Poor countries more vulnerable, make reducing poverty harder—Malpass


The World Bank President, Mr. David Malpass has said that global growth is slowing, investment is sluggish, manufacturing activity soft, and trade weakening. Also that the challenges of climate change and fragility are making poor countries more vulnerable. DAVID AGBA reports.


700 million people still live in extreme poverty


The World Bank President, David Malpass while delivering his opening remark at the recently concluded 2019 IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings in Washington said: “This backdrop makes our goals of reducing extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity even harder. About 700 million people still live in extreme poverty. That’s about one in 12 people on the planet. 


“Here’s the good news: broad-based growth is still possible for countries. With the right mix of policies and structural reforms, countries can unleash growth that’s broadly shared across all segments of society. This is especially true in emerging markets and developing countries, where well-designed reforms can deliver meaningful gains. In short, we seek material impact in terms of broad-based growth, transparency, the rule of law, and private-sector expansion.
Many countries’ve used up their fiscal and monetary-policy space
“We need to be careful how we calibrate our response to the global slowdown. Many countries have already used up their fiscal and monetary-policy space, so structural reforms are essential. Over $15 trillion in bonds have zero or negative yields, which amounts to frozen capital. Debt has climbed to troubling levels. We need fresh thinking to reignite growth. At the World Bank Group, we’re staying focused on our mission.


“We’re helping countries build strong programs tailored to the unique circumstances of their economies. We’re encouraging innovations that attract private-sector investment, such as digital money. We’re promoting the rule of law and transparency in debt management and public finances. We’re investing to help countries gain access to electricity and clean water, ensure the full inclusion of girls and women, address climate change and protect the environment, improve health and nutrition, and bolster infrastructure.


New approaches
Continuing he said “We’re launching a new approach to measure learning. It looks at the proportion of children aged 10 who can read and understand a basic story. We want to reduce learning poverty as much as possible. As we do every three years, we’re discussing with our member countries how to replenish the financial resources of IDA, our fund for the poorest countries. The proposed replenishment directs more funding toward people in fragile and conflict-affected situations, and reaffirms our commitment to projects that benefit the climate and promote gender inclusion. I look forward to the continued support of our donor countries for IDA, which plays a leading role in reducing extreme poverty.


In conclusion, this week I’ll have a simple message for countries: The choices you make now matter. Well-designed structural reforms are needed to unlock growth and build the foundations for future prosperity. Problems include oligopolies, excessive public-sector employment and pension promises, and subsidies for goods, services and financing. I’m aware of the strong resistance to many reforms. But they’re crucial for enabling broad-based, sustainable growth”.

The World Bank boss said also “The World Bank has introduced an ambitious new Learning Target, which aims to cut by at least half the global rate of Learning Poverty by 2030. Learning Poverty is defined as the percentage of 10-year-olds who cannot read and understand a simple story. 
53 per cent of children in low- and middle-income countries cannot read
Using a database developed jointly with UNESCO Institute of Statistics, the Bank estimates that 53 percent of children in low- and middle-income countries cannot read and understand a simple story by the end of primary school. In poor countries, the level is as high as 80 percent. Such high levels of learning poverty are an early warning sign that all global educational goals and other related sustainable development goals are in jeopardy. 
It further said “Success in reaching this learning target is critical to our mission,”. “Tackling learning poverty will require comprehensive reforms to ensure domestic resources are used effectively. The target points to the urgency of investments in better teaching and better coordination of vital learning priorities.”mThis new target aligns with the Human Capital Projects’s efforts at building the political commitment for accelerating investment in people. Much of the variation in the Human Capital Index – used to track countries’ progress in health, education, and survival – is due to differences in educational outcomes.
Education a critical factor
“We know that education is a critical factor in ensuring equality of opportunities,” said Annette Dixon, Vice President, Human Development, World Bank Group. “Many countries have almost eliminated learning poverty – with levels below 5 per cent.  But in others, it is incredibly high, and we are putting at risk the future of many children. That is morally and economically unacceptable. This Learning Target aims to galvanise action toward an ambitious but reachable goal.”
Several developing countries are showing that accelerated progress is possible. In Kenya, progress has been accomplished through technology-enabled teacher coaching, teacher guides, and the delivery of one textbook per child (in both English and Kiswahili) with contents suitable to the level of students. 
“In Egypt, the government has changed its curriculum and assessment systems, so students are evaluated throughout the year, with the key element of the reforms focused on learning, instead of getting a school credential. And in Vietnam, the clear and explicit national curriculum, the near-universal availability of textbooks, and the low absenteeism among students and teachers are credited for contributing to the country’s outstanding learning outcomes.
Current pace of improvement still worryingly slow
Unfortunately, in many other countries the current pace of improvement is still worryingly slow. Even if countries reduce their learning poverty at the fastest rates seen over the past 20 years, the goal of ending it will not be attained by 2030. “Cutting learning poverty by at least half is feasible but requires large political, financial and managerial commitments and a whole of government approach,” said Jaime Saavedra, Global Education Director, World Bank Group.
“Taking learning poverty to zero -assuring that all children are able to read- is a fundamental development objective, as is eliminating hunger or extreme poverty.  All children have the right to read – and in each country, a national dialogue is needed in order to define how and when learning poverty can be eliminated, and to set intermediate targets for the coming years.”
Three pillars of work to help countries reach target
“The Bank will use three pillars of work to help countries reach this target and improve the human capital outcomes of their people: A literacy policy package consisting of country interventions that have proven to be effective in promoting reading proficiency at scale: ensuring political and technical commitment to literacy grounded in adequately funded plans; ensuring effective teaching for literacy, through tightly structured and effective pedagogy; preparing teachers to teach at the right level and providing practical in-school teacher training; ensuring access texts and readers to all; and teac”

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