Bill Gates open letter: 2035 no more poor country

In Thursday, the Gates Foundation's official web site released the bill's 2014 annual open letter "smashing three misconceptions about global development", and Bill Gates, in a letter, refuted the three misconceptions that poor countries are doomed to perpetual poverty, that foreign aid is a huge waste and that life-saving leads to overpopulation, Call on people to build a new belief all around the world: equality of all life values. The following is the full text of the annual open letter: Smashing three misconceptions that impede global development whatever the standard, the world is getting better. People live longer and healthier lives. Many countries had previously received assistance and were now able to become self-sufficient. You may think that this great progress must cheer people up, and can't wait to know what strategies are so effective and how to do more. However, I and Melinda were amazed by the few people who believed the world was getting better. On the contrary, many people feel that the world is getting worse. The idea that the world is getting worse and that the world cannot solve extreme poverty and disease is not only a mistake, it is harmful. That's why Melinda and I in this year's open letter have dissected some misconceptions that weigh on our work. The next time you hear these misconceptions, I hope you will refute them as much as we do. Misconception one: Poor countries are doomed to always be poor Bill Gates I've heard this misconception is used in many places, but most often in Africa. On the Internet, you can find dozens of headlines or titles: Why rich countries are rich, why poor countries have been poor, and why poor people have been poor. Thankfully, these books are not bestsellers because their basic premise is wrong. In fact, worldwide income per capita and other indicators of human welfare assessment have been on the rise, including Africa. So why is this misconception so ingrained? Let's put Africa aside and review the broader trends in the world over the past half century. 50 years ago, the world was divided into three parts: the United States and its Western allies, the Soviet Union and its allies, and other countries. I was born in 1955, and the education I received from childhood was the so-called first world rich and prosperous, the developed country. In the first world, almost everyone is educated and lives longer. We don't know much about life in the second world after the Iron Curtain, but it is said to be a terrible place. The so-called third World, basically in addition to the first and second world of all regions, is full of the poor, children did not learn, people are young to die. Worse, they are not only mired in poverty, they have no hope of change. The figures confirm these impressions. In the 1960, the global economy was almost all in the West. America's per capita income is 15,000 dollars a year. 1 (This is per capita income, so a four-home annual income is 60,000 dollars.) The annual per capita income in Asia, Africa and Latin America is much lower. For example, Brazil: 1,982 USD; China: 928USD Botswana: 383 dollars and so on. Many years later, I also witnessed the polarization of the world on my travels. My wife Melinda and I visited Mexico City in 1987 and were completely shocked by the local poverty. Most of the homes there are without running water, and people need to ride bikes or walk a long way to get water for their lives. This reminds us of what we see in rural Africa. At the time, the head of Microsoft's Mexico City would send his children back to the United States for a physical examination, fearing that local soot would affect their children's health. Today, the change in Mexico City is unbelievable. The air is as clean as Los Angeles (although not world-class, but it is a great progress compared to 1987). The city's buildings are lined with new roads and modern bridges. Although there are still slums and villages in the city, the general feeling when I visit Mexico again is: wow! Most of the people here are middle class. What a miracle! Take a look at this picture of Mexico City in 1986 and compare this photo now. Mexico City 1986 versus 2011 in these contrasting photos, you can see similar changes in Nairobi, New Delhi, and Shanghai. Nairobi comparison between 1969 and 2009 Shanghai 1978 and 2012 These photos powerfully tell the truth: In my lifetime, the global poverty pattern has been redefined. Now, Turkey and Chile's per capita income has reached 1960-year levels in the United States. The per capita income of Malaysia and Gabon is approaching this level. Previously, the vacuum between rich and poor countries is now being filled by China, India, Brazil and other emerging countries. China's per capita income has doubled 8 times times since 1960. India has turned 4 times times, Brazil is about to reach 5 times times, and although Botswana is a small country, it has increased by 30 times times per capita income through the efficient use and exploitation of mineral resources. These middle-income countries now account for half of the world's population, and 50 years ago the world had almost no such middle country.