Global poverty report 2000
The report focuses on three main topics:
- global poverty conditions and trends
- regional poverty trends and issues
- actions to fight poverty
The lives of poor people are most affected by actions at the country level. Countries need to get on a path of sustainable, pro-poor growth that provides opportunities for all, a voice in decision-making and protection from shocks.
Achieving sustainable, inclusive and broad-based growth and opportunities requires a sound macroeconomic framework. Policies that promote low inflation, realistic and stable exchange rates, reasonable fiscal deficits, effective integration into the global economy, and private sector activity, are all needed. Investments in the physical and financial assets of poor people are also necessary, inlcuding adequate schooling and skill development, secured nutrition, preventive health care, rural infrastructure and credit.
Providing a voice in decision-making means pursuing the involvement of poor people and society at large in policy/program design and implementation. Transparency and accountability contribute to a well-informed public debate and result in better policies with wider support. Broad participation can help improve the management of public expenditures by pushing shifts in resources toward priority areas and avoiding unproductive spending, such as generalized subsidies and excessive military spending. Broad participation may also lead societies to confront issues of social and economic inequality that are obstacles to poverty reduction.
Providing social protection to the poor requires mechanisms to mitigate the impact of local and national crises and to reduce vulnerability. These include subsidies targeted to the poor, public works and "food for work" programs, sustainable, well-designed pension, unemployment and social assistance programs, and severance payments to those laid off during civil service retrenchment or public enterprise reform. [author]
