World poverty: New policies to defeat an old enemy (Studies in Poverty, Inequality and Social Exclusion series)

World poverty is an important book offering fresh insights into how to tackle poverty worldwide. With contributions from leading scholars in the field both internationally and in the UK, the book asks whether existing international and national policies are likely to succeed in reducing poverty across the world. It concludes that they are not and that a radically different international strategy is needed. This book is a companion volume to Breadline Europe: The measurement of poverty (The Policy Press, 2001). The focus of World poverty is on anti-poverty policies rather than the scale, causes and measurement of poverty. A wide range of countries is discussed including countries such as China and India, which have rarely been covered elsewhere. The interests of the industrialised and developing world are given equal attention and are analysed together. Policies intended to operate at different levels - international, regional, national and sub-national - ranging from the policies of international agencies like the UN and the World Bank through to national governments, groups of governments and local and city authorities - are examined. Key aspects of social policy, like'targeting'and means-testing, de-regulation and privatisation, are considered in detail. World poverty will become a definitive point of reference for anyone working, studying or researching in the poverty field. Studies in poverty, inequality and social exclusion series Series Editor: David Gordon, Director, Townsend Centre for International Poverty Research. Poverty, inequality and social exclusion remain the most fundamental problems that humanity faces in the 21st century. This exciting series, published in association with the Townsend Centre for International Poverty Research at the University of Bristol, aims to make cutting-edge poverty related research more widely available. For other titles in this series, please follow the series link from the main catalogue page. WORLD POVERTY......Page 2 Contents......Page 4 Notes on contributors......Page 6 Acknowledgements......Page 10 Introduction: The human condition is structurally unequal......Page 12 International anti-poverty policies......Page 15 Anti-poverty policies in rich countries......Page 17 Anti-poverty policies in poor countries......Page 19 Future anti-poverty policies: national and international......Page 23 Poverty......Page 28 Social exclusion......Page 29 Building on international agreement......Page 30 Social polarisation......Page 31 A personal history of social polarisation......Page 32 A global trend......Page 33 Explaining polarisation......Page 34 Conclusion: the invention of the international welfare state......Page 42 Introduction......Page 50 Rising inequality and the ‘Transatlantic Consensus’......Page 52 An alternative approach to explaining earnings inequality......Page 59 Can redistribution offset market inequality?......Page 64 Conclusions......Page 69 International anti-poverty policies......Page 78 European Union anti-poverty policies......Page 79 Implications for poverty measurement......Page 83 Absolute and overall poverty......Page 84 The measurement of poverty by international agencies......Page 85 Poverty measurement in the European Union......Page 89 Producing meaningful and internationally comparable poverty statistics......Page 91 International measurement of standard of living (deprivation)......Page 92 Cost of ending poverty......Page 96 Conclusions......Page 99 Administrative trends......Page 108 Poverty-related trends......Page 110 Welfare: its beginning and evolution......Page 111 The beginning of ‘reform’......Page 113 The birth of workfare......Page 114 The success debate: what are TANF’s outcomes?......Page 116 Programme ‘successes’......Page 117 Purported successes and the necessity of close examination......Page 118 Critiquing TANF’s success: faulty criteria and areas for improvement......Page 120 Evaluating TANF on broader criteria......Page 121 Reauthorisation of TANF: an opportunity for reflection on workfare in the US......Page 123 Changing the low-wage labour market......Page 125 Improving other social programmes......Page 129 Implications for other nations......Page 130 What will be done?......Page 134 Social exclusion: the new paradigm......Page 144 The fight against social exclusion in European Union member states......Page 147 Trends in poverty and social exclusion in the EC member states......Page 148 Minimum incomes......Page 155 Access to the labour market......Page 161 Access to social services......Page 163 EC law and policies with regard to social exclusion......Page 165 Introduction......Page 172 Transformation of the social security systems in the Czech Republic and the Netherlands......Page 173 The Czech Republic......Page 174 The Netherlands......Page 177 Conditionality of solidarity and the legitimacy of the social security system......Page 180 Conditionality of solidarity......Page 181 Perception of the present social security system and its legitimacy......Page 184 Conclusions......Page 189 Introduction......Page 196 Functions and dysfunctions of the means test......Page 198 The poverty trap......Page 201 Means testing and social division......Page 203 Non-take-up......Page 206 Conclusions......Page 211 The historical setting......Page 222 A theory of adjustment......Page 223 Composition of adjustment......Page 224 Facilities of adjustment......Page 225 The Ghanaian situation......Page 226 Political......Page 228 Character of adjustment......Page 230 Segments of reform......Page 232 Poverty in Ghana......Page 234 Adjustment effects on poverty......Page 246 Distributional effects......Page 247 Labour......Page 248 Increased inequality......Page 249 National debt......Page 250 Poverty alleviation under adjustment......Page 251 Conclusion: poverty reduction strategy in Ghana......Page 252 Social funds in the context of structural adjustment......Page 258 Overview of social funds......Page 260 Key organisational concerns of social funds......Page 262 Social funds, targeting