Empowerment and Poverty Reduction through Infrastructure and Service Provision in Rural Pakistan

Isa, Qazi Asmat; Ahmed, Naila; Larson, Gunnar

Empowerment and Poverty Reduction through Infrastructure and Service Provision in Rural Pakistan

Autores

Isa, Qazi Asmat

Ahmed, Naila

Larson, Gunnar

Editor

Washington, DC: World Bank

Descripción

Poverty in Pakistan is overwhelmingly rural. Some two-thirds of Pakistan's population, and over 60 percent of the country's poor, live in rural areas. In 2005, average per capita expenditures in rural areas were 31 percent lower than in urban areas. This inequality between urban and rural areas is re-enforced by inequality within and between rural areas. Owing to uneven access to land and useable water, most of the increased income that results from agricultural production accrues to higher income farmers-who typically spend a disproportionate amount of their income on urban goods and services. This inequality seriously limits the impacts of agricultural growth on rural poverty, and is a major cause of sustained poverty and low productivity among small farmers and rural nonfarm households. It also points to the importance of effectively targeting the poor in contexts in which resources intended for them are likely to be captured by more privileged groups.

Palabras clave

ACCESS TO EDUCATION, ACCESS TO PHYSICAL INFRASTRUCTURE, AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT, AGRICULTURAL GROWTH, AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION, AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY, AUTONOMY, CAPACITY BUILDING, COMMUNITIES, COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS, CONSUMER DEMAND, DISTRICTS, DROUGHT, FARMERS, FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT, GENDER, HEALTH SERVICES, HOMES, HUMAN CAPITAL, HUMAN DEVELOPMENT, INCOME, INEQUALITY, INTERVENTIONS, IRRIGATION, LABOR MARKET, LIVELIHOOD OPPORTUNITIES, LOCAL GOVERNMENT, LOCALITIES, MANAGEMENT REPORTS, MICRO-CREDIT, MICROFINANCE, MOBILITY, NATURAL RESOURCES, OCCUPATIONS, POLITICAL INFLUENCE, POOR, POOR HOUSEHOLDS, POOR PRODUCERS, POOR WOMEN, POVERTY ALLEVIATION, POVERTY REDUCTION, POVERTY REDUCTION PROGRAMS, POVERTY REDUCTION STRATEGY, POVERTY REDUCTION STRATEGY PAPER, RURAL, RURAL AREAS, RURAL DEVELOPMENT, RURAL ECONOMY, RURAL EMPLOYMENT, RURAL GROWTH, RURAL INVESTMENT, RURAL POOR, RURAL POPULATIONS, RURAL POVERTY, SAFEGUARDS, SANITATION, SMALL FARMERS, SOCIAL CAPITAL, TARGETING, TRANSPORT, URBAN AREAS, WATER SUPPLY