457

$1000 or more

19%

7To
$500-1000

less than $120

13%

16%
$200-500

$120-200

The chart above shows the average per capita annual income
in the capitalist and colonialist sectors of the world.

Constant hunger
for one billion

ave you ever gone to bed
hungry? How would you
like to do it not for one night
or two, but for night after
might, dreary week after
week, every year of. yaur life?

That’s the grim lot of more
than half the 1.8 billion men,
women and children of the
non-Socialist world.

* * =

In North America the mi-
grant farm worker is prob-
ably at the bottom of the
economic heap. He and his
family earn something less
than $900 a year and suffer
from all the ills and evils:
that accompany such mas-
sive poverty.

It’s inconceivable, but the
migrant farm worker’s stan-
dard of living is something
most of the people in the
other non-Socialist nations
dream about.

Here are some facts:

e@ About 10 people out of
every 18 in the capitalist
world live in countries where
per capita consumption is
under $200 a year. That’s 58
per cent of those 1.8 billion.

@ About three people out
of every 18 live in nations
where the per capita income
ranges between $200 and
$500 a year. That’s 16 per
cent.

e@ About one person out of

~ every 18 lives in’ a country

where per capita income is
between $500 and $1,000 a
year, That’s 7 per cent.

» @ Only about three people
out of every 18—or exactly
19-pér cent—live in a coun-
try where the per capita in-
come is $1,000 or more a
year.
. * *

Thus about 15 out of every
18 people in this part of the
world live in a world of hun-
ger and its attendant evils,
disease, illiteracy and a short-
ened life span.

Only 14 nations are fortuh-
ate enough to be counted in
the high income or “have”
category. All are in the North
Atlantic community or the
British Commonwealth ex-
cept one—Venezuela.

Eight countries are in the
$500 to $1,000 group, six in
Western Europe, plus Israel
and Uruguay.

The $200 to $500 classifica-
tion includes 37 countries and
about 40 territories. Three
are in southern ,Europe,. the

Caribbean area, the Middle
East and Asia.

, * * *

In the 1958 fiscal year, 14
nations—not all of those in
the highest per capita income
group—disbursed about $2.9
billion in loans, grants and
technical aid to the under-
developed areas.

In addition, international
agencies such as the United
Nations, International Labor
Organization, World Health
Organization, etc., gave $420
million in assistance.

The Committee for Inter-
national Economic Growth
took a look at the problem
and what has been done to
ease it and came up with
this:

“During the decade up to
1958 the low-income coun-
tries taken as a whole have
been able to expand the total
production of their economies
by an average annual rate of
3 per cent. But since popula-
tions have been expanding
at about 2 per cent annually,
the net betterment has been
only 1 per cent annually.

“Translated into personal
consumption, that means that

_the average person in the
low-income areas was able ¢z.

Raw n deci aa mg:

eyvusuime apout $19 TO $ZU
more at the end of the de-

cade than at the beginning.
* * *

“Some, of course, did bet-.

ter and some did worse. For
others, living standards actu-
ally deteriorated, for - there
were seven or more countries

which experienced no growth.

at all or slipped back on a
per capita basis. :

“During the coming dec-
ade it has been estimated that
the low income areas could
double the rate of net growth
achieved during the past dec-
ade — from 1 per cent to 2
per cent a year. This would
raise per capita incomes for
the less developed world as
a whole about $120 to a bit
over $140 by 10 years hence.

“It is the consensus of ex-
perts that this would require
an increase, over recent rates,
in the flow of external capi-
tal and other assistance on
the order of $3.5 billion an-
nually from all sources, pub-

lie and private.

“After taking into account
anticipated expansion of ex-
isting programs there re-
mains a gap of something
over $2 billion a year to help
the low income world double
its recent rate of, economic

others:in‘ South America,’ tHe ‘‘growth.”* ° (''-

MARK 13th ANNIVERSARY

China solving problems
on way toward socialism

By BERT WHYTE
Pacific Tribune
Correspondent

PEKING — Thirteen
years have passed since
the founding of the Peoples
Republic of China. They
have been years of great
achievements and grave
problems but the achieve-

ments far outweigh the
setbacks.

Visitors to China who
spend a few weeks or months
in the country are usually im-
pressed by the tremendous
advances made since libera-
tion and so they should be.
The base has been laid for
industrialization of the coun-
try. Literacy has replaced
illiteracy. Agriculture, after
three hard years, is getting
on its feet again. Light indus-
try is turning out more con-
sumer goods than ever be-
fore.

OVERCOME OBSTACLES

Since coming to China two
and a ‘half years ago I have
witnessed the heroic struggles
of the Chinese people to
overcome all obstacles (not

the least of which is their
fuedal past), and build social-
ism. I have watched with ad-
miration their determined
efforts to conquer A rampag-
ing nature, to endure hard-
ships of many kinds, to ree-
tify planning errors, while
continuing to advance stead-
ily along the road to a better
life.

What is the situation in
China today as some seven
hundred million people cele-

brate their country’s thir-
teenth anniversary on Octo-
ber first.

Here is the balance sheet
as I see it:

Direction of the economy
is up; life in China is better
this year than it was last year
and there is every reason to
believe that conditions will
continue to improve. But the
current “adjustment” period
may extend over rather a

long time and no new five:

year plan seems likely to be
introduced for several years.
Emphasis in the _ present
phase of socialist develop-
ment is on the correction ‘of
imbalances in the economy,
consolidation of past gains,
expansion of agriculture and

‘other industrial centres

_the shortest possible

a steady rise in living stand:
ards.

SITUATION IMPROVES :
The food situation’ is ™™
proving. In the communes
basic responsibility for or84™
izing production and carrying
out distribution has largely
shifted from the brigades to
the small work teams thus
giving peasants in the fle
a more direci hand in ma
agement. When China’s com
munes are :nechanized brie
ades may again become
basic unit but it will take
several years for such a situ:
ation to develop.

For example, China h®
about one. hundred and te}
thousand tractors whieh Gam
tivate only eight per cent %
the farm land; it will require
fifteen years or more to pro’
duce the million tractors
needed to mechanize the ©
tire countryside.

Heavy industry is helping
agriculture by stepping up
production of tractors:
pumps, farm implements 7
all kinds and chemical fert)
izers, while at the same Hmé
not neglecting the needs w
nationai defense. There }§ ‘
certain “marking time” 1” ee
lation to capital construe
tion. In steel the emphasis :
on quality rather than ava?
tity and the proportion ©
alloy steel is increasiné:
China has unlimited coal a
posits; the problem is 02 ©,
extraction.

“SPEAK LESS, DO MORE

Light industry, hit by ™
recent crisis in agricultur® —
making a remarkable come
back. It may require years ;
conquer the chronic cotto
shortage. Development ie
synthetic textiles, still i? t
experimental stage, will nell
The wool and silk situate
is normal. Shanghal are
rapidly building a large Pp
tics industry.

The central task in chin’
today is to readjust relatio””
between agriculture, light ?
dustry and heavy indus
The primary need is 1°

agriculture in good shape
ue se! time:

The food situation is improving in People’s
China while a strong industrial base has
‘been laid for building the economy of the
country, says Pacific Tribune Peking cor- |
respondent Bert Whyte in the above cabled

story. Top picture shows a steam fur
plant in Shanghai Picture above shown.
good crop of grain in China's northet”

province of Heilungkiang. iz

pine

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