https://thesis.eur.nl/col/4325/ List of Publications en https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/7034/ Tue, 01 Jan 2008 00:00:01 GMT <div>Uzair, Achmad</div> After massive teak looting in early 2000, Perhutani, state-owned forest company introduced a joint forest managemen program in Java. Unlike previous forest management policy, this program gives a legal foundation for forest villages to gain access both to timber and non-timber resources. Overall, this program aims to improve community's welfare and encourage their participation in forest management. However, looking at the practice of the program in a Javanese village in Jepara, the implementation of the program proved to serve different purposes. Instead of realizing those aims, the program practice does not really mark a shift from previous security paradigm to prosperity paradigm as it claims. It tends to extract more villagers' labours for the sake of timber/hardwood growth than share responsibilities for forest sustainability and economic development. Plan of distributing sprofit sharing from the joint forest management will also likely deepen the existing social differentiation from Javanese agrarian since it no longer extract landless villagers' labour for one particular patrons but also for village elites and state enterprise. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/7165/ Tue, 01 Jan 2008 00:00:01 GMT <div>Raquiza, Maria Victoria R.</div> There is a need to challenge official poverty discourse. For one, official poverty estimation in the Philippines is based on arbitrary assumptions that keep the poverty threshold low, thereby reducing poverty incidence. In a country of high inequality and where incomes of a large swathe of the population remain generally near each other, the placement of a poverty line underscores its arbitrary nature. There are two alternatives to this: replace the poverty line with a poverty zone to make the notion of poor more inclusive, or do away with the poverty line altogether. By providing ‘alternative statistics’, the Social Weather Stations self-rated poverty and hunger surveys challenge and help democratize the poverty discourse in the country. However, self-rated hunger seems to be the more reliable measure of poverty. Finally, poverty data, as it enters the public domain, becomes a setting for contestation as both government and SWS poverty and hunger data are used and woven into the hegemonic and counter-hegemonic discourse. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/7209/ Tue, 01 Jan 2008 00:00:01 GMT <div>Muzinduki, Patrick</div> Micro Credit is a contentious product in the World Development as it is seen as one component for stimulating Investment. As evidence has always been in favour for borrowers of large sums of money for big investments and reaping high profits, it has not worked the same way for borrowers of small sums of money. Money borrowed in small sums by community members was met by already glittering and biting societal and individual demands and usually used for consumption or investment in non profit making ventures like paying school fees and purchasing fixed assets like land and housing. As the situation for the poor was already appalling as indicated by lack of income, lack of education and basic business skills, poor housing, health and nutrition and above all lack of information, the poor were and still are in the vulnerable position to successfully access and utilize credit under SACCOS. By design, the poor could be very lucky to find themselves in SACCOS and even those who find themselves in SACCOS accessing credit can not be guaranteed. Those who access credit find challenges to repay and in the end the little assets owned would be sold to repay a loan or resort to money lenders who appear to be exploitative in nature that worsens their situation. The services in SACCOS are subjected to forces of demand and supply yet it is clear that the poor cannot compete favourably for a product that is also attractive to the non poor. There were no special considerations for the poor to encourage and mentor them through a process of income generation to ensure sustained savings, the assumption that individuals would join SACCOS because they wanted loans and would be able to repay helped those who were already established in their businesses. In the poverty strategy, there has to be vigorous efforts to bring the poor on board, its very clear the forces of demand and supply increases the divide between the have and the have nots and those with capacity benefit more after entering the market while those with less capacity are left at the periphery. The SACCO clients are not wealthy but they are also not poor, they are basically above the poverty line because they earn income, have got education, afford three meals a day, have business skills and they can get security for loans. The proponents of micro credit argue that credit reduces poverty by preventing individuals who are well off from falling into poverty but they don’t answer the question why they don’t work with the poor themselves. They tend to argue that credit to poor people is not sustainable and this raises concerns about the motivation of targeting well-off1 category in society. The answer lies with Adam Smith’s argument about the invisible hand of capitalism where he argued that selfish interest would benefit the entire public yet there was no guarantee for this. This ´myth´ is evident in credit schemes where credit to 1 The non poor can afford to borrow, have security, have alternative sources of income and can afford to pay back the loan even though the conditions are bad. well-off and successful entrepreneurs is presumed to benefit others in the trickle down effect. