PIOJ Growth-Inducement Strategy - Planning Institute of Jamaica

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A Viable Framework for Poverty Reduction 73
Summary
In both advanced and developing economies, the phenomenon of poverty has
much of its genesis and reproduction in structural factors. These factors range
from urban and rural disparities in economic opportunities and resources, and
population dynamics, to inequities in access to and availability of information,
goods and services, limited social infrastructure, and fragmented and unequal
economic power bases. The results include a cycle of systemic poverty passed
from one generation to the next, perpetuated by imbalances in the distribution of
wealth and income, and an inability to effect sustained changes in the quality of
life. Addressing this multi-dimensional issue requires a structured, multi-pronged
approach.
In Jamaica, social factors combine with the economic to create a stubborn set of
dynamics governing poverty. Real growth in the economy is a prerequisite for
sustained economic progress and poverty reduction. However, if such growth is
not inclusive, the most needy citizens may not experience it. Jamaica’s
experience during the decades of the 1990s and 2000s shows a trend of declining
poverty rates even in a context of sluggish economic performance. This was due,
in part, to the extensive social programmes put in place as safety net responses as
well as to the role of foreign remittances. For growth to be inclusive, it must be
complemented with a deliberate programme of initiatives, coordinated to tackle
the most serious effects of the structural factors governing poverty. These
structural factors will not automatically correct themselves.
This Note outlines and seeks to justify the establishment of a National Poverty
Reduction Coordinating Unit (NPRCU) as a distinct focal point for coordination
of a national poverty reduction policy and programme for Jamaica, in keeping
with the goals of economic growth and long-term development laid out in Vision
2030 Jamaica.
1.0 Background and Context
1.1 Following on its commitment to eradicate absolute poverty, the Government of
Jamaica in 1996 initiated the development of a National Poverty Eradication
Programme (NPEP), supported by a National Policy. The Programme Monitoring
73 In consultation with the Social Protection and Gender Unit, Social Policy Planning and Research
Division, PIOJ.
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