Other Poverty Study

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Alternative Social Safety Nets in South Sudan: Costing and Impact on Welfare Indicators -- Poverty Note

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2015-06) Pape, Utz ; Pontara, Nicola

The purpose of this note is to provide the monetary cost of various social safety net targeting schemes that can be deployed to reduce vulnerability and increase resilience. It is believed that gradually switching to the provision of social safety nets can reduce the chronic dependency on humanitarian (mainly food) aid. At the same time, it could help to alleviate reliance on patronage networks and switch a portion of the public spending from unproductive uses (e.g., military expenditure) toward strengthening the resilience and supporting the livelihoods of South Sudanese. In addition, a social safety net would address the fatigues of years of weak governance and ongoing efforts to find more direct, transparent ways to enable citizens to reap the benefits of independence and – once it materializes – peace.
Poverty and Economic Mobility in the Kyrgyz Republic: Some Insights from the Life in Kyrgyzstan Survey

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2015-04-27) World Bank Group

This report focuses on the economic mobility of individuals (and corresponding households) belonging to the bottom 40 percent of the Kyrgyz population. This is indeed the target population chosen by the World Bank Group for the achievement of its second and twin goal of shared prosperity (the first one remaining poverty reduction). Moreover, in the specific case of the Kyrgyz Republic total poverty rates in the period under analysis ranged between 34 and 37 percent, thus making the poverty and bottom 40 percent pools almost identical. For each selected transition group, the report depicts a detailed profile of corresponding main socio-economic characteristics. Four transition groups were in particular identified: (i) those who were found to be stuck in the bottom 40 percent in both 2010 and 2011; (ii) those who managed to move up from the bottom 40 percent in 2011; (iii) those who entered the bottom 40 percent in 2011, and (iv) those who managed to stay in the top 60 percent in both years under analysis. The evidence shows a few significant differences among these four groups in terms of both households’ invariant and individual characteristics.
Transitioning from Status to Needs Based Assistance for Georgia IDPs: A Poverty and Social Impact Analysis

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2015-02) World Bank

This report presents to the Government of Georgia (GoG) an analysis of the implications of potential policy changes to internally displaced person (IDP) assistance. A pressing question for policy makers in Georgia is the sustainability of status-based IDP assistance and what efforts can be made to tailor this assistance to favor the poor and vulnerable. Elimination of the IDP benefit has been subject to debate among policymakers. The World Bank has worked with the government to support improvements to the socioeconomic situation of IDPs in Georgia since 2008. The IDP Community Development Project, implemented between 2009-2012 improved service delivery, infrastructure, and livelihoods in over 40 IDP communities. Evidence on the socio-economic needs of IDPs has been collected by both government and donors; yet no comprehensive research has been conducted to critically compare their situation to that of the overall population. The objective of this research is to generate more evidence on the significance of the IDP benefit, and consequences that may be expected if this benefit is removed, in order to inform future policy decisions of the GoG in this regard. The report examines: (i) the policy and institutional framework and considerations that may support or obstruct a shift in IDP assistance; (ii) quantitative evidence on the socio-economic situation of IDPs as compared to non-IDPs in Georgia; and (iii) qualitative evidence on the significance of the IDP benefit, attitudes towards the benefit program, and vulnerabilities that may arise from its potential elimination. The paper concludes with policy recommendations for mitigating negative poverty and social impacts, should the government pursue a decision to remove the IDP benefit program.
Diagnostics and Policy Advice for Supporting Roma Inclusion in Romania