and poverty reduction......Page 268 Conclusions......Page 271 Introduction......Page 276 Environmental health and the ‘brown agenda’......Page 277 The social dimensions of urban water supply and sanitation......Page 278 Technical and managerial issues in urban water supply and sanitation......Page 279 Urban water supply and sanitation in post-apartheid Johannesburg......Page 281 The politics of urban services in Johannesburg......Page 285 Policies for water supply and sanitation......Page 287 Conclusions......Page 290 Introduction......Page 296 Living in an urbanising world......Page 298 Changing perspectives on poverty......Page 300 Widening perspectives on urban poverty......Page 301 Livelihoods: recognising the multidimensional nature of urban poverty......Page 304 International housing policy iterations......Page 305 Tenants, landlords and housing tenure......Page 307 Social relations and rental housing markets......Page 308 Opportunity as an asset......Page 309 Conclusion: the starting point matters in determining tenure choice......Page 312 Introduction......Page 322 Incidence and patterns of urban poverty......Page 323 Safety nets for the urban population......Page 331 Assessment of UI and MLSI......Page 334 Improving the social safety net......Page 343 Appendix: Derivation of poverty lines for measuring urban poverty......Page 345 Introduction......Page 350 Inter-generational relations and the mechanisms of redistribution......Page 352 The South African context......Page 354 Health......Page 355 Welfare policy reform......Page 356 Social grants and the old-age pension......Page 357 The contribution of older persons......Page 358 The meaning of old age ......Page 359 Organisational activities......Page 360 Livelihood activities......Page 361 Poverty and vulnerability......Page 362 Abuse of older persons......Page 364 Access to support and services......Page 366 Conclusion......Page 367 Theoretical context......Page 376 The powers behind the scene ......Page 377 The reassessment of the power of transnational corporations......Page 379 International financial agencies......Page 380 The World Bank......Page 381 Technical limitations of the World Bank’s ‘partial’ poverty line......Page 383 The Bank’s definition of poverty assessed......Page 386 Approaches by other agencies......Page 389 Developing an alternative poverty line......Page 391 Conclusion......Page 392 Introduction......Page 402 Global poverty trends......Page 403 Is $1-per-day a valid poverty gauge?......Page 405 Are statistics for China unduly biasing global poverty trends?......Page 407 Is much of the global poverty debate about ‘misplaced concreteness’?......Page 409 Is equity good for the poor?......Page 410 Is a social shock absorber feasible and affordable?......Page 412 Conclusion......Page 416 The case for an EU aid target: important and opportune......Page 426 An EU target......Page 429 Arguments against an EU aid target......Page 431 17. Conclusion: constructing an anti-poverty strategy......Page 438 Mass poverty......Page 440 The problems of the Washington Consensus......Page 441 Steps to moderate the international hierarchy of power......Page 443 World trade and employment......Page 444 Redistribution and human rights......Page 446 The key role in an anti-poverty strategy for social security, linked to human rights......Page 448 Appendix A; Manifesto: international action to defeat poverty......Page 458 Appendix B: Index of material and social deprivation: national (UK) and cross-national......Page 462 Index......Page 468 Poverty, Social Exclusion And Social Polarisation : The Need To Construct An International Welfare State / Peter Townsend -- Is Rising Income Inequality Inevitable? : A Critique Of The 'transatlantic Consensus' / Tony Atkinson -- The International Measurement Of Poverty And Anti-poverty Policies / David Gordon -- Social Policy In The Us : Workfare And The American Low-wage Labour Market / S.m. Miller And Jeanette E. Markle -- A European Definition Of Poverty : The Fight Against Poverty And Social Exclusion In The Member States Of The European Union / Bernd Schulte -- Welfare State Solidarity And Support : The Czech Republic Compared With The Netherlands / Tomáš Sirovátka, Wim Van Oorschot And Ladislav Rabušic -- Targeting Welfare : On The Functions And Dysfunctions Of Means Testing In Social Policy / Wim Van Oorschot -- Structural Adjustment And Mass Poverty In Ghana / Kwabena Donkor -- Social Funds In Sub-saharan Africa : How Effective For Poverty Reduction? / Nazneen Kanji -- Urban Water Supply, Sanitation And Social Policy : Lessons From Johannesburg, South Africa / Jo Beall, Owen Crankshaw And Susan Parnell -- Round Pegs And Square Holes : Mismatches Between Poverty And Housing Policy In Urban India / Sunil Kumar -- Urban Poverty In China : Incidence And Policy Responses / Athar Hussain -- 'a New Branch Can Be Strengthened By An Old Branch' : Livelihoods And Challenges To Inter-generational Solidarity In South Africa / Jo Beall -- Human Rights, Transnational Corporations And The World Bank / Peter Townsend -- Are We Really Reducing Global Poverty? / Jan Vandemoortele -- 1% Of 10,000 Billion Euros / Tony Atkinson -- Conclusion : Constructing An Anti-poverty Strategy / Peter Townsend And David Gordon. Edited By Peter Townsend And David Gordon. This Book Builds On A Companion Volume ... Breadline Europe: The Measurement Of Poverty--p. Ix. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. World poverty offers fresh insights into how to tackle poverty worldwide. With contributions from leading scholars in the field both internationally and in the UK, the book asks whether existing international and national policies are likely to succeed in reducing poverty across the world. It concludes that they are not and that a radically different international strategy is needed. Designed to make a contribution to the integration of human rights values into world poverty reduction strategies, this work provides suggestions on how to translate human rights norms, such as: the right to social security; the right to an adequate standard of living; and the rights of the child.