The Path Out of Poverty
By Inter-American Development Bank (04/98, En, Es)
The Path Out of Poverty Introduction:
The countries of Latin America and the Caribbean have recovered much of the economic ground lost during the 1980s and are stronger as a result of structural reforms. However, as we begin the next millennium, many of the deeply rooted historical problems of the region remain to be resolved. Perhaps the most compelling task that our societies will face is the imperative of significantly reducing the unacceptably high levels of poverty founded, in large measure, on an unequal distribution of income and assets.
This report seeks to put the issue of poverty in practical terms of what we know about poverty and what can be done to eliminate it. Framing these issues in this way is no easy matter. Our knowledge of the social condition of the poor is woefully lacking and the practices and policies recommended are often untested. In its pursuit of policies to confront poverty, the Bank has learned from experience that often the process of project design, preparation and implementation is as important as its results. Greater community participation, effective dialogue with all the sectors of society, and more open and transparent processes are essential to sustaining development.
In the search for the most effective means to address poverty, the Bank continues to sharpen the focus of its lending. In the mid-1970s, agriculture and urban development were leading sectors in this effort; in the 1980s, the Bank helped fill the financing gap created by the debt crisis; and in the early 1990s, it took the lead in supporting the economic reform programs of its borrowing members. Today, the Bank has a greater focus on poverty reduction than at any time in its history. Lending to the social sectors is at all-time highs, the range of poverty-reducing initiatives is growing, and the Bank has built-in mechanisms to advance the concerns of women, children, indigenous groups, and other minorities in its lending operations. These efforts are still a work in progress, as this document highlights.
I am pleased that we can share the insights we have learned about poverty with a broad audience, since I am convinced that the collaborative effort to reduce poverty will be one of the great achievements for Latin America and the Caribbean in the next century.
Enrique V. Iglesias
President,
Inter-American Development Bank
April 1998
Last updated: 04/26/07
