Chapter 9

dependency ratio

in a human population, the ratio of the nonworking-age population (under 15 and over 65) to the working-age population

demographic dividend

as a country goes through the demographic transition, there is a stage when the dependency ration is low, giving the country the opportunity to spend more on poverty alleviation and economic growth

Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

a comprehensive set of goals aimed at addressing the most important needs of people in the developing countries to improve their well-being, adopted by the United Nations at the UN Millennium Summit in 2000

Rio+20

a UN conference about sustainable development in 2012

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

internationals goals for world development between 2015-2030, replacing the Millennium Development goals

World Bank

a branch of the UN that acts as a conduit for handling loans to developing countries

mircolending

the process of providing very small loans to poor people to facilitate their starting a small enterprise and becoming economically self-sufficient

donor fatigue

the tendency of donor organizations or countries to withhold their aid because of long-term misuse of aids funds in the recipient countries

remittances

money sent back to the country of birth by guest workers and immigrants to help family and friends meet their financial needs

fragile states

countries that are poor and conflict-prone, often lacking a stable government; an example is present-day Somalia

reproductive health

health care directed primarily toward the needs of women and infants, strongly emphasized in 1994 Cairo population conference

acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)

a fatal disease caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and transmitted by sexual contact or the use of nonsterile needles

Grameen Bank

a banking network serving the poor with microloans, created by Muhammad Yunus of Bangladesh

credit assosications

groups of poor people who individually lack the collateral to assure loans but who collectively have the wherewithal to assure each other’s loans

sustainable development

development that provides people with a better life without sacrificing or depleting resources or causing environmental impacts that will undercut the ability of future generations to meet their needs