Progress Under Scrutiny: Poverty Reduction in Pakistan

Consumption-based poverty in Pakistan fell sharply between 1990 and 2010, according to official poverty data. Nonetheless the mainstream narrative on poverty reduction in the country remains highly contested. Key sources of evidence show improvements that are commensurate with a decrease in poverty, while others raise doubts over this decrease. The policy space in which poverty reduction is debated is also highly polarised, as revealed in the positions of multiple stakeholders involved in policy, research and civil society in Pakistan. An analysis of official poverty data shows how the estimates may be biased -- both owing to technical flaws and to the politics of measurement. As a result, it is surprisingly difficult to reach a definitive conclusion as to whether poverty reduced between 1990 and 2010 and if the stated progress is real. We discuss the implications of the high levels of contestation over official poverty data as well as the need to understand better the types of evidence that the government must produce to defend its policies to alleviate poverty, and for key stakeholders to accept these as credible. We also discuss the steps that the country is taking to depoliticise the measurement and analysis of poverty -- in and of themselves signs of progress

Anti-discrimination measures in education: A comparative policy analysis

Efforts to tackle discrimination in access to basic services have shown mixed results in different country settings. This study examines the positive and negative outcomes attributed to anti-discrimination measures adopted in different country contexts and analyses the factors contributing to these outcomes, with a specific focus on anti-discrimination measures in education. An analysis of trends in inequalities in human development is used to identify three countries that have seen positive change in reducing inequalities and three countries that have seen negative change. This is followed by a literature review exploring the factors that have contributed to the changes observed in these six cases. We find that reductions in inequalities have been achieved in those countries where targeted measures have gone alongside universal measures, where the constitution is used to generate an equity-focused political discourse, and where evidence on exclusion from education has been taken up politically

‘Leaving no one behind’ through enabling climate-resilient economic development in dryland regions

‘Leave no one behind’ is a principle central to achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and ending the marginalisation of dryland areas requires that governments, development partners and investors prioritise investments to tackle poverty and climate vulnerability in African and Asian drylands. Successful approaches will build on the strengths, dynamics and characteristics of dryland systems, including their inherent adaptive capacity. This policy brief describes key areas of impact and resilience, as well as referencing SDGs of particular importance.UK Government’s Department for International Development (DfID

Upgrading informal settlements in Karachi, Pakistan: a neopatrimonial approach to the study of policy implementation

In this thesis, I examine the implementation of the upgrading policy for informal settlements effective in Karachi from 1987. According to the policy there are two possible outcomes for the allocation of leases according to the status of the applicant: legal settlements and illegal settlements. However, these distinctions are not respected in practice. This gap has been frequently overlooked in current literature, which analyses policy formulation and outcomes while ignoring the implementation stage. I focus on a single site case study of the implementing agency's Karachi Field Office to examine in depth the processes that contributed to differential outcomes in upgrading in Karachi. I draw on the concept of neopatrimonialism to capture the contradictory conduct in the public agency of KFO that leads to inconsistent patterns in outcomes. Analysis of ethnographic and qualitative data, collected over six months of fieldwork, suggests that in the case of Karachi, the use of bureaucratic discretion by a senior level bureaucrat has explained periods of implementation where lease allocation has been close to the formulated intent of the upgrading policy. In times when such discretion has not been used, lease allocation has been selective and occurred at the behest of patrimonial imperatives exercised by provincial level politicians. The significance of bureaucratic discretion in implementation has implications for policy practice and the reform and improvement of public welfare programmes to ensure continuity between policy and outcome. On a larger scale my research contributes to the study of public agencies in Pakistan and, more broadly, to social policy literature, particularly as regards policy implementation in developing countries. Significantly the nuanced effect of neopatrimonialism on the work of public agencies shows that institutions continue to matter in the delivery of welfare programmes.</p

Upgrading informal settlements in Karachi, Pakistan: a neopatrimonial approach to the study of policy implementation

In this thesis, I examine the implementation of the upgrading policy for informal settlements effective in Karachi from 1987. According to the policy there are two possible outcomes for the allocation of leases according to the status of the applicant: legal settlements and illegal settlements. However, these distinctions are not respected in practice. This gap has been frequently overlooked in current literature, which analyses policy formulation and outcomes while ignoring the implementation stage. I focus on a single site case study of the implementing agency's Karachi Field Office to examine in depth the processes that contributed to differential outcomes in upgrading in Karachi. I draw on the concept of neopatrimonialism to capture the contradictory conduct in the public agency of KFO that leads to inconsistent patterns in outcomes. Analysis of ethnographic and qualitative data, collected over six months of fieldwork, suggests that in the case of Karachi, the use of bureaucratic discretion by a senior level bureaucrat has explained periods of implementation where lease allocation has been close to the formulated intent of the upgrading policy. In times when such discretion has not been used, lease allocation has been selective and occurred at the behest of patrimonial imperatives exercised by provincial level politicians. The significance of bureaucratic discretion in implementation has implications for policy practice and the reform and improvement of public welfare programmes to ensure continuity between policy and outcome. On a larger scale my research contributes to the study of public agencies in Pakistan and, more broadly, to social policy literature, particularly as regards policy implementation in developing countries. Significantly the nuanced effect of neopatrimonialism on the work of public agencies shows that institutions continue to matter in the delivery of welfare programmes.</p

