Having no WiFi, satsumas with pips in, and calls from unknown numbers have emerged on a list of the most common first world problems.
Having a runny nose, being left on hold when making a telephone call, and having to pay 5p to carry your own shopping home also made the list of commonplace frustrations, as well as people who ignore queuing etiquette and receiving a ‘we missed you card’ for a failed parcel delivery.
The report, conducted by SPANA, which provides free veterinary treatment to working animals in developing countries throughout the world, found that on a daily basis as many as 30 million Brits suffer First World Problems and find themselves grumbling unnecessarily about relatively trivial matters.
Door-to-door salespeople, not being able to find the end of the sellotape and running out of milk also bother Brits.
While wanting to log into an account but being unable to remember the password, and having to use a tin opener when the tin doesn’t have a ring pull irritate millions of adults.
Jeremy Hulme, chief executive of SPANA, said: “It’s so easy for minor, everyday problems to seem like a big deal, and most people in Britain admit to losing perspective at times.
“When you are caught up in a frustrating situation – such as waiting for a late train or being unable to use your phone due to a bad signal – it can often seem like the end of the world.
“But these sorts of irritations really are so trivial compared to the problems faced daily all around the world – by both people and animals.
“The back-breaking working conditions endured by many working animals in developing countries are one of the more ‘real’ problems we encounter every day. These animals have tough lives, usually with no access to vital veterinary care when they are sick or injured.”
One place where these ‘real’ problems are very evident is Ethiopia, which is suffering from its worst drought in over 30 years. Thousands of animals have already died and SPANA has launched an emergency feeding programme to save many others from starvation.
Four consecutive seasons of poor and failed rains have left parts of Ethiopia in a desperate state of emergency. The UN estimates that 15 million people will be in need of food aid in 2016 and over half a million animal deaths have already been reported in the Afar region alone. Local people in the region are mostly pastoralists who rely completely on their livestock and working animals for their livelihoods: if their animals don’t survive, neither will they.
The next rains are expected in spring 2016 and, by launching its emergency feeding programme, SPANA is trying to keep alive as many animals as possible in the Afar region until these rains bring fresh pasture. Through this urgent action, the charity hopes to save animals’ lives and ensure that the Afar people are able to resume their normal lives once the drought is over, reducing their dependence on further aid.
For more information about the emergency in Ethiopia, click here
