Afghanistan suffers from poverty and low human development aggravated by 23 years of conflict. In 2012, the population was 29 million and per capita income US $268. Economic growth was estimated at 3.6 percent in 2013, down from 14.4 percent in 2012. The transition led to investor and consumer...

The Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper discusses socioeconomic development in the Republic of Tajikistan. Although poverty reduction in rural areas is proceeding at a faster pace than in urban areas, poverty continues to be a predominantly rural phenomenon. In addition to improving the gender...

This Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper for the Kingdom of Lesotho presents a determined plan in pursuance of high and sustainable equity-based economic growth. It contains medium-term objectives and strategies to address the major challenges facing the country. These challenges include employment...

The Union of the Comoros’s Interim Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRGS) paper reports that the government’s macroeconomic objectives under the PRGS framework entail preserving major economic equilibria. To increase control over government spending, the government intends to reduce the...

This strategic paper discusses Ethiopia’s growth and transformation plan (GTP) for the periods 2010/2011 and 2014/2015. The Ethiopian government’s main development agenda has been poverty eradication. The government has designed, and is implementing, strategies, policies, and plans...

Tanzania's Second National Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty (NSGRP II) is a continuation of government and national commitments to accelerate economic growth and fight poverty. Though MKUKUTA I (NSGRP I) yielded demonstrable positive results, it failed to meet some targets. MKUKUTA...

This paper reports on the economic and financial reforms in Guinea-Bissau. After a long period of recession since the beginning of 2000 followed by a slight recovery in 2007, the economy of Guinea-Bissau has entered a new growth spurt in 2008. The budget deficit, which averaged 10 percent of GDP...

The Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs) on the Republic of Madagascar explain the Madagascar Action Plan (MAP) to accelerate and better coordinate the development process. The National Leadership Institute of Madagascar (NLIM) was created in 2006 to provide cutting-edge training to build...

This paper discusses key findings of the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) for Côte d’Ivoire. The paper reveals that poverty is more acute in rural areas than in urban areas of Côte d’Ivoire. The increase of poverty is greater in the city of Abidjan, with about a 50 percent increase,...