New survey shows fast poverty reduction

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A draft report of Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES) yesterday claimed poverty reduction in the country by 1.9 percentage point a year in the last five years, which has been questioned by economists.

The Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) prepared the survey report and placed it at a high level meeting between the planning ministry officials and representatives of donor agencies in Dhaka. The report shows decline of poverty from 49.8 percent in 2000 to 40 percent in 2005.

Research Director of the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) Dr Zaid Bakht expressed reservation about the figure of yearly poverty reduction as stated in the report.

“We witnessed poverty reduction of one percentage point a year from 1991 to 2000 against an average GDP growth of five percent,” he said adding, “But the latest survey shows that the poverty reduction rate almost doubled whereas the GDP growth did not increase significantly in the last five years.”

Besides, population growth did not reduce in the last five years, in such a situation the survey report raises questions, he said.

High officials of the planning ministry yesterday described the government’s success in poverty reduction to representatives of the World Bank and Asian Development Bank.

Meeting sources said the donors’ representatives suggested the planning ministry to discuss the draft HIES report at a seminar before finalising it.

A meeting source quoting from the draft report said urban poverty has declined 23 percent during the last five years while the decline is 20 percent in rural areas.

Dhaka, Sylhet and Rajshahi divisions have witnessed poverty reduction, while there has been no change in poverty rate in Khulna, the source added.

Dr Zaid Bakht told The Daily Star that the country has witnessed a sound growth in service and construction sectors resulting in reduction of poverty in urban areas.

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