The Problem of Poverty in the Caribbean SW24C Heather Ricketts Lecturer

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The Problem of Poverty in the CaribbeanSW24CHea
ther Ricketts (Lecturer)
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Caribbean Relevant Issues

• Working Poor
• Seasonal/Transient Poverty
• Chronic Poverty
• Social Stratification systems
• Indigenous populations
• Rural people
• Inner-city residents
• Poverty due to natural disasters
• Loss of belongings, property, business
• Poverty due to circumstances
• HIV/AIDS
• Disability
• Death / loss of principal earner
• Loss of employment
• Inadequacy of pensions
• Globalization (WTO)
• Banana farmers Sugar cane workers loss of
  preferential trading access

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Methodologies for Assessing and Dealing with
Poverty

• Quantitative (Objective)
• Poverty Assessment reports SLCs
• Poverty Lines
• Poverty Maps
• Measures of Inequality (Gini coefficient
  Consumption quintiles, quartiles, deciles, etc.)
• Means Testing
• Qualitative
• PRAs (rural urban)
• Social Assessments
• In-depth Interviews (subjective)
• Community Consultations
• Emphasis on use of both methodologies

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Importance of Targeting

• Participation
• Coverage / Leakage
• Positive Discrimination
• Measurability
• Monitoring Evaluation

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What Solutions to Poverty?

• Poverty Alleviation lessening impact
• Poverty Reduction - transformational
• Poverty Eradication - transformational
• Jca. has been bold in declaring intent to
  eradicate Absolute Poverty. Some other countries
  have stated intent at poverty reduction.

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Overarching Objectives of Poverty Reduction

• 1. Transformation (L-T, Developmental)
• 2. Amelioration (S-T, Relief orientation) Henry
  Mondesire, 1997
• Tenets
• Universality of satisfaction (Franco, 1996)
• Positive Discrimination
• Taking care of neediest first

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Key Actors/Stakeholders

• Governments
• Private Sector
• NGOs
• Intl Development Agencies
• Trade Unions
• Civil Society
• Families/Communities
• Religious institutions

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Target Groups

• Low-Income/Poor families with children
• Female-Headed H/Hs without support
• Young Children (under 5 years)
• School Children
• Elderly
• Sick Disabled
• Unemployed Unemployed Youth
• Working Poor
• Pregnant Lactating women
• Indigenous populations
• Rural residents (Farmers)

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Formal Safety Net Programmes

• Aim Protection against chronic transient
  poverty
• Mechanisms
• Social Investment Funds
• Community upgrading
• Skills training
• Social Capital building
• Social Assistance
• Health (Drugs, Health funds, Nutrition)
• Education (school feeding, school fee assistance,
  textbooks, uniforms, tertiary grants)
• Emergency relief (fire, floods)
• Social Insurance
• Pensions/NIS
• Safety Nets/Trampolines (Food Stamps) /
  Conditional Cash Transfers
• Welfare to Work programmes
• Income-generating programmes
• Public works
• Self-employment (credit-based) Micro-enterprise
  development

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Examples of Social Programmes

• Student Loans (SLBs)
• Drugs for the elderly
• National Health Funds
• Transportation subsidies
• Low-Income Housing Housing upgrading
• Cost-sharing schemes
• Teenage/School girl mothers
• Education/Skills Training (Jca. HEART / NTA
  TT Servol)

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Informal Safety Nets

• Livelihood systems
• Community structures initiatives
• Looking out for elderly poor, children
• Church provisions
• Family structures
• Remittances
• Withdrawing children from school
• Child labour
• Child shifting

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Caribbean-based Proposals for Action related to
Poverty Eradication

• Strengthen capacity to develop implement social
  policies
• Monitor analyze human social development
  impacts of economic social change
• Promote participatory development empower
  communities
• Improve access to basic infrastructure
• Increase access to relevant ed. for poor children
  adults

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Caribbean-based Proposals for Action related to
Poverty Eradication

• Strengthen CBOs involved in helping the poor
• Promote sustainable use of community resources
• Promote management of natural environment
• Boost income employment opportunities for the
  poor

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Additional Critical Inputs

• Macroeconomic stability
• Strong Local Government
• Good governance accountability, transparency,
  participation, decentralization
• Concerned Civil Society
• Economic growth with equity
• Employment generating growth
• Strong family networks
• Effective parenting
• (Fair) Justice system
• Some amount of anti-WTO, anti-Trade
  liberalization, anti-Globalization advocacy
• Addressing crime and violence