Multidimensional measures of poverty &amp; well-being

A background paper for the European Commission Report, 'An Agenda for a Reformed Cohesion Policy', and surveys institutions that are implementing multidimensional measures.</p

Multidimensional measures of poverty & well-being: OPHI research in progress 6a

A background paper for the European Commission Report, 'An Agenda for a Reformed Cohesion Policy', and surveys institutions that are implementing multidimensional measures.Copyright © Oxford Poverty & Human Development Initiative 2009

Organizing Workers in the Informal Economy in Selected African and Latin American Countries: The Potential of Trade Union and Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) partnerships

The article gives an account of the result of the research developed in response to the call made by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Open Society Foundations (OSF) in 2021 to carry out a project that would identify the potential of the link between unions and cooperatives to organize workers in the informal economy in African and Latin American countries. Researchers from ODI, London, with the collaboration of researchers and practitioners from Brazil, Colombia, Ghana, Kenya and Uganda, identified and documented partnership examples through which to shed light development processes, identify learning on successes and challenges, and inform recommendations for future support. A country case study of Colombia is provided to illustrate the variety, complexity and possibilities of the topic studied. Three nascent partnership experiences, linked in different ways to the social and solidarity economy, demonstrate the potential of this approach to promote fair trade, responsible consumption and local markets, boost entrepreneurship and create decent working conditions for workers who traditionally face informality

Cash transfers and digital financial inclusion: Regional evidence from Asia Pacific with a focus on Bangladesh, Cambodia, and Nepal

The study examines the barriers and opportunities to strengthening digital financial inclusion for cash transfer recipients in the Asia-Pacific region, with a focus on Bangladesh, Cambodia and Nepal. Specifically, it maps the existing evidence on the landscape of digital financial inclusion and cash transfer programmes in the region, and explores the perspectives and experiences of cash transfer recipients in receiving digital cash transfers. Based on this, it provides recommendations for humanitarian and development actors, governments and WFP to improve the realisation of digital financial inclusion through the digitisation of cash assistance

Organizing Workers in the Informal Economy in Selected African and Latin American Countries: The Potential of Trade Union and Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) partnerships

El artículo da cuenta del resultado de la investigación desarrollada en respuesta a la convocatoria realizada por la Organización Internacional del Trabajo (OIT) y la Open Society Foundations (OSF) en el 2021 para llevar a cabo un proyecto que permitiera identificar los beneficios del vínculo entre los sindicatos y la Economía Social y Solidaria (ESS) para organizar los trabajadores de la economía informal en países africanos y latinoamericanos. Investigadoras de ODI, de Londres con la colaboración de investigadoras de Brasil, Colombia, Ghana, Kenia y Uganda, identificaron y documentaron casos que permiten analizar los procesos de desarrollo de alianzas, proporcionando aprendizajes a partir de los éxitos y desafíos como también recomendaciones para el futuro. Se revisa en especial el caso colombiano, para ilustrar la variedad, complejidad y posibilidades del estudio desarrollado; allí, se describen tres experiencias, todas en etapas tempranas, vinculadas con diferentes expresiones de la economía social y solidaria que demuestran los potenciales de esta relación para fomentar el comercio justo, el consumo responsable y los mercados locales; dinamizar el emprendimiento en los territorios y crear condiciones de trabajo digno para los trabajadores que afrontan tradicionalmente la informalidad.The article gives an account of the result of the research developed in response to the call made by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Open Society Foundations (OSF) in 2021 to carry out a project that would identify the potential of the link between unions and cooperatives to organize workers in the informal economy in African and Latin American countries. Researchers from ODI, London, with the collaboration of researchers and practitioners from Brazil, Colombia, Ghana, Kenya and Uganda, identified and documented partnership examples through which to shed light development processes, identify learning on successes and challenges, and inform recommendations for future support. A country case study of Colombia is provided to illustrate the variety, complexity and possibilities of the topic studied. Three nascent partnership experiences, linked in different ways to the social and solidarity economy, demonstrate the potential of this approach to promote fair trade, responsible consumption and local markets, boost entrepreneurship and create decent working conditions for workers who traditionally face informalityhttps://orcid.org/[email protected]