400m including 25m in Bangladesh trapped in chronic poverty: CPRC
Friday, 25 July 2008
More than 400 million people across the world, including 25 million in Bangladesh, are trapped in chronic poverty, says a UK-based research organisation, reports BSS.
The Chronic Poverty Research Centre (CPRC) in its annual report attributes the scenario to insecurity, limited citizenship, spatial disadvantage, social discrimination and poor work opportunities.
The CPRC launched the Chronic Poverty Report 2008-09 Thursday at a dissemination discussion at BRAC Centre in the city.
The report suggested setting the goal of access to basic social protection for all poor and vulnerable people by 2020, and setting a target of extreme poverty elimination by 2025 across the globe.
Professor Tony Addison and Professor David Hulme of the CPRC and Brooks World Poverty Institute presented the main features of the report while Director of BRAC Development Institute Syed M Hashemi moderated the discussion.
Economist Professor Atiur Rahman, Executive Director of Micro Finance Institute Professor Baqui Khalily, and Dr Sajjad Johir of Economic Research Group (ERG) discussed the report.
Prof Addison said the chronically poor experience multiple deprivations, including hunger, under nutrition, illiteracy, lack of access to safe drinking water and basic health services, social discrimination, physical insecurity and political exclusion.
Referring to the recent rise in global food and energy prices that would drive many more into chronic poverty, he said chronic poverty would grow unless urgent action is taken.
"Bangladesh is doing good in poverty reduction due to its overall economic growth, though 25 to 30 million of its total population are trapped in chronic poverty, as they have not been benefited from the country's growth," he said.
County's next Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS) and national budget need to map and study the chronic poor, and introduce policies and programmes to help them, he suggested.
Prof Hulme said eradicating chronic poverty by 2025 is a feasible goal, if national governments and international organisations make the necessary political commitments and resource allocations.
He said social protection, public services, building individual and collective assets, anti-discrimination and gender empowerment initiatives and strategic urbanisation and migration could spearhead the assault on chronic poverty.
To support the assault on chronic poverty, it would be necessary to modify the main modalities of global poverty reduction strategies and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
"The poverty reduction strategy paper needs to shift from being donor-owned documents to being embedded in national societies and politics," he said.
He also said the MDGs need extension beyond 2015 to fully incorporate a global assault on chronic poverty.
Prof Atiur Rahman said that the government needs to find out the 'missing link' like the char people who have long been deprived of public resources and services, and help them to come out of chronic poverty.
He said political parties intending to contest the next election should debate and give their ideas and planning on poverty reduction in the new PRSP.
Dr Khalily said though the social safety net programme is the vehicle to eradicate poverty, long-term chronic poverty reduction activities, like permanent income generation, need to be undertaken by the government.
Dr Sajjad Zohir pleaded for supports to be provided to the national governments to institutionalise independent monitoring departments with adequate capacity and resources for recurrent expenditure.
The Chronic Poverty Research Centre (CPRC) in its annual report attributes the scenario to insecurity, limited citizenship, spatial disadvantage, social discrimination and poor work opportunities.
The CPRC launched the Chronic Poverty Report 2008-09 Thursday at a dissemination discussion at BRAC Centre in the city.
The report suggested setting the goal of access to basic social protection for all poor and vulnerable people by 2020, and setting a target of extreme poverty elimination by 2025 across the globe.
Professor Tony Addison and Professor David Hulme of the CPRC and Brooks World Poverty Institute presented the main features of the report while Director of BRAC Development Institute Syed M Hashemi moderated the discussion.
Economist Professor Atiur Rahman, Executive Director of Micro Finance Institute Professor Baqui Khalily, and Dr Sajjad Johir of Economic Research Group (ERG) discussed the report.
Prof Addison said the chronically poor experience multiple deprivations, including hunger, under nutrition, illiteracy, lack of access to safe drinking water and basic health services, social discrimination, physical insecurity and political exclusion.
Referring to the recent rise in global food and energy prices that would drive many more into chronic poverty, he said chronic poverty would grow unless urgent action is taken.
"Bangladesh is doing good in poverty reduction due to its overall economic growth, though 25 to 30 million of its total population are trapped in chronic poverty, as they have not been benefited from the country's growth," he said.
County's next Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS) and national budget need to map and study the chronic poor, and introduce policies and programmes to help them, he suggested.
Prof Hulme said eradicating chronic poverty by 2025 is a feasible goal, if national governments and international organisations make the necessary political commitments and resource allocations.
He said social protection, public services, building individual and collective assets, anti-discrimination and gender empowerment initiatives and strategic urbanisation and migration could spearhead the assault on chronic poverty.
To support the assault on chronic poverty, it would be necessary to modify the main modalities of global poverty reduction strategies and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
"The poverty reduction strategy paper needs to shift from being donor-owned documents to being embedded in national societies and politics," he said.
He also said the MDGs need extension beyond 2015 to fully incorporate a global assault on chronic poverty.
Prof Atiur Rahman said that the government needs to find out the 'missing link' like the char people who have long been deprived of public resources and services, and help them to come out of chronic poverty.
He said political parties intending to contest the next election should debate and give their ideas and planning on poverty reduction in the new PRSP.
Dr Khalily said though the social safety net programme is the vehicle to eradicate poverty, long-term chronic poverty reduction activities, like permanent income generation, need to be undertaken by the government.
Dr Sajjad Zohir pleaded for supports to be provided to the national governments to institutionalise independent monitoring departments with adequate capacity and resources for recurrent expenditure.