Table of Poverty in the World: Source Guisan and Exposito (2010) elaborated from World Bank Indicators. Pubished in journal EEDI/ESID (english version will be announced here).Interesting book by Paul Collier(2007): "The Bottom Billion: Why the Poorest Countries are Failing and What Can Be Done About It"
More information at: Look inside the book at AmazonThe autor: Paul Collier is a distinguish researchers in economic development. Professor of Economics, Oxford University Economics Department and Director of Centre for the Study of African Economies. More information at Oxford University
Links to other comments on the book:How the bottom billion are trapped? By Martin Wolf, Financial Times, May 13 2007.
Terry OBrien "The Bottom Billion: Why the poorest countries are failing and what can be done about it: Some insights for the Pacific?" Australian document.
Our comments on the poverty billion and what can be done:
Accordingly to World Bank data and our estimations, extreme poverty (less than 2 dollars a day per person) has evolved from 46.81% of World popublation in year 2000 to 41.70% in year 2005. It is a huge percentage of people, and surely more effective policies should help to alliviate this problem. We share the aim to help the poor to have opportunities for a better life, and accordingly to the experience of selected international development studies we insist on the convenience to improve education and labor opportunities in those countries.
In Collier’s view some countries have fallen into one or often more of four traps, and resolving their problems will require novel ways of addressing those traps.
Trap 1: Conflict.
Trap 2: Mismanaged dependency on natural resources
Trap 3: Weak quality of governance in small countries
Trap 4. Difficulties for access to large markets (for example lanlocked countries without friendly
Trap 1: Conflict.
Trap 2: Mismanaged dependency on natural resources
Trap 3: Weak quality of governance in small countries
Trap 4. Difficulties for access to large markets (for example lanlocked countries without friendly
neighbours)
Other problems are often present in the poorest countries, such as earthquakes, unhealthy climate, river floods and other ones.
Accordingly to international econometric models and other studies, improvement of the educational level of population is a great advantage to solve many of these problems, having into account that usually education has a positive role to foster peace and cooperation, to improve quality of government, to prevent nature disasters, and to get a better management of natural resources and industrialization.
Some interesting articles in this regard are, among others, the following ones published by our Association in the journal Applied Econometrics and International Development, free available by clicking on "download" at the Abstract page:
Guisan and Aguayo (2010): "Education, Gender Equality, Social Well-Being and Economic Development in American Countries, 2000-2010"
Guisan and Exposito(2007): "Education, Development And Health Expenditure In Africa: Estimation of Cross-Section Model of 39 Countries In 2000-2005"
Guisan, Aguayo and Exposito(2001). "Education and World Development in 1900-1999: A General View and Challenges for the Near Future"