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/7208/ Tue, 01 Jan 2008 00:00:01 GMT <div>Saide, Momade Amisse</div> This paper assesses the effectiveness of two Social Protection programs, namely the Income Generation program and Social Benefits for Work program as government policy responses to alleviate urban poverty in Maputo city. It also scrutinizes the involvement of other actors in these efforts particularly the Municipal Council and NGO’s. It shows that these programmes suffer from various contextual constraints, with emphasis on those related to management such as limited coverage, deficiencies on the program design and targeting efficacy. Nevertheless, the beneficiaries’ perceptions of the gains obtained through both programs are generally positive once they experience access to basic services which in the past they could not afford. However, these gains are acquired for a short period of time, after that they get back into poverty. With regards to the other actors involvement in poverty alleviation activities in Maputo city, it is argued that it is limited and with no coordination. In this point of view and given the high level of poverty in Maputo city the paper concludes that those programs are palliative measures on alleviating urban poverty, squandering scarce public resources and doing little to promote long term development. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/7164/ Tue, 01 Jan 2008 00:00:01 GMT <div>Bhusal, Lok Nath</div> This contribution aims to examine the problems inherent in the dominant money-metric approach to poverty measurement, as a deliberate attempt to distorting and downsizing the level of human deprivation and the subsequent neo-liberal policy prescriptions of targeting. Then, under the livelihoods approach, it broadens the definition of poverty by including vulnerability and identifies the Common People of Nepal and their socio-economic profiles as an alternative analysis of human deprivation. In today’s complex society virtually everyone is prone to various socio-economic shocks which undermines livelihoods and raises vulnerability to further collapse of livelihoods, and thus aggravates poverty. This situation is most serious to the Common People, defined as a combination of the conventionally defined poor and the vulnerable who do not possess sufficient livelihood capitals. Hence, coupled with its computational problems, the intention and utilization of poverty line appears to be quite controversial and largely a meaningless exercise. Building upon the Keynesian Effective Demand and Listian Infant Industry Protection arguments, the policy implication of this study is to provide arguments in favour of universalizing socio-economic security in Nepal, rather than the narrow targeting based on the conventional poverty line approach. We argue that universal provisioning promotes livelihoods and thus help reduce both poverty and vulnerability in a sustainable manner. Indeed, such a universal approach is likely to bring about significant improvements in a number of socio-economic indicators, including political stability and social cohesion. This paper documents this process through the presentation of results of the analysis of the two Household Survey data, other latest available socio-economic indicators and state policies that bear on poverty and vulnerability in the context of Nepal. The results show that, despite its official goal of poverty alleviation, the Nepalese government seems to be too much preoccupied with neo-liberal ideology, and thus targeting the poor has been the business-as-usual of anti-poverty interventions. These findings do not augur well for poverty prevention, as an essential component of poverty alleviation. Hence, in the face of majority of the population being either poor or vulnerable, looking at poverty from the livelihood lens, universalizing socioeconomic security to all appears to be the right way towards poverty alleviation in Nepal. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/7037/ Tue, 01 Jan 2008 00:00:01 GMT <div>Nthigai, Linus Muriuki</div> While much criticism has been labelled against participatory approach (PA) to development, much of it is based on the wide diversity of people and organizations calling what they do participatory but I think what Participation is, is not important but why Participation is what is important (Pratt 2001). Transformative participation has the ability to reveal certain understanding of poverty from the poor people’s point of view, as well as deeper understanding of poverty. It has the capacity to provide sophisticated insights into their own predicaments as well as point to solutions to their own problems (Brocklesby and Jeremy September 1998). For this reason therefore, it becomes necessary to include the voice of the poor in decision making processes of issues that affect them and more so in poverty alleviation efforts because the poor have deep and complex understanding of their situation. If client based MFIs have to make a lasting impact in poverty alleviation field, they must embrace the principles of transformative participation in their operations because whenever the poor are involved in a positive manner, they become a vital source of local insight and illuminate crucial aspects of our understanding of poverty in ways which other people or methods do not (Brocklesby and Jeremy September 1998). Failure to do this, may lead to such programs either directly or indirectly propagating exploitation of the very poor they set out to redeem. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/7035/ Tue, 01 Jan 2008 00:00:01 GMT <div>Luo, Chia-Ling</div> This paper studies the encroachment of mainstream Han culture upon traditional Moso matrilineal culture through the adoption by the Moso, via government initiative, of a monetary market system driven by capital and commerce, of reforms in medical, education and taxation systems, and the promotion of the Moso by the government as a tourist destination, combined with government programs the ostensible goal of which is to preserve the Moso as a cultural artifact. These stimuli of change result in sinification of the Moso, and create conflicts between a natural and a market economy, among gender relationships, and among traditional and “progressive” Moso. It is argued herein that, while tourism has increased the standard of living for some Moso in purely economic terms, it has done so at the cost of commodifying them into simplistic structures that serve largely to restrict their growth and development by diluting their traditions and workforce, while subordinating the Moso to the standards of Han society. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/6579/ Thu, 01 Jan 2009 00:00:01 GMT <div>Perera, L. Nadya Bhimani</div> The paper analyses the social constructions of ‘gender’ and ‘care’ as manifest in the experiences of female international labour migration in Sri Lanka. Female international labour migration as domestic workers in the last three decades has triggered a care crisis observable at the level of the families as well as the communities of migrant workers. It has become a cause of social discomfort, with critical public opinion gaining momentum in influencing policy responses that may adversely affect women migrant workers. In the Sri Lankan context notions of ‘care’ affiliated with nurturing and parenting practices are deeply rooted in the notion of motherhood, and hence women’s migration for work abroad can be easily interpreted as putting the family in jeopardy. By illustrating how gendered representation of the care crisis has shaped the different rationalities and responses towards female migration, the paper brings to the fore the mutual interplay between policy and societal responses, showing how the female-centred construction of care shapes state responses, which in turn could impact the propensity and choice of women to join the migrant labour force. The National Labour Migration policy of 2009 reflects how state rationality of efficiency appears to be built on the premise of protecting the family and the children left behind by means of institutional safeguards to minimize social costs. Simultaneously, skilled migration is being promoted to ensure a higher value of export labour, which would imply curtailing female migration as domestic workers categorized as unskilled. The migration histories of mothers and daughters in the Sri Lankan village of Boraluwa Gama, show how the ‘substitution’ of male skilled workers for female unskilled workers is not always mirrored at the level of the family. Making choices occurs in a zone of ‘social legitimacy’ where negotiation between opposing values and norms held by the state and community on the one hand and the individual on the other are taking place. For women weighing options often involves a complex process of compromises in view of the fact that they often bear the moral burden of care alone. While the discourses of the State and community have established a strong presence in this zone of negotiation, the views and experiences of the men and women within the migrant communities remain unexplored, making the dialogue incomplete. The paper concludes that the implications of the skewed burden of care for men and women and how notions of personhood and wellbeing cannot be separated from relations of care between parents and their children remains to be addressed. Without addressing this imbalance, care and its organization will continue to remain a central ingredient in determining the extent of social legitimacy for women to exercise their right to choose migration as an option for livelihood and personal development. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/6575/ Thu, 01 Jan 2009 00:00:01 GMT <div>Adjetey, Aloysius</div> The Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) programme is the only cash transfer programme being operated in Ghana and the first of it kind. Although cash transfer programmes have been very popular in some developing countries in Latin America, its was not until 2006 that Ghana thought about one. Since its implementation in early 2008, there have been mixed reactions to the programme from all quarters. Most of the arguments are on the reasons why it has taken its current form. It is therefore worth investigating to know why it has taken up its current status in the midst of weak administrative apparatus in Ghana. The first chapter will deal with the general introduction of Ghana and the poverty situation in Ghana and also stating the research question. The second chapter will concentrate on the background to the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty and its current status. The third chapter will do a bit of literature on various cash transfer programmes around the world with specific highlights on shortfalls of such programmes. It is on this basis that an analytical framework is designed to analyse the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty on the forms it has taken and discuss possible problems based on what is happening elsewhere. Real analysis to answer the research question and highlighting of possible problems due to the form it has taken will is found in chapter four and finally the conclusion in chapter five. