Poverty is perhaps the most important underlying factor affecting the ability of society to fulfill its obligations to children. Poverty compromises the ability of a family to meet the basic health and nutritional requirements of children, the costs of schooling, and provision of a safe and nurturing care environment. The desperation caused by poverty erodes traditional value systems and often necessitates survival strategies that place children at risk. The effects of poverty can cause lifelong damage to children's minds and bodies, which increases the chance of passing poverty to their own children, thereby perpetuating the poverty cycle.
According to the UNDP Development Report 2002, the least developed country in the Middle East, Eastern Europe and Central Asia region, in which we work is Albania, placed at number 92. None of the countries of this region are classified in the "low human development" category. For some however, such as Israel's Occupied Territories, Bosnia, Kosovo and Afghanistan, there is simply no available data.

According to the numbers, these are not the poorest countries in the world. Yet,statistics do not always reflect reality. For every country within the Middle East, Eastern Europe & Central Asia Region severe poverty is a dreadful reality. The collapse of the communist system has mostly been replaced by governments of former communist, criminals and military personnel. These few are increasingly, and often fabulously, wealthy, whilst the majority becomes poorer and poorer. Furthermore, almost all of the countries of Eastern Europe are in economic decline. Do we catch them on the way down, or do we wait till they hit rock bottom?

In Lebanon most ordinary people are much poorer now than they were during the war. The middle class has become poor. The poor have become destitute. Yet, Beirut is one of the world's great construction sites and in this case the appearance of wealth is simply that - appearance. Only the very few are very rich. People on the West Bank and Gaza strip are right now under enormous economic pressure, as unemployment rates exceed 70 %, malnutrition rates are increasing and the psychosocial conditions of individuals, families and communities are vastly deteriorating.

In Romania, where around half of the population lives outside the cities, 60% of the rural population has no cash income. Throughout the region, unemployment is the norm. In Azerbaijan, for example, the unemployment rate is over 80%.

Without even taking Central Asia and the Middle East into account, almost 18 million children now live in absolute poverty, in households surviving on less than $2.15 per person, per day, and there has been a dramatic increase in the unequal distribution of wealth. In the 1980s, the incomes of the rich were, typically, 3 to 3.5 times higher than those of the poor. By the end of the 1990s, they were 8 to 10 times higher.

In many parts of the region, family allowances were markedly cut in the 1990s and UNICEF reports call for a sustained effort to address child poverty, including the support of family incomes via tax and benefit systems and economic policy.

World Vision strives to take a comprehensive, multi-faceted approach in attempting to meet the development need of thousands of people within a defined district or region. Community leaders meet with World Vision staff to define those needs and design solutions. A typical 'Area Development Program' addresses food, water and sanitation, health acre, education, agriculture, community mobilisation and small business development. In tackling these issues, World Vision focuses on children, who are not only the most vulnerable but are also the most important agents for hope and change.

One method of transforming individuals and communities is through micro-lending: granting small loans to the world's poor. The greater part of the recipients is women, as it has been shown that women put more funds into the family, thereby improving the well being of children. Typically they use the money to establish small businesses such as vegetable stalls, lunch counters, bakeries and laundry services. The loans are repaid with interest, creating a renewable and larger loan fund available to more poor entrepreneurs.

Micro-finance is an excellent tool to alleviate poverty as it offers a service to marginalised entrepreneurs, making credit:
Available: because in many rural and urban places where World Vision works traditional banking services cannot be found, or will not give loans without collateral.
Accessible: because World Vision breaks cultural norms and limitations in order to offer services to people otherwise excluded, including women, people with disabilities and the economically active poor.
Affordable: because World Vision's efficient credit operations focus on serving the greatest number of people in the most cost effective way.

Credit and saving services to the poor provide a sense of self-reliance unavailable through other poverty alleviation approaches. Microfinance meets a critical need in communities and offers clients the opportunity to become empowered and dignified agents of their own development. It strikes at the heart of transformational development and at the root of poverty.

Impacting thousands of lives Number of active borrowers: 91.987 Value of loans outstanding: USD 178 mil Average outstanding loan size: USD 1.941 Percentage of female clients: 47% Jobs created: 116.757 Children impacted: 115.750 As of June 2007

World Vision's economic development response consists of two major categories:

• Micro enterprise development (MED)
  
  • providing loans, savings and insurance
    
  • business development assistance: training, marketing and consulting
    
• Economic assistance
  
  • pre-MED business motivation
    
  • job skills training
    
  • economic programs