Urbanization, Inequality, and Poverty in the People’s Republic of China

Relying on the present literature, official statistics, and household survey data in the People’s Republic of China, this paper summarizes research findings on the relationship between urbanization, urban–rural inequality, and poverty, and provides further empirical evidence on the role of urbanization and government policies in urban poverty. Several conclusions can be drawn from. First, urbanization has a significant effect on reducing both poverty of rural residents and poverty of migrating peasants, and, consequently, has a positive effect on narrowing the rural–urban income or consumption gap. Urban labor markets play an important role in this effect. Second, urbanization is positively correlated with urban poverty. This can be explained by the competition between migrating peasants and urban workers in the labor market, and the failure of the government’s anti-poverty policies in urban areas. Third, the existence of an informal sector has a negative effect on the poverty of urban citizens. Being employed by the informal sector significantly increases the probability of falling into poverty for urban citizens. Fourth, the minimum wage has a positive effect on reducing urban poverty, while the effect of other policies, such as Di Bao and the minimum living standard, is limited

Addressing Urban Poverty Increasing Learning on Urban Poverty Reduction in Kota Surakarta and Kota Makassar, Indonesia

Research team research advisor asep suryahadi smeru research team rizki fillaili (team leader), r.justin sodo, prio sambodho, rachma indah nurbani, herry widjanarko, kartawijaya, abdul ghofur, rika kumala dewi, mona sintia, ratri indah septiana regional researchers kota surakarta kota makassar isnaini rohmatulloh histiraludin wahyuning tuti widyaningrum ardian pratomo denny paulus suardi bakri a.muh. syarief hidayat bustam rikawati edi hariadi nur rahmah abstract with the growing intensity of urban problems, most notably poverty, it is imperative to identify the range of related aspects that help or hinder urban poverty reduction efforts. one emerging aspect is the role of city spatial planning in urban poverty reduction efforts. with the support from ford foundation, the smeru research institute conducted a study to understand the connection between city spatial planning and urban poverty: how city spatial planning addresses urban poverty issues and the extent to which this planning is inclusive of the issues being experienced in the study areas. it is hoped that in the future, with an improved understanding of this connection, city spatial planning can be more pro-poor and supportive of urban poverty reduction efforts. this study covered two selected cities, kota surakarta and kota makassar. both cities are well known for their innovation in inventing and implementing local programs that aim to reduce poverty and other social problems. the study implemented the sustainable livelihood approach (sla) as its analytical framework and conducted the participatory poverty assessment (ppa) as its data collection method. the study revealed two important findings: first, that the characteristics of poverty and poverty dynamics have spatial relevance. results of the ppa show that during the last ten years, poor people in the inner city have been enjoying welfare improvement due to urban economic agglomeration. in relation to the spatial aspect of poverty, the urban poor are facing illegal settlement problems, clean water and sanitation, and unsustainable urban economy. the second finding is that the current city spatial planning in both of the studied cities pays only limited attention to spatial poverty problems, which is reflected in several of their major planning documents. moreover, poverty reduction efforts in these two cities are still dominated by programmatic approaches and have not taken into account aspects of urban spatial poverty. key words: urban spatial poverty, city spatial planning, urban poverty reductio

Poverty in Buffalo-Niagara

The combination of densely concentrated, racialized poverty with housing vacancy, abandonment, and blight is overwhelming many urban neighborhoods in Buffalo and Niagara Falls. Anti-poverty policies must address the fact that poverty is both widespread, with roughly half of people in poverty living outside the cities, and yet highly concentrated, with poverty rates in the cities nearly four times as high as those outside the cities. Urban poverty and abandonment create a vicious cycle in which cities are left with the highest needs and the least resources (i.e., the lowest property tax base) to address those needs. Thus, county, state, and federal governments need to steer more resources toward cities and enact policies that deter sprawl and focus investment in urban cores. Efficient programs to address urban poverty and blight include “double-win” programs which pay disadvantaged urban workers a living wage to redress urban blight by repairing housing and cleaning and greening vacant lots in tightly targeted redevelopment zones

The changing profile of poverty in the world:

Poverty, Hunger, Urban and Rural Poverty, Poverty dynamics, Measuring Poverty, Poverty reduction, 2020 Conference, Millennium Development Goals, Urban-rural differences, Regional development, Rural development,

Analyzing urban poverty: a summary of methods and approached

In recent years an extensive body of literature has emerged on the definition, measurement and analysis of poverty. Much of this literature focuses on analyzing poverty at the national level, or spatial disaggregation by general categories of urban or rural areas with adjustments made for regional price differentials. Yet for an individual city attempting to tackle the problems of urban poverty, this level of aggregation is not sufficient for answering specific questions such as where the poor are located in the city, whether there are differences between poor areas, if access to services varies by subgroup, whether specific programs are reaching the poorest, and how to design effective poverty reduction programs and policies. Answering these questions is critical, particularly for large, sprawling cities with highly diverse populations and growing problems of urban poverty. Understanding urban poverty presents a set of issues distinct from general poverty analysis and thus may require additional tools and techniques. This paper summarizes the main issues in conducting urban poverty analysis, with a focus on presenting a sample of case studies from urban areas that were implemented by a number of different agencies using a range of analytical approaches for studying urban poverty. Specific conclusions regarding design and analysis, data, timing, cost, and implementation issues are discussed.Public Health Promotion,Poverty Reduction Strategies,Health Economics&Finance,Poverty Monitoring&Analysis,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Urban Partnerships&Poverty,Poverty Reduction Strategies,Health Economics&Finance,Poverty Assessment,City Development Strategies