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/6576/ Thu, 01 Jan 2009 00:00:01 GMT <div>Okeny, Robert</div> A number of in-depth qualitative studies have been undertaken to document especially the predicament, and on a few cases, the success stories associated with former captives of the LRA f on return. While some case of handy progress have been pointed in light of reintegration in Northern Uganda, it has been shown that majority face an unprecedented problems ranging from animosity from the community on an apparent reason that they were perpetuators of violence; physical and psychological health problems; missed educational and livelihood opportunities. Despite the thorough knowledge on the nature of the successes and difficulties, no major attempt has been made to estimate the scale of the success or problems among the FAPs in Northern Uganda. Using GUSCO as a case study and adopting both qualitative and quantitative techniques, the author constructs a framework that integrates education, community acceptance, good health and livelihood opportunities to evaluate and numerically estimate the number of those who have successfully reintegrated. The study points to a limited number of FAPs (18.4%) as successful, while the majority (48.8%) as possible cases of breakdown in reintegration. The rest are those considered to be progressing towards full recovery. Further, the paper reflects why some FAPs have been more successful than the others, focusing particularly on the circumstances surrounding the individuals rather than the general problem that affects them all. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/7160/ Thu, 01 Jan 2009 00:00:01 GMT <div>ADJETEY. ALOYSIUS</div> The Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) programme is the only cash transfer programme being operated in Ghana and the first of it kind. Although cash transfer programmes have been very popular in some developing countries in Latin America, its was not until 2006 that Ghana thought about one. Since its implementation in early 2008, there have been mixed reactions to the programme from all quarters. Most of the arguments are on the reasons why it has taken its current form. It is therefore worth investigating to know why it has taken up its current status in the midst of weak administrative apparatus in Ghana. The first chapter will deal with the general introduction of Ghana and the poverty situation in Ghana and also stating the research question. The second chapter will concentrate on the lirerature on cash transfers and especially targeting and onditionalities. The third chapter will do a review of some cash transfers employed in some countries with emphasis on targeting and conditionalities. Analysis of the LEAP programme with the intention of answering the research question. Finally the conclusion will further give some suggestions for the LEAP.. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/6582/ Thu, 01 Jan 2009 00:00:01 GMT <div>Woranoot, Itthiphon</div> The paper contains the ethical concepts of organic agriculture as well as arguments on organic farming and organic trade. Furthermore, the notions of value chain and livelihood strategies of small farmers are included in an analysis of implications of organic farming on rice growers. It is found that organic agriculture has limited economic implications on rice farming due to the risk in conversion period, labor intensity and limitations of small farmers. Since rice growing is mainly for household consumption and subsistence, organic rice growing which is mostly for sell tends not to be an attractive livelihood strategy for most small rice farmers. Social factors are the main driver behind the success of organic farmers who have positive attitudes to alternative agriculture before adopting organic methods. The role of farmers in the organic rice chain is different from the conventional chain, and the relationships within organic chain are characterized mainly by ethical trade networks and certification organizations. The higher market price of organic rice leads to questions about fairness to consumers and the influence of traders in markets which may result in constraints on domestic organic growth. In this sense, the organic movement in rural development will be limited in the long term, and it implies that the worthy idea of organic agriculture in rural development is flawed in practice. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/6583/ Thu, 01 Jan 2009 00:00:01 GMT <div>Dey, Subhasish</div> The world’s biggest Employment Guarantee Programme, India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) has been in operation in rural India since February 2006. In principle, the scheme is a self-targeted programme designed to provide 100 days of employment to rural households and to serve as a safety net. More broadly its aim is to reduce rural poverty through the creation of sustainable rural infrastructure which is expected to foster rural economic growth. This study looks at the performance of the NREGS from three perspectives - it examines the targeting aspect of the programme, the efficiency of the implementing PRI bodies and the impact of the program on various outcomes at household level. The study is based on primary data collected from 500 randomly selected households, 2249 individuals and 70 schemes located in 13 Gram Panchayats in Birbhum District of West Bengal, India. On the basis of this primary data, the study reveals that at least in Birbhum District the programme is far more likely to be accessed by poorer households (defined in terms of