Letter From the Editor

AuthorLaura Wallace
PositionEditor-in-Chief

The international community is rallying around the aim of reaching the Millennium Development Goals-including halving the proportion of people suffering extreme poverty-by 2015. At each gathering of financial and political leaders, communiqués are hammered out that commit all countries to doing whatever is needed for this cause. But surely we have heard such lofty promises before-why should skeptics sit up and take note? Moreover, even if there is the political will-which some may view as not entirely clear-are these goals even achievable? The June issue of Finance & Development weighs in on this topic by asking what the biggest obstacles to poverty reduction are and how we can overcome them.

We begin with a look at issues in the measurement of poverty. How do we know if poverty is declining? Measurement may seem straightforward, but Angus Deaton of Princeton University suggests in a provocative Point of View that it's actually a tricky business, as exemplified by the controversy surrounding India's poverty counts. Next, we take stock of the global community's new approach to poverty reduction, which was launched two and a half years ago. It centers on poverty reduction strategy papers (PRSPs)-essentially road maps poor countries prepare themselves after consulting their constituents-to help them target poverty reduction more effectively through public policies. One of the first countries to prepare a full PRSP was Bolivia, so we traveled there to get the firsthand impressions of some of the key people involved.

How about the other pieces of the poverty puzzle? On debt relief, an IMF study shows that the ability to borrow abroad can benefit economic growth...

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