Trade Liberalisation and Poverty in Bangladesh: A General Equilibrium Approach

This paper uses a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model to investigate the impact on poverty of trade liberalisation in Bangladesh. The simulation results show that the complete removal of tariffs favours export oriented sectors in the economy. With trade liberalisation, rural and urban areas experience an overall reduction in poverty in the short run. However, a marginal increase in the poverty gap and poverty severity for urban areas is projected, implying that the poor become poorer in urban areas. Moreover, poverty incidences vary among various socio-economic groups. In the short run, poverty incidence increases for rural landless and urban illiterate and low-educated household groups. In contrast, the long run results highlight that trade liberalisation reduces absolute poverty for all groups both in rural and urban areas.Trade Liberalisation, Poverty, Bangladesh, Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model., International Relations/Trade, Food Security and Poverty,

Urban agriculture and urban poverty alleviation: South African debates

Growing international attention has focussed on the potential role of urban agriculture in poverty alleviation. The aim in this paper is to analyse the existing challenge of urban poverty in South Africa and examine the potential role of urban agriculture as a component of a pro-poor urban development strategy.Community/Rural/Urban Development, Food Security and Poverty,

Rural Poverty in Latin America

The fact that most poor people in Latin America live in urban areas had implied that poverty in the region is regarded as largely an urban phenomenon. However, this document exposes what available data suggest: that rural poverty still is significant in many Latin American countries.Social Development :: Poverty, Rural & Urban Development :: Rural Development, Rural Poverty in Latin America

Voices from Urban Africa: The Impact of Urban Growth on Children

Urban poverty -- and its impact on children -- is often overlooked and misunderstood. More than half of the world's population now lives in cities. Each year the number of urban residents increases by nearly 60 million.1 By 2050, it is projected that two thirds of the global population will be living in urban areas.2 It is estimated that 94 percent of urban growth will take place in less developed countries.3Africa, though it is the least urbanized continent today, is predicted to have one billion urban dwellers by 2040, with a substantial youth majority. Over the next 40 years, 75 percent of urban population growth in Africa will take place in Africa's secondary cities.4 Currently, over half of the African urban population lives in slum conditions. These figures alone demonstrate the growing importance of prioritizing the urban context in development work.Coupled with this growing urban population, the development community's reliance on aggregate data, which generally compares development indicators for urban and rural areas within a country, means that children and adults living in urban areas appear to be better off than those living in rural areas.Citywide statistics and the 'urban advantage' allow the wealth of some urban individuals to obscure the hardships faced by those living in urban poverty and the vast inequalities present within urban communities. The absence of detailed data means that the depths of urban poverty are often missed and children living in urban poverty are at risk of not being reached by development efforts

Socio-economic determinants for poverty reduction : the case of Fiji : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Economics at Massey University

Poverty is a multi-dimensional issue, which encompasses different dimensions of deprivation that relate to human capabilities including food security, health, education, rights, voice, security, dignity, income and consumption. Above all, poverty is denial of human rights (United Nations, 2009). Despite Fiji's as a most developed island economy, and plays an affluent role among the Pacific Island nations, its history of coups and vulnerability to external shocks have created major obstacles to reducing poverty by half by 2015. The study demonstrates that knowledge on the characteristics of the poor is vital not only because it is essential to tackle the roots of poverty but also shape the policies and strategies to reducing poverty. The study found that, in particular, the households headed by females and people with disability are most prone to poverty. Rural households are more likely subjected to poverty than urban households. The Indo-Fijian households face greater income inequalities than Fijian households, and the urban households endure greater inequalities in comparison to rural households. Being educated and employed are the key fundamental elements in reducing the likelihood of remaining poor. The study shows that people from the lowest income to the highest income groups all benefit from formal education, but it is tertiary education which has the ability to sustainably prevent people falling into poverty when the unseen event occur in the future. Also, employment in manufacturing, construction, trade and services, transportation and communications sectors are all vital determinants of poverty reduction. In particular, the manufacturing sector helps rural households in increasing the possibility of meeting the basic needs, while the transportation and communication sector helps urban households to increase the probability of meeting their basic needs. The research findings suggest that poverty reduction polices and programmes should focus on the core areas of integration and targeting, promotion of human assets, provide resources and transportation linkages for rural and urban activities, promotion of income-job-creation and income redistribution. Releasing land for commercial agriculture farming could contribute to poverty reduction in rural areas and its linkages in the urban sector could also reduce poverty in urban areas