Absolute poverty exists in many countries around the world, many of which live on less than $2 a day. Much speculation can be made as to why poverty still exists; especially when the majority of Americans living on government benefits have niceties like color TV. There is no moral reason why over 1 billion people live in absolute poverty while others live in excess. Absolute poverty is defined by the United Nations as “A condition characterized by severe deprivation of basic human needs, including food, safe drinking water, sanitation, healthcare, housing, education and information. It depends not only on income but also on access to services." This is a blameless way for any human being to survive. Poverty has many origins and people differ on which is most important. The lack of a stable, democratic government minimizes citizens' ability to criticize their current situation, resulting in depletion and reduced affordability of essential resources. Humans living in absolute poverty have little or no access to sources of clean water, adequate food, or shelter. Diseases and malnutrition spread while the lack of health workers increases due to the poor education system; unable to break the cycle, they remain in absolute poverty. Most of the world's poorest humans reside on the African continent. In many nations; Years of civil war, disease and lack of education trap more than 80% of the population in inescapable poverty. As citizens of a democratic nation we ask, “What can government officials in poverty-stricken nations do to increase prosperity in their countries?”, and the answer is to overcome the failure of their own government. The term “government failure” does not suggest an evil or even incompetent approach… middle of paper… For too long, the American solution to poverty has been to give people a meal and a home, rather than teaching them to build their own their home and educating them so that they can be self-sufficient and productive members of our society. As we clearly see in the current economic crisis, poverty is not simply a situation you are born into or “choose” into, but involves things like dropping out of school. What will it take to rebuild an American economy strong enough that we can actually end poverty? First of all, education: education is vital for young people; it must include special education programs and the encouragement of technical schools so that new inventions are made and new industries create a higher workforce for the future. Government taxes on imported goods will continue the industrial renaissance by creating jobs. Ending poverty means creating jobs for everyone who can and wants to work.