Poverty - The Times Of Central Asia

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Pathway to Prosperity: Uzbekistan’s Ambitious Plan to Halve Poverty by 2030

A presidential decree, "On taking measures to reduce poverty and increase the population's well-being to a new level," has been adopted in Uzbekistan. Lifting half a million people out of poverty in the remainder of 2024 and a further million in 2025 was defined as the primary task of the state's socioeconomic policy and state bodies and organizations at all levels. The “From Poverty to Prosperity” program will be implemented based on the positive results of poverty reduction from past national experiences and international practices. The program will be implemented from November 1, 2024, based on the doctrine of “Seven Opportunities and Responsibilities for Poor Families.” Within the framework of this program, systematic work is carried out to achieve stable employment and higher incomes, education and vocational training, access to the use guaranteed state medical services, social services, and an overall improvement in living conditions. The “Uzbekistan – 2030” strategy also includes steps to reduce poverty in the country. It was stated that the Ministry of Poverty Reduction and Employment in Uzbekistan will work with Chinese experts and international organizations to develop a strategy for reducing poverty from 2024 to 2030. This will aim to halve poverty by 2026, raise the income of 4.5 million people at risk of falling into poverty by 2030, and lift three million young people out of poverty by utilizing their labor skills. According to data, at the end of 2020, approximately six million people in Uzbekistan lived below the poverty line. While evaluating the results of the transformation programs aimed at solving the problems of poverty, it was noted that in 2023, the poverty rate in Uzbekistan decreased from 17% to 11%, meaning such programs have already helped lift almost two million people out of poverty. It is planned that the poverty level in Uzbekistan will be reduced to 7% in the next three years. This work to reduce poverty has been lauded at the international level. Dr. Ambar Narayan, Manager of the Global Poverty and Equality practice of the World Bank in Europe and Central Asia, for example, has recognized that large-scale work on poverty reduction has been carried out in Uzbekistan since 2020. Naravan believes that prioritizing investment in economic mobility and developing opportunities for vulnerable sections of the population, including youth, women, and inexperienced workers, will help create more productive jobs and reduce hardship. Geoffrey Ijumba, acting head of the UNICEF office in Uzbekistan, has also praised Uzbekistan’s efforts to develop a nationwide action plan to end child poverty. “Prioritizing the problem of child poverty, as well as the development of appropriate measures and programs, will allow Uzbekistan to achieve its goals of reducing poverty, as stated in the ‘Uzbekistan – 2030’ strategy. It will also help achieve the MDG (Millennium Development Goal) targets of ending child extreme poverty and halving it according to the national definition,” Ijumba stated. Global Finance published a list of the poorest countries in the world in 2024 based on the International Monetary Fund's data. Kazakhstan...

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Empowering Central Asia: A Unified Approach to Poverty Alleviation

Many developing nations have prioritised the eradication of poverty. They employing various strategies, such as pursuing higher economic growth and more equitable income distribution. These efforts have yielded mixed results, underscoring the importance of caution and awareness of the challenges involved. East Asian countries have made significant strides in eliminating poverty. China has made significant progress, and India has seen more moderate headway. Latin American nations have faced difficulties in reducing poverty due to sluggish economic growth, and unfortunately, poverty has risen in Africa. Extreme poverty has historically not been an issue in Central Asia, because of various support schemes provided by the former Soviet government. Nevertheless, while Central Asia's poverty rates continue to decline, poverty reduction is slowing in some countries. Interestingly, Uzbekistan has made notable progress in reducing poverty since 2021. The poverty headcount rate based on the national poverty line fell from 17.0 per cent in 2021 to 14.1 per cent in 2022 and further declined to 11.0 per cent in 2023. Robust real wage growth was the main driver of the recent poverty reduction. Between 2022 and 2023, increases in wage income accounted for nearly two-thirds of the total poverty reduction. However, wage growth was much higher among skilled workers, especially in urban areas, due to skills shortages in the labour market. The latest official statistics show that the average wage increased the most in the services sectors, with a higher share of high-skilled workers in telecoms, pharmaceuticals, and IT. Consequently, income growth favored the better-off skilled population. Such wage inequality leads to income inequality, measured by the Gini index, increasing from 31.2 in 2022 to 34.5 in 2023. It is also noted that the socio-economic conditions are better in all Central Asian economies than in other developing economies. In Central Asia, poverty reduction has been influenced by several factors, such as implementing a national welfare standard, improved access to quality education, and financial assistance for elderly individuals and households led by single mothers. For example, in Uzbekistan, introducing a national welfare standard in 2021 significantly reduced poverty. The poverty rate decreased from 17 to 11 per cent by 2023, with a more noticeable decline in rural areas (8 percentage points) compared to urban areas (4 percentage points), resulting in approximately 1.6 million individuals being lifted out of poverty. The government's initiatives suggest it is making progress towards halving poverty between 2021 and 2026, indicating a hopeful future for poverty reduction in the region. Notably, the World Bank has recalculated poverty estimates in Central Asia using updated international poverty lines. For lower-middle-income countries -- which globally include Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan -- the poverty line is set at US$3.65 per day. In contrast, it is $6.85 daily for upper-middle-income countries like Kazakhstan. According to these new poverty lines, approximately five million people are considered poor using the lower-middle income country threshold, and 20 million people are considered poor using the upper-middle income country threshold. These updated poverty lines account for differences in living costs between countries....

