Resource information
The report provides a synthesis of the
main results obtained on the evolution of poverty, and other
indicators of well being over the 1990s, and is intended to
facilitate debate on strategy options for poverty reduction
in Madagascar. Section I provides the setting for study, and
presents a synthesis of macroeconomic trends in the country
during the last decade. Section II looks at the evolution of
poverty, inequality, and other indicators over the 1993-1999
period. The analysis is developed both at the national, and
regional level, and, when possible, international
comparisons are presented. Section III further investigates
which groups have been more vulnerable to economic changes
during the 1990s, and which factors can help explain this
evolution over time. Section IV examines developments in
provision of health, and education services by reviewing the
degree of program coverage, and progressiveness of services
in the two sectors. Section V presents community perceptions
of socioeconomic development priorities, namely physical
infrastructure development, while Section VI examines the
prospects for poverty reduction of different growth rates of
the economy as a whole for the next twenty years, and by
further investigating the potential impact of different
sectoral patterns of growth. Further work should be focused
on understanding the causes for geographic variations in
poverty, and on the functioning of agricultural labor and
land markets, to include a labor market analysis focused on
off-farm employment, as a route out of poverty. Most
importantly, a thorough understanding of the poverty impact
of recent reforms is recommended, to build successful
anti-poverty policies.