(Washington, DC, 2014-02-28) World Bank

Romanian Roma families today constitute a large, young, and extremely poor ethnic minority group, facing exclusion from markets and services. Investments in Roma inclusion are essential for Romania to achieve its Europe 2020 social inclusion goals, and the considerable returns on such investments will lay a more solid foundation for achieving sustained, shared prosperity across Romanian society. Therefore, Roma inclusion is not only a moral imperative, but also smart economics for Romania. This report discusses what it will take for Romania to achieve the socioeconomic inclusion of its Roma population. The report identifies the most important socioeconomic achievement gaps of Romanian Roma. It identifies obstacles to Roma inclusion and examines the relevant institutional framework. It draws policy recommendations based on the observed gaps in outcomes and policies, informed by evidence on what works from international experience. These recommendations focus on providing support and enhancing opportunities for the next generation of Roma while helping to improve the living conditions of the current generation. In this context, the report is organized as follows: chapter one focuses on Roma inclusion is smart economics for Romania; chapter two presents socioeconomic achievement gaps of Roma; chapter three focuses on obstacles to Roma inclusion; and chapter four presents priority interventions and policy measures.
Addressing Vulnerability in East Asia : A Regional Study

(Washington, DC, 2012-06) World Bank

The East Asian and Pacific region has achieved tremendous progress in poverty reduction in recent years. However, further progress in poverty reduction may be undermined by the high levels of vulnerability in many countries across the region. The term vulnerability is viewed from an economic context, where it is conceived as the likelihood of suffering from future deteriorations in standard of living which may result in a state of poverty, or inability to meet basic needs. Therefore, vulnerability is stated as an ex-ante measure of well-being, reflecting not so much how well off a household (or an individual) currently is, but what its future prospects are. In thinking about poverty and vulnerability, it is important to realize that there are two groups of households: a) those who are vulnerable to transitory poverty if exposed to adverse shocks; and b) those who are structurally or chronically poor-many of those households have been affected by shocks in the past, and have limited long-term income generating capacity. To better protect household from shocks one must also better understand how households face and manage risks.
Assessing the Impacts and Costs of Forced Displacement : Volume 1. A Mixed Methods Approach

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2012-05-01) Fiddian-Qasmiyeh, Elena ; Ruiz, Isabel ; Vargas-Silva, Carlos ; Zetter, Roger

Globally, over 40 million people have been forced to leave or flee their homes due to conflict, violence, and human rights violations either as refugees outside their country of origin or Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). A substantial number live in protracted displacement where return has not been possible.Forced displacement is a humanitarian crisis: but it also produces developmental impacts - short and longer term, negative and positive - affecting human and social capital, economic growth, poverty reduction efforts, environmental sustainability and societal fragility. A prevailing view is that refugees are a burden on the development aspirations of host countries and populations and that negative socio-economic and environmental impacts and costs outweigh the positive contributions (actual or potential) that forcibly displaced people might make. The losses incurred by the displaced populations themselves reinforce perceptions of vulnerability and dependency and thus assumptions of the burden they might impose. This study provides such a methodology. The development and drafting of the methodology and the state of the art literature review was conducted by the refugee studies centre, with valuable and constructive inputs from the partner organizations.
In Search of Opportunities : How a More Mobile Workforce Can Propel Ukraine’s Prosperity (Vol. 1 of 2) : Summary Report

(Washington, DC, 2012-05) World Bank

Ukrainians do not move often, and when they do move, they don't necessarily go to areas with good jobs and high wages. Internal mobility is about half of what is expected when comparing Ukraine with other countries. The lack of mobility is remarkable, given the availability of more jobs and better wages in several Ukrainian cities. Too few people are taking advantage of economic opportunities, and as a result, Ukraine's structural transformation has stalled. This is a sharp contrast to many other countries in Eastern Europe, where the transition to a market economy has been accompanied by a shift from widely-dispersed industries to a concentration of capital and production in a few areas, and from low- to higher-productivity sectors. Labor has largely mirrored the movement of capital and production. In Ukraine, however, labor is not flowing as smoothly to areas of high production. This report examines the mobility of workers inside Ukraine and their willingness to physically relocate from one area or region to another in search of better economic opportunities. The report explores the patterns and trends of labor mobility in Ukraine as well as the drivers and constraints of that mobility, and derives policy implications from its findings. Second chapter of this volume offers evidence of how a mobile workforce benefits the economy. It shows how the economic transition in most of Eastern Europe has been accompanied by the significant concentration of capital and people in a few areas. This has not happened to the same extent in Ukraine. Third chapter shows that what little migration we see in Ukraine is not necessarily going to the leading regions. For internal migration to lead to growth and better living standards, workers have to move to the areas of the country where productivity and therefore, wages are high, and where unemployment is low. Third chapter more over examines the factors that prevent Ukrainians from moving. Fourth chapter offers recommendations for creating greater labor mobility in Ukraine. It explains how addressing the institutional bottlenecks that affect internal mobility will allow more people, especially the poor, to access better jobs, accelerating growth and enabling living standards to rise.
In Search of Opportunities : How a More Mobile Workforce Can Propel Ukraine’s Prosperity (Vol. 2 of 2) : Technical Report

