Poverty Reduction Strategies–Lessons from the Asian and Pacific Region on Inclusive Development

Abstract

The Asian and Pacific region has made remarkable advances in reducing poverty. This paper surveys the main contributions that attempt to explain the causes behind the region’s success in poverty reduction, and assesses the impact of inclusive development policies pursued. Looking broadly at the different experiences of East and Southeast Asia on one hand and South Asia on the other, the paper classifies the explanations provided in the literature for the poverty reduction experience of the region into two groups: those explaining the phenomenal increase in economic growth and its relation to poverty reduction; and those examining the policies that have contributed directly to fostering inclusiveness of the development process.