2005年-世界发展银行全球_Labor_Productivity_and_Access_to_Markets_Matter_for_Pro-Poor_Growth___The_1990s_in_Burkina_Faso_and_Vietnam_56页_474kb

Summary of "Labor Productivity and Access to Markets Matter for Pro-Poor Growth"

Core Content

This paper analyzes the role of labor productivity and access to markets in translating economic growth into poverty reduction, focusing on Burkina Faso and Vietnam during the 1990s. It explores how employment functioned as a transmission channel from growth to poverty reduction, with particular emphasis on the mechanisms that enabled the poor to benefit from economic growth in these two countries.

Main Views

1. Employment as a Key Channel for Poverty Reduction

• Employment is considered a critical mechanism for translating economic growth into poverty reduction.
• In developing countries, poverty is mainly correlated with low hourly labor earnings and underemployment, not unemployment.
• The effectiveness of employment in reducing poverty depends on:
  • Labor productivity increases that are broad-based and targeted to sectors where the poor are disproportionately employed.
  • Strong domestic and foreign demand for goods and services produced by the poor.

2. Vietnam's Relative Success

• Vietnam's success in pro-poor growth can be attributed to:
  • A broad-based increase in agricultural productivity and improved market access, which boosted earnings for the poor and stimulated demand for non-agricultural goods.
  • An increase in informal labor productivity, which created new earning opportunities for agricultural workers and further reduced poverty.
  • A virtuous cycle of growth and poverty reduction, where higher non-agricultural earnings increased demand for agricultural goods, reinforcing the cycle.

3. Burkina Faso's Limited Success

• Burkina Faso experienced moderate growth and little poverty reduction.
• The poor were primarily concentrated in agriculture, where productivity and earnings were relatively low.
• Structural changes toward industry and services were limited due to natural constraints such as lack of arable land and low population density.

4. Factors Influencing Employment Transmission

• Labor-intensive growth was more pro-poor, as it utilized the main asset of the poor: labor.
• Access to non-farm and informal employment allowed the poor to diversify and benefit from economic growth.
• Flexible labor markets and migration facilitated the poor's access to better opportunities, while rigid regulations restricted it.
• A strong human capital base (education, skills) improved the employability of the poor and allowed them to access higher productivity sectors.

Key Information

Country Characteristics at the Beginning of the 1990s

• Vietnam:

  • GDP per capita: ~$247.2
  • Poverty headcount: ~58.1%
  • Urban population share: ~19.9%
  • Population density: ~240 people per km²
  • Inequality (Gini): 0.3 (relatively equal)
  • Poverty was concentrated in rural areas (66.4% of households were poor).

• Burkina Faso:

  • GDP per capita: ~$241.4
  • Poverty headcount: ~55.5%
  • Urban population share: ~20%
  • Population density: ~49 people per km²
  • Inequality (Gini): 0.47 (highly unequal)
  • Poverty was also concentrated in rural areas (63.4% of households were poor).

Patterns of Pro-Poor Growth

• Vietnam:

  • Achieved high rates of economic growth and poverty reduction.
  • Growth was driven by labor-intensive manufacturing, especially export-oriented industries.
  • Labor market flexibility and migration played a key role in enabling the poor to move into higher growth sectors.

• Burkina Faso:

  • Experienced moderate growth and limited poverty reduction.
  • Growth was not labor-intensive and did not significantly improve earnings for the poor.
  • Structural changes were geographically and sectorally constrained.

Labor Market Transmission of Growth

• In Vietnam, growth in agricultural productivity and market access led to higher earnings for the poor.
• The informal sector became a major channel for the poor to benefit from growth, as it offered more opportunities than the formal sector.
• Labor mobility and sectoral shifts were crucial in allowing the poor to move out of agriculture into faster-growing sectors.
• In Burkina Faso, growth in the non-agricultural sectors was limited, and the poor remained largely in low-productivity agriculture.

Policy and Initial Conditions

• Vietnam's success was supported by:
  • Agricultural reforms and improved market access.
  • Human capital development (education, skills).
  • High population density and strong government institutions.
  • Access to foreign investment and exports.
• Burkina Faso's challenges were due to:
  • Low population density and limited arable land.
  • High inequality and rigid labor markets.
  • Limited access to non-farm employment and weak human capital base.

Lessons from the OPPG Country Case Studies

The 14 OPPG country case studies identified five key factors that influence how growth is transmitted through employment to the poor:

1. Labor-intensive growth.
2. Broad-based agricultural productivity increases and improved market access.
3. Access to non-farm and informal employment.
4. Reasonably flexible formal labor markets, migration, and remittances.
5. A strong human capital base.

These factors were found to be critical in ensuring that growth reached the poor effectively.

Conclusion

• Vietnam's relative success in pro-poor growth was due to a combination of labor productivity increases in both agriculture and informal sectors, along with strong market access and labor mobility.
• Burkina Faso struggled to achieve significant poverty reduction due to limited structural change, rigid labor markets, and low population density.
• The paper emphasizes that policies that enhance labor productivity and market access, along with flexible labor markets and human capital development, are essential for pro-poor growth.