Poverty Reduction And Human Resource Development In The Caribbean

World Bank Discussion Paper No. 366.Despite impressive success in improving living conditions in many Caribbean countries, poverty still persists throughout the region. This study seeks to improve our understanding of poverty in the Caribbean and the current efforts to address it. It analyzes the causes and characteristics of poverty in 15 Caribbean countries and reviews the experiences with the poverty and alleviation efforts that countries have pursued. Prepared for the 1996 meeting of the Caribbean Group for Cooperation in Economic Development, this report provides recommendations on how macroeconomic and social policies can be further oriented to reduce poverty and promote human resource development.

Within the emerging Latin American consensus on development, human resource investments are considered essential for reducing poverty and integrating economic growth and social reform. Investing in people enables work forces to adapt to rapidly changing markets and share in the benefits of economic growth. Human Resources in Latin America and the Caribbean examines investments across the region in education, training, health and nutrition. The book points to the impact of human resource investment on productivity and income distribution, and examines how changes in human resource policies - particularly those affecting the delivery of social services - could substantially improve returns in several key areas of development. Although a survey finds Latin America's human resources fare relatively well by international comparison - with high investment levels in some countries associated historically with good macroeconomic performance - important gaps and inadequate investment in recent years are cause for concern.

These edited papers bring an international perspective from academics, trade unionists, HRD professionsals, health and training professionals to bear on wide-ranging aspects of HRD and workplace relations in the Caribbean

A New Perspective on Poverty in the Caribbean reflects on the current approaches to the challenge of poverty reduction in the context of the findings of the qualitative and quantitative analyses and identifies some critical ingredients for successful poverty-reduction interventions around which a regional consensus could be built. The role and nature of participation, the policy environment for social services delivery are considered along with specific poverty reduction interventions and the general approach to poverty reduction in the Caribbean.

The Economic Development Institute (EDI), in cooperation with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Inter-American Foundation, launched the Partnerships for Poverty Reduction program in six countries in Latin America and the Caribbean—as part of the Bank's Mission "to fight poverty with passion and professionalism for lasting results." The program sought to promote the adoption of an approach to poverty reduction that relies on partnerships among local, regional, and central governments, other public sector agencies, nongovernmental organizations, private sector companies and other civic organizations. This publication is a result of these collaborative efforts. It contains a powerful message about partnerships with the state, civil society and business: these partnerships have the potential of becoming the basis of an approach to poverty reduction that replaces old and failed paradigms in the region.