One of the stated goals of OPISAC is poverty eradication as part of a larger program focused on systemically sustainable human growth and development. While it may not be realistic to presume that poverty will ever be completely eliminated, it is feasible to believe and to act in such a way so as to understand that it is possible to reduce poverty to nothing more than a statistical anomaly.
A statistical anomaly, also known as an outlier, is a data point that lies far outside the range of values typically observed in the dataset. It can be identified using various statistical techniques, such as calculating z-scores, examining residuals, or using interquartile ranges.
In this particular case, the success of poverty eradication programs would result in a statistical anomaly where the numbers of impoverished persons would ultimately remain below five percent of the population, more or less. There will inevitably be some individuals who may be mentally challenged, among others, who elect to live outside of the traditional societal norms and structures no matter their reasoning, and still others who may be economically impoverished, but who remain the exception rather than the norm.
For all too many people, poverty has become and remained a curse, reaching out across multiple generations, and robbing people of any remaining vestiges of hope for a better future. Poverty eradication is not a quick or simple fix, but rather a complex, integrated, and adaptive process that must simultaneously address the immediate and tangible symptoms of poverty, while simultaneously eliminating the underlying causes.
Despite some rather optimistic, if not poorly-informed ideas and opinions to the contrary regarding poverty eradication, providing the homeless with homes, or merely handing them a paycheck every month, devoid of any attached responsibility will only make the problems worse. This results only in exacerbating the underlying conditions, further increasing the spread of poverty through the creation of a dependency class.
It further serves to encourage unintended consequences allowing others to fall into what, for some, will become a “comfortable rut” from which they are never capable of extracting themselves. This ultimately leads, in far too many cases, to entire families being both literally and figuratively left out in the cold.
The only viable solution to poverty eradication is a comprehensive and systemic approach that alleviates the immediate symptoms of poverty, such as access to the basic necessities of life, education, and even access to modern amenities. This, in addition to sustainable programs addressing the underlying causes of poverty, in conjunction with programs to allow the formerly vulnerable and indigent populations to reengage as productive and contributing members of their respective societies will work.
In the case of OPISAC, the poverty eradication program includes a multitude of options and requirements for participants within foundation programs, as well as for all beneficiaries and recipients of assistance from OPISAC. Among the most notable of these is the provision of scholastic, technical, and vocational training, for both adults and the children.
Realistically however, none of those programs have the capacity to function as individual solutions to poverty eradication, without the addition of the necessary tools and more important still, paid employment opportunities.
The commercial ventures as established, will not be wholly dependent upon the traditional for-profit model, though they will ultimately need to generate a positive return if they are to be beneficial and to provide a tangible benefits to the communities whom they are tasked to serve.
This is addressed within the weighted voting system of the Local People’s Organizations, the Rural Development Centers, and with OPISAC. The weighted voting systems not only prevents the corporations from tossing all their earnings back into their own personal growth and expansion, forsaking the needs of the people, but also prevents OPISAC and the people from introducing programs which would inhibit the capacity of the corporations to do their job.
Commercial operations are imperative for poverty eradication and to fund the continued growth and expansion of humanitarian programs and infrastructure development that do benefit the recipients of assistance.
At the same time, anywhere from ten to fifteen percent of the workforce within the commercial ventures, can be comprised of people with very little training or experience, without any major disruption to productivity or the ability of the commercial operations to produce with minimal disruption.
These statistics are from the United States Bureau of Labor and Statistics, and despite a healthy dose of skepticism regarding the government being in order, there would be no benefit to adjusting these numbers for the sake of political expediency. Thus, there is a high level of confidence that roughly ten to fifteen percent of most rudimentary job functions can be performed adequately by individuals without expansive training or extensive experience. While these jobs are not ideal career choices, they are a vital first-step in any meaningful approach to poverty eradication.
Price’s Law, formulated by Derek J. de Solla Price, asserts that only a small fraction of the total number of contributors in any operation is responsible for a disproportionately large portion of the results. In mathematical terms, this law states that 50% of the work is done by the square root of the total number of people participating in the work.
In a company with 100 employees, Price’s Law suggests that approximately 10 employees (the square root of 100) would be responsible for producing 50% of the company’s output. This highlights the existence of a core group of highly productive individuals who drive a substantial portion of the organization’s success. This phenomenon is observed across various fields, from scientific research and software development to manufacturing and sales.
In labor and production contexts as it relates to poverty eradication programs, Price’s Law implies that productivity is unevenly distributed among workers. A small number of employees often contribute significantly more to the overall output than the majority.
This can be due to various factors, such as differences in skills, experience, motivation, and access to resources. Recognizing this distribution allows managers to better understand workforce dynamics and implement strategies to optimize productivity.
Understanding this principle helps OPISAC design workflows and allocate tasks in a manner that capitalizes on the strengths of their most productive employees. Putting these two approaches into practice through the commercial ventures owned by OPISAC, and adding in the necessary funding for a provision of tools, additional life-skills training to prepare these individuals, more well-paid employment opportunities upon the successful completion of training, and even business ownership opportunities for the formerly vulnerable members of society, if continued in practice, should provide an exponential expansion in the success of efforts designed for poverty eradication, one individual, one family, one community, and even one business at a time.
Many of the formerly vulnerable members of society will likely have an acceptable aptitude for business operations, and through the introduction of life skills training programs, and more specific training relevant to their desired pursuits, should evolve into exceedingly productive members of their respective communities.
This should theoretically allow for the introduction of the former “Societally Challenged” individuals to accept roles in executive, administrative, and even funded business ownership opportunities all equally focused on poverty eradication. Such business ownership by the formerly vulnerable populations, will be funded, subject to the requirements for hiring ten to fifteen percent of their primary workforce from among the most vulnerable members of society, providing them with the necessary tools and training, and encouraging their reintroduction into the societal structure as productive and contributing members of their respective communities.
This will inevitably lead to a day when those remaining as vulnerable members of society within any given community, will become the previously mentioned statistical anomaly. By such a time, the food forests should be in full bloom, the social assistance programs that are no longer subject to strained government assistance programs can be implemented without further burdening the local taxpayers.
When such a day arrives, and to some extent, even as that day draws closer to the horizon, business ventures will be expanded into the surrounding communities, forcing the spread of programs that will inevitably continue to grow and expand, providing hope, not just homes, providing the requisite training, tools, and paid opportunities, and working towards poverty eradication within an ever-increasing area of responsibility and benefit for the individual, the family unit, the local communities, and ultimately, even for the State itself.