UR Pantelic

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh: 

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh Rural-Urban Linkages: Policy Implications for Development Planning and Poverty Reduction Jelena Pantelic, SASIN The World Bank Group March 9, 2000 Washington, D.C.

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh: 

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh Concept Note for South Asia RMT discussion Team Members: M.O.Faruk (SASRD), E. Pantoja, J. Pantelic (SASIN), F. Shilpi (SASRD) and U. Subramanian and B. Menon (SASIN) Joint effort of SASIN and SASRD Drawing on the previous successful experiences in building up urban-rural linkages (e.g., Norway) Interdependence of urban and rural economies in most developing countries Building on Bangladesh urban and rural strategies prepared by SAR Building on CDF to develop a program approach to rural and urban poverty alleviation

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh : 

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh Globally: More than 1 billion people are poor One half of them live in South Asia Bangladesh: One of the most densely populated countries in the world One of the poorest One of the countries most vulnerable to natural hazards

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh: 

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh Overlap of densely populated and hazard-prone areas “Environmental refugees” often escape to already overcrowded cities, compounding poverty and exposure to future disasters Map of 1998 floods

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh: 

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh: 

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh Bangladesh has significant development achievements, but still: One half of total population poor One third of total population very poor Increased inequality Growing gap between the poor and the better off Existing poverty alleviation programs not reaching the poorest Poor become “moving target” in both urban and rural areas

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh: 

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh Bangladesh a predominantly rural country, but Facing an urban crisis Urbanization rate very high Poor access to basic urban services Institutional capacity low Relatively slow economic growth Frequent natural disasters

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh: 

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh Urban population growth unprecedented Urbanization rate at twice the level of overall population growth rate Dhaka, the capital Historically a primate city High population density in the surrounding region Principal target of nation-wide migration - over 60 percent of population increase in Dhaka due to in-migration Holds over one third of total urban population

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh: 

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh Rural-to-urban migration - major contributor to high urbanization Rural disincentives:* High natural population growth rate High person-to-land ratio in rural areas Increased loss and fragmentation of land Frequent natural disasters Loss of family breadwinner Long periods of un- and under-employment * “Push” factors

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh: 

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh Rural-to-urban migration - major contributor to high urbanization Urban incentives:* Better job opportunities (but not always higher wages) Relatively better access to education and health care Perceived better access to basic services * “Pull” factors

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh: 

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh Rural-to-urban migration tends to increase: Opportunities for private sector to develop, both formally and informally, but also: Competition for scarce resources Stress on services, infrastructure and institutions Relative inequality between the poor and the more affluent Labor force, resulting in overall low earnings of the poor Disparity between migrants’ expectations and urban opportunities, especially among the second and third generation

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh: 

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh Main issues include Migration and poverty Mainstreaming natural hazard mitigation Labor Intersectoral issues (services, industry and agriculture) Decentralization and institution building Secondary cities Property rights and land markets Private sector development and microfinance

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh: 

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh Processes in Bangladesh that support urban-rural linkages: Urban and rural economies interdependent and complementary Multi-directional flows of people, goods, services, information, technology Process of axial densification North-west and South-east corridor with fastest growing cities Deconcentration of main urban areas Dhaka and Chittagong vast economic regions, including urban, semi-rural and rural areas and activities Micro-credit for income generation Community participation and NGO involvement Institution building and strengthening Natural hazard mitigation

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh: 

Urban-Rural Synergies and Poverty Alleviation: The Case of Bangladesh Strategies for strengthening urban-rural linkages include: Human capital development (including long-distance education) Scaling-up successful efforts in micro-credit-based income generation Innovating in the use of information technology, by establishing Community Information Centers (examples, e.g., Ghana, Barbados) Innovating in strengthening tax-base (e.g., formalizing informal enterprises in return for access to basic services) and collateral regulatory reform Institution strengthening, especially on municipal and division level Focusing on secondary cities / small towns development within a market-based framework