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Poverty devastates families, communities and nations. It causes instability and political unrest and fuels conflict.
Kofi Annan
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Poverty has far-reaching negative effects on society, threatening the stability of families, communities, and nations.

Kofi Annan's quote highlights the destructive impact of poverty not just on individuals but on the broader societal fabric. It emphasizes that poverty can lead to chaos and unrest at various levels, demonstrating that addressing economic disparities is crucial for maintaining peace and stability. By recognizing the multi-dimensional influence of poverty, we can understand the urgent need for concerted efforts towards economic development and social justice.

Themes

PovertyFamiliesCommunitiesNationsInstabilityConflictPolitics

In practice

Example use cases

In a speech about global development, one could use this quote to emphasize the importance of economic support.

More from Kofi Annan

If you have a problem and you can't find a solution, you meet again tomorrow and you keep talking until you find a solution. You can disagree with behavior or a particular position, but you do not resort to calling an opponent worthless.
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Let us remember the large numbers of citizens who, day in and day out, through acts of volunteerism large and small, bring hope to so many of the world's disadvantaged. Let us ensure that this wonderful resource, available in abundance to every nation, is recognized and supported as it works towards a more prosperous and peaceful world.
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We may have different religions, different languages, different colored skin, but we all belong to one human race.
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The global HIV/AIDS epidemic is an unprecedented crisis that requires an unprecedented response. In particular it requires solidarity - between the healthy and the sick, between rich and poor, and above all, between richer and poorer nations. We have 30 million orphans already. How many more do we have to get, to wake up?
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People of different religions and cultures live side by side in almost every part of the world, and most of us have overlapping identities which unite us with very different groups. We can love what we are, without hating what – and who – we are not. We can thrive in our own tradition, even as we learn from others, and come to respect their teachings.
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Democracy is, in essence, a form of non-violent conflict management. If war is the worst enemy of development, healthy and balanced development is the best form of conflict prevention.
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