Globalization: Social and Cultural Impacts

Social and Cultural Impacts (Name) (University) (Course) (Tutor) (Date) Despite the increasing global interconnectedness, approximately half of the globe`s population live under or is affected by poverty. This state of want is duplicated across both the developing and the developed countries and it is characterized by severe lack of access to basic necessities. Statistically, the over 3 billion affected people are compelled to survive on under US$2.5 daily, a predicament that exposes the affected population to a myriad of cultural and social issues. Although most scholars contend that globalization has helped reduce global poverty rates, the contributions of global interconnectedness to worldwide inequality cannot be ignored. Industrialized nations have benefited more from the global trading system compared to the developing ones and hence, the widened poverty gap between the poor and the rich nations CITATION Sha13 \l 1033 (Shah, 2013). This paper examines the social and cultural impacts of poverty in the face of globalization and its contributions to global inequalities. By and large, globalization has been associated with the steady decline of poverty levels across the globe. Available evidence suggests that globalization has contributed to the growth of the export market, thereby curbing poverty through redistribution of resources and wealth across international borders. Similarly, globalization has been a major driving force to the increased foreign investment where investors from developed countries identify and invest in economically attractive developing nations. These global interconnectedness-assisted trends have significantly minimized poverty levels in most parts of the globe besides weakening economic inequalities in the benefiting countries CITATION Ann07 \l 1033 (Harrison, 2007). Admittedly, globalization has also driven numerous people into poverty giving rise to serious cultural and social implications in both the developing and the industrialized countries CITATION STWnd \l 1033 (STWR, n.d). To begin with, poverty has negatively affected the health and well-being of the impoverished sections of the population. Generally, the poor sections of the society lack the financial muscle required to access quality health care services and hence, are susceptible to diseases and other health problems. In the developing countries, this trend can be attributed to globalization which has seen the introduction of structural adjustment strategies by such international bodies as the World Bank and IMF that require countries benefiting from their funds to cut back on health subsidies as a precondition for loan repayment CITATION Sha13 \l 1033 (Shah, 2013). Consequently, the productivity of the affected population suffers further aggravating their situation and strengthening global inequalities. Secondly, impoverished populations in both the developed and the developing countries are unable to access quality education or further their education beyond the elementary levels. In most countries, education is jointly financed by both the government and the recipient through a cost-sharing program. In most cases, the benefactor is expected to contribute a certain amount of money as school fees for the recipient. As a result, impoverished families within such a setting encounter difficulties securing education fees for their dependants, thereby compelling such beneficiaries to drop out of school or halt their plans to further their education. Subsequently, poor populations in the developing countries are unable to access education due to lack of school fees. This has negatively impacted on literacy levels of such societies besides further locking the affected people out of the job market and other opportunities. By constraining access to education, poverty helps strengthen global inequalities by denying the poor a chance to pursue self-improvement through education. Thus, the poor become poorer and are further pushed down the social strata, thereby su...