Poverty Reduction Strategies In Africa

A fundamental question about contemporary Africa is why does Africa remain so poor, long after the departure of the European Colonial domination and in the midst of so many natural resources? Poverty Reduction Strategies in Africa provides new understandings of the persistent issue of poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa and makes recommendations for policy frameworks to help African governments alleviate poverty. Each chapters uses case studies to review the old strategies for resolving the problem of poverty in the continent and make the case for new initiatives to address poverty. The contributors focus on practical and day-to-day issues as the best approach to formulate and implement poverty reduction strategies in contemporary Africa. This book is invaluable reading for students and scholars of African politics and development.

Provides a comparative analysis of the approaches and strategies adopted in the respective Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSP). Includes information on workshops held on the issue.

Reviews the poverty strategies of three Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC), Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia, and three non-HIPCs, Botswana, Kenya and Namibia. Considers the main economic, social and political factors influencing poverty generation and/or reduction during the period 1990-2006.

This Volume XIV analyses the New Growth and Poverty Alleviation Strategies for Africa. Institutional issues and perspectives in designing new growth and poverty alleviation strategies are considered in various case studies (Cote d'Ivoire, Nigeria, Botswana and Tanzania). Other studies deal with institutional problems of resource-rich countries after conflict (Sudan), and with the institutions to enhance environmental protection parallel with economic growth and poverty reduction (Niger). Further studies deal with institutions to bridge the gap between formal and informal entrepreneurial sectors in Kenya and Tanzania. Local issues and perspectives for designing new growth and poverty alleviation strategies are considered in case studies on rural-urban development gaps in Tanzania, and on microfinance as an instrument for new growth and poverty alleviation strategies (Tanzania and Eritrea). A study on small farmers in Ghana provides information on the role they can play in value chains. Two studies on Nigeria highlight the local and the sub-regional health and poverty alleviation programmes and the relation to growth. Book Reviews and Book Notes on the theme are part of the volume. This Volume builds the foundation for a comprehensive strategy of policy reforms in Africa so as to integrate new growth and poverty alleviation strategies. Complementary to Volume XIV is Volume XIII on New Growth and Poverty Alleviation Strategies for Africa - International and Regional Perspectives. Both Volumes are of importance for all those who work in African countries as officials, executives, managers, researchers, and policy-makers, but also for all those who actively support Africa's development concerns at the international, regional, country, local and project levels. They will experience this Volume XIV and also the complementary Volume XIII as indispensable sources of insight, reference and inspiration.

Sub-Saharan Africa's turnaround over the past couple of decades has been dramatic. After many years in decline, the continent's economy picked up in the mid-1990s. Along with this macroeconomic growth, people became healthier, many more youngsters attended schools, and the rate of extreme poverty declined from 54 percent in 1990 to 41 percent in 2015. Political and social freedoms expanded, and gender equality advanced. Conflict in the region also subsided, although it still claims thousands of civilian lives in some countries and still drives pressing numbers of displaced persons. Despite Africa’s widespread economic and social welfare accomplishments, the region’s challenges remain daunting: Economic growth has slowed in recent years. Poverty rates in many countries are the highest in the world. And notably, the number of poor in Africa is rising because of population growth. From a global perspective, the biggest concentration of poverty has shifted from South Asia to Africa. Accelerating Poverty Reduction in Africa explores critical policy entry points to address the demographic, societal, and political drivers of poverty; improve income-earning opportunities both on and off the farm; and better mobilize resources for the poor. It looks beyond macroeconomic stability and growth—critical yet insufficient components of these objectives—to ask what more could be done and where policy makers should focus their attention to speed up poverty reduction. The pro-poor policy agenda advanced in this volume requires not only economic growth where the poor work and live, but also mitigation of the many risks to which African households are exposed. As such, this report takes a "jobs" lens to its task. It focuses squarely on the productivity and livelihoods of the poor and vulnerable—that is, what it will take to increase their earnings. Finally, it presents a road map for financing the poverty and development agenda.

For the past two decades, Africa has experienced strong economic growth. However, high levels of chronic poverty persist, with poor households exposed to frequent shocks and a widening gap between income groups in terms of human capital outcomes and access to basic services. By providing regular, reliable support to poor and vulnerable households and by helping individuals invest in productive activities, targeted interventions such as safety nets have shown to help reduce poverty, reverse the trend of increasing inequality, and build household resilience. In the wake of the global economic crisis, an increasing number of policy makers in Africa have come to view safety nets as core instruments for reducing poverty and managing risk. Momentum is growing toward rationalizing public spending by better targeting measures to the poorest individuals. Reducing Poverty and Investing in People: The New Role of Safety Nets in Africa assesses the objectives, features, performance, and financing of safety nets in 22 Sub-Saharan African countries and identifies how governments and donors can strengthen safety net systems to better support poor and vulnerable people. Overall, the author finds that safety nets are on the rise in Africa and are beginning to evolve from fragmented stand-alone programs into integrated systems. Social protection has started to change largely from emergency food aid programs to regular, predictable safety nets including targeted cash transfers and cash-for-work programs. Some African countries, including Kenya, Rwanda, and Tanzania, are working toward consolidating their programs into a national system. With the timely analysis of safety nets in Africa, the encouraging results from impact evaluations, and the productive aspects of cash transfer programs in these countries, African decision makers are now prioritizing safety nets on their development agendas as effective instruments to reduce poverty and vulnerability.