Speakers at a programme stressed Sunday on proper mechanism for bringing changes in the lives of the extreme poor and public-private partnership for delivering social services to the teeming millions.
They also expressed deep concern over the ever widening inequalities between the rural and urban areas and rich and poor. They noted that Bangladesh needs more inclusive economic growth to achieve the target of reducing extreme poverty to 3.0 per cent by 2030.
They made the observations at the national seminar on 'Learning from the Field: Applying Market Systems Development for Extreme Poverty and Social Services' at a city hotel.
CARE Bangladesh, Swiss Development Corporation and Innovision Consulting Private Limited organised the programme.
In the inaugural session, Institute of Inclusive Finance and Development (InM) executive director Mustafa K Mujeri said a proper choice of entry points is not only important for bringing changes in the lives of the extreme poor, but also for ending spillover effects into other areas.
Moreover, when reducing extreme poverty in a sustainable manner, it is not a case of either meeting practical needs or achieving strategic needs of the extreme poor, he said.
"The approach to extreme poverty reduction at the household level can be more realistic if practical livelihood needs are met while also providing a material base which can contribute to achieving their strategic needs," said the noted economist.
Successful approach to adopting such an approach needs ways to forge more dynamic and effective linkages between the interventions for the extremely poor and the market systems.
"Most often the two are not connected. We must emphasise that, in Bangladesh, market systems development means not only more competitive systems, but more inclusive and resilient systems as well,"
There can be many ways of approaching the disconnected issue between extreme poverty interventions and market systems. The right choice has to depend on specific contexts, he added.
Four parallel panel discussions were held after the inaugural session.
These are: Market systems approach for income and employment generation for the extreme poor, Market systems approach for financial inclusion of the extreme poor, Market systems approach for women's economic empowerment, Market systems approach for skills development and provision of social services for the extreme poor.
CARE Bangladesh Country Director Zia Chowdhury said Bangladesh has achieved steady economic growth but there is extreme inequality of distribution of wealth and huge disparity of income which is a barrier to obtain the status of a middle income country.
Citing an example, he said a poor family spends Tk 1000 in four days and Tk 2000 a week for groceries. But a well-off family living a major city spends Tk 1000 for one cup coffee and a piece of cake. "Inequality in this country is so rampant and is so painful. Bangladesh is still the 64th poorest country out of 154 countries and 20 million people still live in extreme poverty," he said.
If the country wants to reduce extreme poverty to 3.0 per cent by 2030, it requires more inclusive growth, social safety net and equal distribution of wealth.
Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) Deputy Head of Cooperation Derek George said the government does not have the resources or capacity to ensure universal access to social services like health, education, water and sanitation. Private actors have a role to deliver such services to low income households. Poor people are buying water from the mobile water vendors although the government is responsible for supplying it free of cost, he said.
Market system development approach improves the accessibility to agricultural inputs and services, technologies and financial services for the poor, he added.
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