[News] Report says African poverty doubled

[News at freedomarchives.org]

Report says African poverty doubled

Monday 23 May 2005 10:30 AM GMT


The number of poor people in Africa has almost doubled between 1981 and 
2001 and the continent is home to virtually all of the planet's ultra-poor 
who live on less than half a dollar a day.

A new study, published by the University of Cape Town's Development Policy 
Research Unit, has found that about 46% of the continent's inhabitants 
survive on less than $1 a day, 21% eke out an existence on less than $0.50 
- and the ultra-poor, about 6%, live on less than $0.25.

"In absolute terms, while there were approximately 164 million poor 
individuals in sub-Saharan Africa in 1981, this figure had increased to 316 
million in 2001," the study said.

Worryingly, most Africans seem to remain poor even when their economies grow.

"Sub-Saharan Africa, apart from inadequate growth rates is also not 
effectively translating this growth into poverty alleviation," the study 
added.

Analysts have highlighted a range of factors to explain the persistence and 
growth of extreme poverty in Africa, including poor governance, heavy 
dependence on commodities, and an exceptionally high and crippling disease 
burden.

Asia

This gloomy state of affairs differs sharply from other developing regions, 
the report said, pointing out that South Asia had managed to reduce its 
levels of poverty by an annualised rate of between two and three per cent 
in the two decades from 1981.

The study added that East Asia also reduced its poverty levels 
significantly, even with China excluded.

Reuters


You can find this article at:
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/C4958B1A-6F2C-4CCE-B2F2-9544764B4942.htm 



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