women a year.
2. 70% off the 1.3 billion people in the world who live on less than $1.00/day are women.
3. 90 million of the 150 million children who do not go to school are girls.
4. Gender-based violence kills and disables more women between the ages of 15-44 than cancer, malaria, traffic accidents and war combined.
The current issue also includes a "Budget for the Human Family" to provide for non-military needs. The budget includes shelter, food, clean water, eliminating illiteracy, providing refugee relief and many other items. The total annual cost was $105.5 billion (versus the $900 billion that is spent on military spending each year).
Imagine what a little shift in our spending priorities could accomplish!
posted by Lucinda Marshall at 9:09 AM
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