Extreme poverty is the best breeding ground on earth for disease, political instability, and terrorism.
Jeffrey SachsRead
The rich do not have to invest enough in the poorest countries to make them rich; they need to invest enough so that these countries can get their foot on the economic ladder . . . Economic development works. It can be successful. It tends to build on itself. But it must get started.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Wealthy nations should help poorer countries establish a foundation for economic growth.
This quote emphasizes the responsibility of wealthier countries to invest in poorer nations, not just for charity but to enable them to initiate their own economic development. Jeffrey Sachs argues that with initial support, these countries can begin to grow economically, leading to a self-sustaining cycle of development that benefits everyone involved.
Themes
Economic GrowthInvestmentPovertyDevelopmentSupport
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a speech at a global economic forum to advocate for international aid.
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All quotes →All of the incessant debate about development assistance, and whether the rich are doing enough to help the poor, actually concerns less than 1% of rich world income. The effort required of the rich is indeed so slight that to do less is to announce brazenly to a large part of the world: 'You count for nothing.' We should not be surprised, then, if in later years the rich reap the whirlwind of that heartless response.
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The key to ending extreme poverty is to enable the poorest of the poor to get their foot on the ladder of development. The ladder of development hovers overhead, and the poorest of the poor are stuck beneath it. They lack the minimum amount of capital necessary to get a foothold, and therefore need a boost up to the first rung.
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Without restoring an ethos of social responsibility, there can be no meaningful and sustained economic recovery.
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Our challenge, our generation's unique challenge, is learning to live peacefully and sustainably in an extraordinarily crowded world. Our planet is crowded to an unprecendented degree. It is bursting at the seams. It's bursting at the seams in human terms, in economic terms, and in ecological terms
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