Invest In Villagers To End Poverty

Poverty is a multidimensional challenge. Poverty is determined by the availability of basic needs such as safe drinking water, sanitation, nutrition, healthcare, education, transport and social services. Poverty can emerge from various factors such as economic factors, social norms and traditions, natural disasters and climate change. 

Although the Constitution of Nepal guarantees living with dignity, the incidence of poverty among people violates this right. However, what is written in the Constitution is not always fulfilled. However, Nepal has achieved some progress in poverty alleviation. The rate of poverty in Nepal stands at 20.27 per cent (Fourth Nepal Living Standards Survey 2022-23). The rate was as high as 60 per cent during the 1990s. After the restoration of multi-party democracy, poverty began declining, with major reductions recorded during the 2000s. 

Remittances 

Remittances are one of the major factors contributing to poverty reduction. A large number of people are going abroad for foreign employment daily due to a lack of job opportunities and a poor working environment. Most of these people are from rural areas, where agriculture and small-scale business form the backbone of the economy. But most of them prefer foreign employment to agriculture or small-scale business. This has resulted in arable land lying fallow. Migration, together with government apathy towards the agriculture sector, has boosted non-farming activities. Once a predominantly agrarian country, Nepal has now given way to the service sector.  

The other factor that has contributed to poverty reduction is programmes such as the Poverty Alleviation Fund (PAF). The PAF was established in 2003, when the Maoist insurgency was raging on and there were no local governments in place, making it difficult for people’s representatives to engage with local communities. The core objectives of the PAF were to reach out to the rural poor and improve their living conditions through income-generating activities and community development projects, such as through agriculture and small-scale business. The other strategies included empowering marginalised groups (women, children and ethnic minorities), improving access to services (sanitation, drinking water, healthcare, education and public service delivery), boosting domestic production and creating employment opportunities to stop migration, among others.  

With the election of local bodies in 2017, the role of the PAF diminished, with its functions transferred to local governments. There was also talk of corruption and financial irregularities in the PAF. However, the PAF had played a vital role in reducing poverty. Current strategies for poverty alleviation include rural development with a focus on empowering rural people, improving the agriculture sector and promoting local entrepreneurship; social inclusion with heed paid to marginalised groups based on caste, ethnicity and gender; youth employment through skill building or upgrading and job creation; and economic diversification through boosting domestic production and promoting agro-based industries. 

Boosting domestic production and promoting agro-based industries would create job opportunities on the one hand, while on the other, the gaping trade deficit can be reduced. It would be relevant to mention that the government introduced directives for the use of domestic products in public institutions in 2014. But the directives have miserably failed as public institutions, including government offices, keep on purchasing goods and services from foreign countries. This is a serious setback in the promotion of domestic products. Such a trend must come to an end. Local products should be promoted as far as possible. 

There are several factors that have complicated efforts at extirpating poverty. Political instability, natural disasters such as earthquakes, landslides and floods, poor infrastructure in rural areas, poor access to sanitation, drinking water, healthcare, transport and education, caste-based discrimination, gender inequalities and suchlike factors have hampered poverty alleviation efforts. The COVID-19 pandemic hit Nepal hard. The effects of the pandemic are still seen now. Since then, the economy has taken a knock. 

Although some improvements have been made, the economy is still far from its pre-pandemic form. Banks are struggling with liquidity. Individuals and business houses are not willing to borrow even at reduced rates of interest. In fact, the pandemic has exacerbated the poverty situation. The pandemic pushed an additional 97 million people below the extreme poverty line in 2020 alone worldwide. Vulnerable people were disproportionately affected. There were job losses, reductions in incomes and disruptions of public life. 

Nepal is a country of opportunities. The country is rich in natural resources, including arable land. There is much untapped potential, which is responsible for low production, low productivity and stagnant sectors. Such potential needs to be unlocked. As a matter of fact, there is a vast scope for economic growth and development. However, government apathy has made such opportunities go down the plug-hole. It may be noted that children born to the poor are vulnerable to a lack of basic amenities such as nutrition, healthcare, education and safety. Such children may even be caught in the cycle of poverty.

Best strategies 

 Poverty passes down from generation to generation, leading to deprivation, inequalities and marginalisation. While crafting strategies for poverty alleviation, the government should take into account the condition of such people. One of the best strategies for alleviating poverty is to empower deprived or excluded communities to solve problems relating to poverty themselves. But for this to happen, the government should make economic opportunities available to them. The government should develop adequate infrastructure, such as factories and roads and prioritise agriculture by providing for agricultural inputs such as improved seeds and fertilisers. 

The government should also open new vistas of tourism by exploring new tourism destinations. Nepal abounds in such destinations. What is needed is exploring and developing them with adequate infrastructure. The government should, therefore, come up with new strategies for reducing poverty in tandem with rural communities and other stakeholders. Experts working in the poverty alleviation field opine that even the 20 per cent figure of poverty is alarming, which needs to be reduced further. 

(Maharjan has been regularly writing on contemporary issues for this daily since 2000.)