Home 
Publications Catalog Online Publications ADB Review Article
Shanghai Vision
|
About 1,000 leaders, specialists, policymakers, and private sector and civil society representatives met in Shanghai, People’s Republic of China (PRC), in May to analyze efforts associated with large-scale poverty reduction.
The Global Conference on Scaling Up Poverty Reduction: A Global Learning Process, sponsored by World Bank in cooperation with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and other multilateral and bilateral development partners, analyzed more than 100 case studies of poverty reduction efforts.
With 1.2 billion people worldwide earning less than $1 a day, any hope of achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015 will depend not only on increased investment of resources but also on sharing knowledge, ideas, and experiences that can accelerate results within and across countries.
The conference disclosed that it is imperative for rich and poor countries to redouble their efforts to speed up poverty reduction and stimulate economic growth—steps that would do much to bring peace and stability to the world.
RIGHT IDEAS Getting results on reducing poverty
Invoking the “Spirit of Shanghai”—a renewed commitment to the global fight against poverty—World Bank President James Wolfensohn noted that lessons learned from the extensive research and exchange of knowledge surrounding the 2-day conference showed that it is possible to achieve a major reduction in poverty.
He said, “This process tells us that scaling up is possible when countries have the right ideas, support to implement them, and an environment conducive to long-term management and implementation. This is how they get results.”
The conference revealed that largescale poverty reduction depends on several key factors. These included poor people being agents of change, and assets for development solutions; sustained political commitment and visionary leadership, with continuity over time; transparency and accountability to cut corruption; a continuous exchange of knowledge, and practical ideas on how to achieve large-scale results; consistent management, innovation, learning, and flexibility to adapt to changes; and partnership among all stakeholders.
ADB President Tadao Chino in his keynote address said that Asian and Pacific countries should promote private sector development, increase investment, and foster regional cooperation to ensure sustained economic growth in the fight against poverty in the region. A lack of infrastructure had proven to be a major impediment to growth in the region.
“Recent estimates suggest that the investment requirements for infrastructure for the Asia and Pacific region exceed $250 billion per year,” Mr. Chino said. “Infrastructure is critical for realizing sustained broad-based economic growth, and has strong linkages with other sectors.”
Strong economic growth in the Asia and Pacific region in recent decades has resulted in a dramatic reduction in poverty in the region. The number of people living on less than $1 a day fell from 32% in 1990 to 22% in 2000. That translates into a reduction from 900 million poor people in the region to 720 million: a total of 180 million fewer people living in poverty.
However, despite this success, the Asia and Pacific region faces a sobering array of challenges. Mr. Chino called on the international community to help developing countries reduce poverty through increased financial support.
Noting that limited progress had been made in attaining the nonincome MDGs, Mr. Chino said that there was a serious risk that many countries in the region may not achieve the goals related to health, education, gender, and the environment.
“The task before us in the fight against poverty, therefore, remains both urgent and immense,” Mr. Chino said.
Hui Liangyu, then PRC Vice-Premier, called on developed countries “to increase their assistance to their developing counterparts, expand trade ties and mutual investments, and actively pursue new types of north-south cooperation.
"Evidence across countries demostrates that robust and sustained pro-poor economic growth is the single most important factor in attaining rapid poverty reduction"
- Geert van der Linden
ADB Vice-President (Knowlege Management and Sustainable Management)
“China will exert its utmost efforts in gradually increasing its development assistance for the poor countries,” he said.
Vice-Premier Hui also announced a $20 million contribution to ADB for a special Fund for Poverty Reduction and Regional Cooperation to fight poverty in the Asia and Pacific region.
Speaking to the media at the conference, ADB Vice-President (Knowledge Management and Sustainable Development) Geert van der Linden said, “It has enormous symbolic significance. This is the first time that the PRC, through ADB, signals that its own emergence has reached a certain point. Now they feel that they have a role and responsibility to help some of the neighboring countries.”
Mr. van der Linden also said that the Asian experience suggested that success in the fight against poverty required policies that simultaneously strengthened three key areas of development: economic growth, social development, and good governance.
“Evidence across countries demonstrates that robust and sustained pro-poor economic growth is the single most important factor in attaining rapid poverty reduction,” Mr. van der Linden said.
He cited PRC, India, Thailand, and Viet Nam as among countries where rapid growth had resulted in a significant drop in poverty in the last decade.
© 2008 Asian Development Bank Privacy | Terms of Use |
 Top of page |