Analyse the causes of poverty and evaluate its global pattern. (40 marks)

(This would be the first paragraph following the introduction)
Geography can have a huge affect on the likelihood of a country being susceptible to high rates of poverty. For example, countries in the southern hemisphere with sub-tropical climates harbour the right conditions for rare and deadly diseases such as malaria to spread. Simultaneously the climate contributes to a lower soil quality, creating more difficult growing conditions limiting profit capacity and food supply. Consequently, technological advancements in the process of farming through mechanisation are made more difficult and expensive, stunting agricultural and therefore economic growth. These processes are particularly evident in sub-saharan Africa, where agricultural processes are not only centuries behind countries like the UK, but the highest global malaria cases are also found. Malaria is an easily treatable yet deadly disease which has the capacity to perpetuate a cycle of social uncertainty which ultimately restricts economic development.
Not only does climate affect economic development but borders do too. Land-locked areas such as Congo (GDP $37.24 billion) or Afghanistan ($20.82 billion) have to rely on good relations with their surrounding countries in order to maintain food supply through exports and imports. The result is less autonomy and a greater need for reliable and trustworthy governance in order to maintain a basic standard of living. Economic development is also made more difficult through a lack of communication channels such as shipping, isolating a country such as Afghanistan from economic superpowers such as the USA. However, it's vital to note that geography alone does not automatically dictate a country's level of development. The causes of poverty are nuanced and often overlapping. For example, Switzerland is landlocked yet incredibly wealthy with a GDP of $679 billion. Additionally, Congo had issues with corruption in its government throughout the twentieth century, with government officials under the rule of Mobutu Sese Seko laundering millions whilst the majority of the country lived in poverty.
It's also important to consider the way in which poverty is measured and how that effects the global conception of the spread of poverty. The UN definition and measures such as GDP use quantitative data to evaluate poverty on a broad scale. However, the GDP does not take into account the variation of wealth within a given country. For example in the USA the richest 10% of households represent 70% of the country's wealth...