Technology can eliminate poverty, only if...

Poverty seems to be as old as the earth. It is clear that we are all born equally poor, hungry and naked, but then get overwhelmed by a series of innovations that no longer put all of us on an even keel. With every step, technology has increased prosperity for a few. It has not ended poverty. In fact, it has deepened it in many ways--expanding the range of products and tools, and increasing the gap between those for whom it is available, and others for whom it is not.

China and US have the maximum number of billionaires, according to the 2014 Hurun Global Rich List. India was the third surprise entry, displacing Russia, which dropped to the fourth rank. However, while technology has pushed up these countries to the top, it did not eliminate their poverty. There are still 1.6 billion people in the world who are below the poverty line, according to the Global Multidimensional Poverty Index of 2014, and more than half of those in developing countries live in South Asia. About 45 million Americans too are stuck below the poverty line, according to its Census Bureau.

Tech is managed better
Still, innovations have indeed changed avenues. The printing press began a revolution, the steam engine started another, and the Internet today has opened yet one more. The Industrial Revolution created abysmal urban poverty initially, though it soon led to upgradation and improvement over the years with better management. Later, the technologically advanced parts of the world enjoyed better lifestyles than other regions.

Hence, the drive to eliminate poverty can be successful only when we address the inequality through efficient tech tools, rather than upgrade them only for those who want the change, or just for those who can pay for it.

Searching for solutions
Recently, Bill and Melinda Gates made a simple prediction----that technology would help the lives of poor people to gallop in the next 15 years. To wave the magic wand, science in the fields of health, agriculture, financial inclusion and education can innovate and disburse relevant solutions, they feel.

However, will technology really pull western and eastern economies out of poverty and despair? Well, yes and no. Technology improves access to new innovation, but it certainly doesn’t even out the inequalities. Just bringing a lot of technology to the poorer districts doesn’t make anyone rich quickly, except the manufacturers.

Hence, it would be more profitable to introduce intelligent management practices that can distribute technology efficiently, targeting every part of the world. With huge tech subsidies for agriculturists, education through multimedia, healthcare with the latest medical breakthroughs and use of mobile phones to help in dispensing information as well as in answering questions related to loans, economy and updates, technology can indeed begin the process of eliminating poverty.

Double-edged sword
Technology helps if it is harnessed in the right way. Change.org gathers worldwide signatures and support for crucial issues, for instance. GoForFunds facilitates the collection as well as distribution of funds from everywhere for the needy. Twitter, Facebook, blogs and comments in every article have opened the windows for people to send messages. Charity drives and welfare policies, such as food banks, or mobile crèches, are communicated to the public by the electronic media, which directs, checks and reports on the efficient distribution of resources.

However, the knife can cut both ways. The Arab Spring was stoked and harvested by the Internet, but then so was the ISIS recruitment of employables. Biogas and garbage incineration can do the trick only when there is a collaborative association at every stage. Modern toilets are being installed widely in many places, but are they being taught to be used?

Technology is thus not a stand-alone solution. While the right kind of technology is the need of the hour, the state needs to push in too and see that it is working. Even private entrepreneurs can be encouraged to innovate and build profitable business models that have a social responsibility.

Finally, getting involved in the devil of details can sap our energy, but can also ensure that we pull ourselves out from poverty. Technology is as much about inventive management and distribution, as it is about innovation. Exposing everyone to the Internet through mobile phones, for instance, has brought the world to each person’s fingertips, as nothing else can.
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