Publication: Dominican Republic - Poverty Assessment : Poverty in a High-Growth Economy, 1986-2000, Volume 2. Background Papers
Loading...
Published
2001-12-17
ISSN
Date
2013-08-28
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Abstract
Since its recovery of macroeconomic stability in 1991, the Dominican Republic has experienced a period of notable economic growth. Poverty has declined in the 1990s. Nevertheless, a segment of the population-mainly in rural areas-does not seem to have benefited from this growth. Poverty in this country in 1998 is less than that of other countries if one adjusts for the level of economic development. The principal poverty characteristics are the following: Disparity in poverty levels in rural areas relative to the rest of the country. Destitution in the "bateyes," the communities arising near the sugar cane plantations, that are mainly composed of women, children, and the aged. Urban vulnerability to environmental problems while access to basic services is restricted. Vulnerability to natural disasters that destroy the means of production. Poverty is high among children--especially those who have abandoned formal education-female-headed households, and the aged-the latter due to lack of social safety nets and the absence of pension systems. There is a strong correlation between poverty and health indicators like the presence of malnutrition, and poverty and education, and poverty and the absence of basic services. Government transfers and foreign remittances play an important role in reducing poverty.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“World Bank. 2001. Dominican Republic - Poverty Assessment : Poverty in a High-Growth Economy, 1986-2000, Volume 2. Background Papers. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/15412 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
Associated URLs
Associated content
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue
Collections
Related items
Showing items related by metadata.
Publication Dominican Republic - Poverty Assessment : Poverty in a High-Growth Economy, 1986-2000, Volume 1. Main Report(Washington, DC, 2001-12-17)Since its recovery of macroeconomic stability in 1991, the Dominican Republic has experienced a period of notable economic growth. Poverty has declined in the 1990s. Nevertheless, a segment of the population-mainly in rural areas-does not seem to have benefited from this growth. Poverty in this country in 1998 is less than that of other countries if one adjusts for the level of economic development. The principal poverty characteristics are the following: Disparity in poverty levels in rural areas relative to the rest of the country. Destitution in the "bateyes," the communities arising near the sugar cane plantations, that are mainly composed of women, children, and the aged. Urban vulnerability to environmental problems while access to basic services is restricted. Vulnerability to natural disasters that destroy the means of production. Poverty is high among children--especially those who have abandoned formal education-female-headed households, and the aged-the latter due to lack of social safety nets and the absence of pension systems. There is a strong correlation between poverty and health indicators like the presence of malnutrition, and poverty and education, and poverty and the absence of basic services. Government transfers and foreign remittances play an important role in reducing poverty.Publication Poverty Assessment : Poverty in Pakistan - Vulnerabilities, Social Caps, and Rural Dynamics(Washington, DC, 2002-10-28)This report is part of an ongoing project to understand poverty, growth, and human development in Pakistan. It argues that if the country does not close its social gap, its long-term ability to grow economically, alleviate poverty, and sustain its debt will be fundamentally compromised. Spanning social, economic, and fiscal difficulties, the country's current predicament is not rooted in a discrete set of policies amenable to rapid rectification, but in structural factors linked very often to issues of governance. It is within this context of a broader failure of policy and implementation that one should understand Pakistan's inability to take sufficient advantage of the growth that it has enjoyed in the past, to attract investment, build enough infrastructure, or to promote adequate advances in social indicators. Over the past decade, stagnating policy and a persistent, even widening, social gap are direct legacies of these failures. As this report suggests, issues of governance, for instance, in the form of the lack of accountability, are at the heart of many of the dificulties encountered in mitigating poverty and broadening access to social services in Pakistan. Neither debt reform nor the mere availability of donor funds is likely to dispel these problems. The strategies and tactics outlined in this report take this into account, emphasizing the need to consider and implement concomitant policies in a comprehensive, mututally reinforcing manner.Publication Brazil - Attacking Brazil's Poverty : A Poverty Report with a Focus on Urban Poverty Reduction Policies (Vol. 