Author

Ippei Tsuruga, MA Student of Institute of Development Studies, UK

Status

Prepared for Tokyo University Forum in London in 2009

Availability

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Summary

No two countries experience the same degree of the impact of economic growth on poverty reduction. The combination of the degree of economic growth, income redistribution, sectoral pattern of growth and other factors, especially human development may generate the variations between countries in the impact of economic growth on poverty reduction. Furthermore, these factors of the various impacts of economic growth on poverty reduction strongly depend on governments’ policies. Therefore, analysing four factors above with policy implementations is crucial in order to explain the variations between countries in the impact of economic growth on poverty reduction. This paper attempts to analyse the twin cases of Bangladesh and Zambia. The growth of Bangladesh has been led by both the agricultural and industrial sectors, which achieved remarkable poverty reduction. The rise in agricultural productivity in the rural areas and industrial development in the urban areas led to economic growth and redistribution, which accomplished both relative pro-poor growth and some absolute pro-poor growth. On the other hand, the growth of Zambia has been led by the mining sector. The high dependence on urban industry increased poverty and inequality, as well as the resultant negligence of the agricultural sector because the impact of economic growth on poverty reduction was not sufficient to reduce poverty, and redistribution did not occur.

Key words – Bangladesh, Zambia, pro-poor growth, poverty reduction, inequality, sectoral pattern, human development