Swaziland - Using Public Transfers to Reduce Extreme Poverty
The report focuses on the social safety net, particularly cash and in-kind transfers. The safety net can play an important role in addressing poverty and vulnerability; however, the process by which the safety nets have been developed in Swaziland...
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Language: | English en_US |
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Washington, DC
2013
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Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2012/11/17171663/switzerland-using-public-transfers-reduce-extreme-poverty http://hdl.handle.net/10986/12321 |
Summary: | The report focuses on the social safety
net, particularly cash and in-kind transfers. The safety net
can play an important role in addressing poverty and
vulnerability; however, the process by which the safety nets
have been developed in Swaziland has produced a fragmented
system that leaves many Swazis unprotected by the safety
net. Improvements in efficiency and effectiveness are both
necessary and possible. Poverty and extreme poverty in
Swaziland are both overwhelmingly rural phenomena. The
incidence of poverty is 73 percent in rural areas but only
31 percent in urban areas. Eighty-eight percent of the poor
and 95 percent of the extreme poor live in rural areas, and
the average consumption of the urban poor is 33 percent
below the poverty line while it is 51 percent below the
poverty line among the rural poor. Also, poverty is deeper
in rural areas than it is in urban areas. The objective of
this study is to identify viable ways to make the safety net
more relevant and efficient through an in-depth analysis of
poverty and vulnerability and of the efficacy of current
safety net programs. The report focuses on publicly financed
social transfers in Swaziland, including cash and in-kind
transfers. This includes programs funded by either national
or official international aid. Chapter two explores the
risks faced by the Swazis, including but not limited to
poverty. Chapter three reviews current social net programs
and expenditures and analyzes the efficiency and
effectiveness of social transfers. Chapter four analyzes
ways to target safety net programs, and chapter five
discusses options to increase the relevance and efficiency
of the safety net, particularly in light of the recent
financial crisis. |
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