2 of 2) - Main Report(Washington, DC, 2001-03-31)The first central message of this report is that Brazil has over the last years achieved great progress in its social policies and indicators. The second central message is that poverty remains unacceptably high for a country with Brazil's average income levels. The worst remaining income poverty is mostly concentrated in the Northeast region, and in the smaller urban and rural areas. The third central message is that, with decisive action, Brazil can achieve ambitious targets for further improvements in social indicators, including the objective of reducing the rate of extreme income poverty by 50 percent by the year 2015. Poverty is a complex and multi-dimensional phenomenon. Recognizing the rich literature on poverty in Brazil, this report attempts a few specific contributions. First, it presents a new 1996 poverty profile with a breakdown by city size, incorporation of the imputed value of owned housing, and regional price deflators. Second, it provides analysis of the incidence of selected public social spending based on the 1996/7 "Pesquisa sobre Padroes da Vida (PPV)." Third, it selectively synthesizes other work on poverty in Brazil in order to present an overview of cross-sectoral comparisons of the effectiveness of policy interventions. Fourth, it provides suggestions and selective inputs for devloping a national poverty reduction strategy. The report updates a previous World Bank assessment (report no. 14323) and builds on earlier work on urban poverty strategy.Publication Zambia : Poverty and Vulnerabiltiy Assessment(Washington, DC, 2007-08)The report documents poverty in Zamia along a number of dimensions, including material deprivation, human deprivation, vulnerability, destitution, and social stigmatization. The report identified a number of basic actions to facilitate growth in the rural sector; these include (1) a (revived) system of regular manual maintenance of rural roads; (2) simple systems of animal disease control; animal movement control; health inspection of abattoirs, etc.; (3) a revival and refocus of agriculture extension services and research, with an emphasis on promoting diversity of production and a de-emphasis on the mono-cropping of maize; and (4) a revisiting of the Government's approach to the maize sector, including whether there is still a need for Zambia to be self-sufficient in maize, to provide inputs on arbitrarily changing terms, or to ban exports. The report begins with a discussion about the public sector and poverty reduction. At the heart of Zambia's loss of economic momentum has been the loss of effectiveness of the state administration, which has led to a business environment not sufficiently supportive of private investment and growth, and to poor performance in the delivery of social and infrastructure services essential for growth, security, and poverty reduction. The second chapter describes the nature and evolution of poverty in Zambia. A profile of the poor in Zambia is presented in Chapter 3, which analyzes poverty along three critical dimensions -poverty of private resources, poverty of access to public goods and services, and poverty of social relations. Chapter 4 then turns to an examination of the economic environment. Chapter 5 examines the links between health risk and poverty, identifies the major risks in Zambia that affect the poor, and describes the strategies used by households and communities to manage these risks. Chapter 6 looks at vulnerable groups and destitution, and finally chapter 7 explores the links between HIVIAIDS and poverty.Publication Republic of Yemen : Poverty Update, Volume 1. Main Report(Washington, DC, 2002-12-11)Based on the analysis of the household budget survey, the report identifies a nationally widespread poverty, pervasive in rural areas, concentrated in four governorates. The factors that affect the risk of being poor in Yemen are lack of education, large households that include several children, geographical location that prevents access to income generation, and, lack of worker remittances from abroad. In addition, while public expenditures in social sectors (education and health), are mildly pro-poor, they do not address the magnitude of rural-urban, and gender gaps, and, by and large, social programs are urban biased, mostly benefiting the better-off. Incidentally, the benefit-incidence analysis of the safety nets, show that coverage is extremely limited, and that short-term downturns, and poverty vulnerabilities fail to be addressed. Most importantly, the report outlines that although programs under the second phase of the Social Development Fund are pro-poor, the inter-governorate distribution of both the Public Work Programs, and the Social Welfare Fund allocations, show no signs of pro-poor targeting. It is suggested to pursue structural, and institutional reforms, so as to introduce changes in the governance structure, that would ensure a pro-poor pattern of growth, one that would not widen the gap between the poor in urban vs. rural areas. Moreover, public investments in the social sectors should be improved, and public expenditures for those sectors increased.