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Uzbekistan Targets Further Reduction in Poverty Rate

Uzbekistan has set itself the ambitious goal of reducing the rate of poverty in the country from 11% to 7% in the next three years. To achieve this, the government plans to introduce a series of systematic measures to improve the economic situation of low-income segments of the population. The main emphasis will be placed on the development of the private sector and entrepreneurship, which should lead to the creation of new jobs. In addition to economic measures, attention will be paid to improving the social protection system, improving the quality and accessibility of education, and expanding access to healthcare. Since 2020, Uzbekistan has made significant progress in fighting poverty: the poverty rate has fallen in this time from 17% to 11%. This has been achieved through a comprehensive approach that includes economic and social reforms. In the Syrdarya region, for example, the poverty rate has fallen by 6 percentage points, and in the Andijan region by 5.5 percentage points. The authorities plan to allocate significant funds annually to fight poverty. This money will be distributed to regions and mahallas (local communities) with high levels of poverty, where individual support programs for each family will be introduced. Public control over the implementation of these programs will also be strengthened.

Children Poverty

Child Malnutrition Hits Central Asia

In its recently published report “Child Food Poverty 2024,” UNICEF has identified 63 countries, including four Central Asian countries, where child malnutrition has reached a crisis point. Severe child food poverty threatens the survival, growth, and development of an estimated 181 million children under five globally, denying them the opportunity to escape social and economic deprivation. As stated in the report, “Child food poverty harms all children, but it is particularly damaging in early childhood when insufficient dietary intake of essential nutrients can cause the greatest harm to child survival, physical growth, and cognitive development. The consequences can last a lifetime: children deprived of good nutrition in early childhood perform worse in school and have lower learning capacity in adulthood, trapping them and their families in a cycle of poverty and deprivation.” The indicator of food ration determines children’s food security. It was developed by UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO). For healthy growth and development, children should consume at least five products from the following eight groups: Breast milk Grains, roots, tubers, and plantains Pulses, nuts, and seeds Dairy products Fresh foods Egg Vitamin A-rich fruits and vegetables Other fruits and vegetables. If children consume products that belong to just two groups, they live in extreme nutritional poverty; if they consume products belonging to three-four groups, they live in a moderate state related to nutrition. If they consume products belonging to five or more groups, they are considered not to be in a poor situation related to nutrition. Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan have average levels of child malnutrition, Turkmenistan has a low level, and Tajikistan has a high level.

Central Asia Poverty

Central Asia: Poverty continues to decline, but pace of poverty reduction is slowing — WB

BISHKEK (TCA) — Although poverty rates in Central Asia continue to decline overall, the pace of poverty reduction is slowing, according to new data released by the World Bank. High levels of poverty remain in pockets of rural and remote areas, which also suffer from lack of employment opportunities, say new Poverty Outlooks for Central Asian countries, released ahead of International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on October 17. Continue reading

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Kyrgyzstan: Tax revenues declining, unemployment and poverty persist

BISHKEK (TCA) — Kyrgyzstan has ensured macroeconomic and social stability and achieved GDP growth in the first four months of 2019, the Kyrgyz Economy Ministry reported. The GDP growth was 5.3%, and excluding enterprises developing the Kumtor gold field — 1.4%. Continue reading