NATIONAL 4 - (Spotlight Weekly)

Unmet Challenge

Despite several plans and policies, poverty alleviation still remains a major challenge

By KESHAB POUDEL

Although Nepal has introduced a number of plans and programs to reduce the number of people below the poverty line, it still remains one of the poorest countries in the world.

From Rural Bank to Small Farmers Development Program, from micro financing to the Poverty Fund and Bisheshwor for Poor to women development and devolution of power, all aim to improve the status of the poor. Social Welfare Council also mobilizes communities to help raise the living standards of the poor.

Beside Social Welfare Council, Ministry of Local Development and Ministry of Agriculture also are poor-directed. Even the ninth plan (1997-2002) - pointed poverty alleviation as the sole development objective.

Rural people : Victims of vacant promises

Why then Nepal, with so many programs to reduce poverty, continue to be haunted by the widespread poverty is the matter of great concern.

Official statistics show that more than 40 percent of the population earn less than one US Dollar a day in Nepal.

Even after five decade long struggle against poverty, Nepal is yet to reduce number of population living below the poverty line. The recently released UN report: Overcoming Human Poverty 2000 points out that more than 40 percent of the population in Nepal are still poor.

The report also points out a striking fact that income poverty in Nepal has increased since the late 1970s mostly in rural areas. So for two decades growth has by-passed the rural poor.

In the last five decades, Nepal has made a steady progress in the area of infrastructure development like road, electricity local bodies and other development areas, but all these infrastructures are yet to be mobilized to eradicate the poverty.

The poor have lack of access to resources, productive land, infrastructures and enjoy the support of weak institutions. Whatever the services the government provides, it appear to be captured by better-off households because the poor are not well organized to defend their interest.

"The report contains a detailed assessment of 23 National Poverty Programs including Nepal. It draws attention to the novel feature of close and successful links between decentralization and local empowerment" said Dr. Henning Karcher, UNDP Resident Representative, in the launching ceremony. "The central conclusion of the report is that good governance has to lie at the heart of any successful poverty alleviation strategy."

At a time when Nepalese officials have been trying to prove their sincerity to the cause of poverty alleviation, the new UN report identifies some lapses in the effective implementation of poverty alleviation programs.

According to the report, close to half the people in Nepal could be considered income-poor. Official statistics for 1996 estimate that more than 40 percent of the population is poor, while estimates based on poverty line of USD 1 a day per person put the figure at more than 50 percent.

As the past experiences have shown that by merely formulating plans and policies, poverty alleviation is not going to materialize, the concerned authorities need to look deeper into the problem and find workable solutions so that the poverty in the country can be defeated for good.