Users also downloaded
Showing related downloaded files
Publication Europe and Central Asia Economic Update, Spring 2025: Accelerating Growth through Entrepreneurship, Technology Adoption, and Innovation(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-04-23)Business dynamism and economic growth in Europe and Central Asia have weakened since the late 2000s, with productivity growth driven largely by resource reallocation between firms and sectors rather than innovation. To move up the value chain, countries need to facilitate technology adoption, stronger domestic competition, and firm-level innovation to build a more dynamic private sector. Governments should move beyond broad support for small- and medium-sized enterprises and focus on enabling the most productive firms to expand and compete globally. Strengthening competition policies, reducing the presence of state-owned enterprises, and ensuring fair market access are crucial. Limited availability of long-term financing and risk capital hinders firm growth and innovation. Economic disruptions are a shock in the short term, but they provide an opportunity for implementing enterprise and structural reforms, all of which are essential for creating better-paying jobs and helping countries in the region to achieve high-income status.Publication Argentina Country Climate and Development Report(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-11)The Argentina Country Climate and Development Report (CCDR) explores opportunities and identifies trade-offs for aligning Argentina’s growth and poverty reduction policies with its commitments on, and its ability to withstand, climate change. It assesses how the country can: reduce its vulnerability to climate shocks through targeted public and private investments and adequation of social protection. The report also shows how Argentina can seize the benefits of a global decarbonization path to sustain a more robust economic growth through further development of Argentina’s potential for renewable energy, energy efficiency actions, the lithium value chain, as well as climate-smart agriculture (and land use) options. Given Argentina’s context, this CCDR focuses on win-win policies and investments, which have large co-benefits or can contribute to raising the country’s growth while helping to adapt the economy, also considering how human capital actions can accompany a just transition.Publication World Development Report 2006(Washington, DC, 2005)This year’s Word Development Report (WDR), the twenty-eighth, looks at the role of equity in the development process. It defines equity in terms of two basic principles. The first is equal opportunities: that a person’s chances in life should be determined by his or her talents and efforts, rather than by pre-determined circumstances such as race, gender, social or family background. The second principle is the avoidance of extreme deprivation in outcomes, particularly in health, education and consumption levels. This principle thus includes the objective of poverty reduction. The report’s main message is that, in the long run, the pursuit of equity and the pursuit of economic prosperity are complementary. In addition to detailed chapters exploring these and related issues, the Report contains selected data from the World Development Indicators 2005‹an appendix of economic and social data for over 200 countries. This Report offers practical insights for policymakers, executives, scholars, and all those with an interest in economic development.Publication Classroom Assessment to Support Foundational Literacy(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-03-21)This document focuses primarily on how classroom assessment activities can measure students’ literacy skills as they progress along a learning trajectory towards reading fluently and with comprehension by the end of primary school grades. The document addresses considerations regarding the design and implementation of early grade reading classroom assessment, provides examples of assessment activities from a variety of countries and contexts, and discusses the importance of incorporating classroom assessment practices into teacher training and professional development opportunities for teachers. The structure of the document is as follows. The first section presents definitions and addresses basic questions on classroom assessment. Section 2 covers the intersection between assessment and early grade reading by discussing how learning assessment can measure early grade reading skills following the reading learning trajectory. Section 3 compares some of the most common early grade literacy assessment tools with respect to the early grade reading skills and developmental phases. Section 4 of the document addresses teacher training considerations in developing, scoring, and using early grade reading assessment. Additional issues in assessing reading skills in the classroom and using assessment results to improve teaching and learning are reviewed in section 5. Throughout the document, country cases are presented to demonstrate how assessment activities can be implemented in the classroom in different contexts.Publication Morocco Economic Update, Winter 2025(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-04-03)Despite the drought causing a modest deceleration of overall GDP growth to 3.2 percent, the Moroccan economy has exhibited some encouraging trends in 2024. Non-agricultural growth has accelerated to an estimated 3.8 percent, driven by a revitalized industrial sector and a rebound in gross capital formation. Inflation has dropped below 1 percent, allowing Bank al-Maghrib to begin easing its monetary policy. While rural labor markets remain depressed, the economy has added close to 162,000 jobs in urban areas. Morocco’s external position remains strong overall, with a moderate current account deficit largely financed by growing foreign direct investment inflows, underpinned by solid investor confidence indicators. Despite significant spending pressures, the debt-to-GDP ratio is slowly declining.