Poverty

  • Main objectives of world bank is poverty alleviation – Awelansen
  • Poverty is a situation where a person cannot meet the need of personal nature and is force to live in a terrible state
  • 25.2% (2010 AD) of population falls under poverty line in Nepal.
  • 13th plan objectives is to bring it damn to 21%

Absolute Poverty

  • People who cannot effort to fulfill basic need of food, cloth, shelter, health and education.
  • World-bank has fixed a limit for this. Anyone whose income is less than USD 1.25 falls under absolute poverty line.
  • It is a universal measure and is not related to specific country or place.

Relative Poverty

  • It is measured on a basis of reference. It compares one person from another. It is different according to country, time, society, class, place, situation etc.

Nature

  • Lacks distribution justice
  • Least developed countries effected by this mostly
  • Rural areas suffers from poverty the most
  • Nutrition, life expectancy, USMR and school admission rate are some component while measuring poverty

Poverty measuring Index

  • Poverty head count index: counts % of population under poverty line
  • Poverty Gap Index: gives distribution of poverty from poverty line
  • Square Poverty gap index: gives difference among poverty line population
  • Gini index: measures income distribution of country

Problems

  • High dependence on traditional forming
  • High population growth
  • Economic growth hovering around 4% only
  • Corruption on foreign aid and misuse
  • Hard geographic makeup and unsustainable development process
  • Majority of population either up employed or semi-employed
  • Urban centered development approach and neglect to rural areas
  • Lip services about poverty alleviation
  • Private sector more focused on profit making & has low effectiveness
  • Lack of interest on utilizing national resources and manpower
  • Lack of policy and weak implementation of existing policy
  • Top down approach of development of development is still a problem
  • Lack of public participation on policy making regarding poverty alleviation
  • Lack of monitoring & evaluation of existing programs
  • Lack of foreign investment in poverty eradication programs
  • 10 years long insurgency period

Solution

  • End political instability
  • Control inflation and achieve sustainable economic growth
  • Increase job opportunities
  • Scientific agricultural technique should be promoted
  • Focus on infrastructure development
  • Work hard in attracting foreign investment change policy to facilitate FDI and improve security situation
  • Stop Brain drain and use skilled manpower for development
  • Create effective monitoring & evaluation program
  • Discourage financial indiscipline

Effects to reduce Poverty

  • 9th plan prepared for 20 year strategic plan for poverty alleviation
  • 10th plan as poverty reduction strategy paper
  • 13th plan target to reduce poverty to 18%
  • 9th plan reduce poverty from 25.2% to 23.8% (target 20%)
  • Nepal on its way to achieve UNDP MDGS

Programs to reduce Poverty

  • Increase foreign investment and increase opportunities
  • Training for skill development
  • Increase access of poor population to productive tools
  • Formulate & implement sound policy to curb population growth
  • Start programs targeting particular focus group
  • Identify people living poverty line & launch program targeting them
  • Micro loan and no collateral loan should be encouraged
  • Agricultural revolution is necessary

Unemployment

  • Unemployment occurs when people are without work and actively seeking work.

Causes

  • Political instability
  • Low capital formation
  • Bad environment for investors
  • Lack of vocational training
  • Lack of respect of labor
  • Slow economic growth
  • No FDI attraction
  • Security challenge
  • High population growth
  • Unskilled in majority

Solution

  • Professional agriculture should be encouraged / scientific farming
  • Economic activity increasing job opportunities should be encouraged
  • Vocational training and self-employment should be encouraged
  • Manage population growth and seek foreign employment opportunities
  • Encourage entrepreneurship development
  • Program to produce manpower as demanded by marked should be started.