World development report 2000/2001 : attacking poverty - overview

Abstract

Poor people live without fundamental freedoms of action and choice that the better-off take for granted. They often lack adequate food and shelter, education, and health. They also face extreme vulnerability to ill health, economic dislocation, and natural disasters. And they are often exposed to ill treatment by institutions of the state and society (specifically, to social norms, values, and customary practices that within the family, the community, or the market lead to exclusion of women, ethnic and racial groups, or the socially disadvantaged) and are powerless to influence key decisions affecting their lives. These are all dimensions of poverty. And that is why facilitating the empowerment of poor people--by making state and social institutions more responsive to them--is key to reducing poverty. Moreover, vulnerability to external and largely uncontrollable events reinforces poor people's sense of ill-being, exacerbates their material poverty, and weakens their bargaining position. That is why enhancing security by reducing the risk of such events as wars, disease, economic crises, and natural disasters is also key to reducing poverty. So is reducing poor people's vulnerability to risks and putting in place mechanisms to help them cope with adverse shocks. The overview to this year's World Development Report foreshadows the main report's central themes, namely the exploration of the nature and causes of poverty and of what can be done.