You can see why so many 3rd world users are here yet it is difficult to onboard the 1st. Problem is, it is not a charity, it has to be based on several conditions and needs outside investment to grow.
Without some outside investment it takes an awfully long time to gain enough SP to be able to do anything. I put in some cash to build up my account, not a ton but enough to at least have some voting power.
Then I have what was 100 more Steem that I play with using for paid upvotes for exposure, playing the spread back and forth between Steem and SBD, and just sitting there in case I need quick cash. This 100 allowed me to lease some SP also and then rebuild the reserve over the last couple weeks. Thinking about adding more leased SP soon.