(Washington, DC, 2012-05) World Bank

Ukrainians do not move often, and when they do move, they don't necessarily go to areas with good jobs and high wages. Internal mobility is about half of what is expected when comparing Ukraine with other countries. The lack of mobility is remarkable, given the availability of more jobs and better wages in several Ukrainian cities. Too few people are taking advantage of economic opportunities, and as a result, Ukraine's structural transformation has stalled. This is a sharp contrast to many other countries in Eastern Europe, where the transition to a market economy has been accompanied by a shift from widely-dispersed industries to a concentration of capital and production in a few areas, and from low- to higher-productivity sectors. Labor has largely mirrored the movement of capital and production. In Ukraine, however, labor is not flowing as smoothly to areas of high production. This report examines the mobility of workers inside Ukraine and their willingness to physically relocate from one area or region to another in search of better economic opportunities. The report explores the patterns and trends of labor mobility in Ukraine as well as the drivers and constraints of that mobility, and derives policy implications from its findings. Second chapter of this volume offers evidence of how a mobile workforce benefits the economy. It shows how the economic transition in most of Eastern Europe has been accompanied by the significant concentration of capital and people in a few areas. This has not happened to the same extent in Ukraine. Third chapter shows that what little migration we see in Ukraine is not necessarily going to the leading regions. For internal migration to lead to growth and better living standards, workers have to move to the areas of the country where productivity and therefore, wages are high, and where unemployment is low. Third chapter more over examines the factors that prevent Ukrainians from moving. Fourth chapter offers recommendations for creating greater labor mobility in Ukraine. It explains how addressing the institutional bottlenecks that affect internal mobility will allow more people, especially the poor, to access better jobs, accelerating growth and enabling living standards to rise.
A Gender (R)evolution in the Making? Expanding Women's Economic Opportunities in Central America : A Decade in Review

(Washington, DC, 2012-01) World Bank

A Gender Revolution in the Making was produced by the World Bank as a special report on the dichotomy of the economic participation of women in Central America from 1997-2007. Central America made considerable progress during 1997-2006: stronger economic and political stability, overall positive albeit modest economic growth and improvements in socio-economic outcomes. Nonetheless, the panorama for women in the region, and in particular their ability to work and generate income is mixed. Labor force participation of women in Central America remained unchanged over the decade, with one in every two women of working age still not participating economically. This is lower than the rest of Latin America, a region with the lowest labor force participation in the world, although it has improved significantly in recent years. And yet, women in the region have made major advances in closing the gender earnings gaps and increasing their ability to earn income. Women's contribution to overall income generation in Central America rose significantly over the decade. This report aims to identify the factors behind these three trends. However, stagnant labor force participation rates for women contrasted with narrowing earnings gaps and a greater contribution to overall income apparent in Central America from 1997 to 2006.
Exiting Belindia? Lesson from the Recent Decline in Income Inequality in Brazil

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2012) Lopez-Calva, Luis F. ; Rocha, Sonia

After decades of persistent disparities, inequality in Brazil has fallen steadily over the last fifteen years. This robust rate of decline has surpassed the pace of the Latin American region as a whole, and is taking place as inequality rises in several rapid-growth emerging economies in other regions. This document examines the recent trend in income inequality in Brazil, its key policy drivers and some of the challenges ahead. It aims at capturing some of the lessons behind Brazil?s experience to share with other economies in the region and beyond.