land holding, monthly per-capita income and other household related characteristics). At the same time there is a clear and substantial impact of left political inclination in terms of enabling access to a greater number of days of work under the scheme. In terms of the efficiency impact, the analysis reveals a clear violation of the formal clauses and the spirit of the NREG Act and thereby undermining the potential of the programme in terms of providing a safety net. In terms of the impact, the study finds no statistically significant impact on economic outcomes at household level but does find a statistically significant and substantial relation between reduction of stress related to joblessness and access to the NREGS. The estimates suggest that while the NREGS may not be creating any new employment, and may indeed be substituting for existing employment opportunities, the scheme is still considered valuable as it may be offered better working conditions. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/6584/ Thu, 01 Jan 2009 00:00:01 GMT <div>Widjaja, Henky</div> This paper examines the experience of contract farming between Garuda Food (which is represented by PT Bumi Mekar Tani (BMT) in NTB) and peanuts smallholders in NTB as the case study. The selection of this pilot model of private-smallholders partnership as the case study is worthy of study because the existence of opportunity to replicate the applied model both for the similar commodity or others in the future under the national policy on rural development. This is a complex contract farming scheme. It involves not only a private company and smallholders but also a donor program with national scale agendas that consist of testing various new approaches in rural agribusiness development and market driven research, development and extension services. This paper will present the analysis of fundamental aspects of the contract farming program, starting from the contract itself regarding how it has been designed and implemented, how the contractual relationship can emerge, as well as the changes and risks that have been caused by the scheme and how the contract addresses them. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/6585/ Thu, 01 Jan 2009 00:00:01 GMT <div>Guerrero Jara, Paul Andres</div> Cash transfers are popular poverty alleviation programs in Latin America which aim to accumulate human capital among children in poor families. However, most of these programs evaluations have overlooked the effects they have on women, usually the ones who receive the cash transfer, and the time they devote to productive and reproductive purposes. This paper, using data from Ecuador and an instrumental variable approach, finds that the unconditional cash transfer in this country decreases the hours beneficiaries dedicate to productive work and does not change their reproductive workload. These effects are found for a particular group of the Ecuadorian women. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/6578/ Thu, 01 Jan 2009 00:00:01 GMT <div>Siyanga, Lumba</div> This study examines the nature of the fertiliser subsidy being provided under the Fertiliser Support Programme (FSP) in Zambia. The study focuses on Kalomo and Senanga Districts to assess why despite the programme in place for seven years, food insecurity persists and how the nature of the subsidy has contributed. The study was carried out through primary data collection and the used of secondary data and contrasts the finding in Kalomo and Senanga. The data was obtained by administering five sets of research instruments: the Focus Group Discussions, questionnaire, the semi-structured interview, observation and document analysis. In total 170 (93 males and 77 females) respondents participated in the research. The findings suggest that the nature of the subsidy and the way the programme is organised and implemented has not really benefited the smallholder farmers in terms of increased maize productivity, income from the sales of maize and household food security. While the prices of maize have usually been low in Zambia, the prices of fertiliser have been high. This reduces the profitability of maize production. To most smallholders, maize production is main source of income, yet the fertiliser subsidy in its current form assumes that the smallholders will have the cash to pay for fertiliser subsidy, when income from maize is not always possible. The FSP is also implemented as a uniform policy in a varied setting as depicted in the contrasting differences between Kalomo district and Senanga district. This study concludes that nature of the fertiliser subsidy policy, how it is designed, defined and implemented has implications for impact in terms of increasing maize production, among smallholder farmers. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/8693/ Sun, 01 Nov 2009 00:00:01 GMT <div>Palau van Hissenhoven, Nicolas</div> This document is a reaction against the scarcity of macroeconomic analyses of the Basic Income idea, especially when concerned with developing countries. This scarcity is largely to blame for the stalemate of contemporary Basic Income proposals, which are failing to go beyond rhetoric and become real alternatives. Hence, through a historical and analytical approach, this paper unfolds the macroeconomic framework that (explicitly or implicitly) has supported the thinking of the leading basic income supporters, to then challenge it from a structuralist perspective. Indeed, it argues that a nationwide basic income proposal, in a developing country, might have perverse outcomes if it is not rightly matched by policies to remove the structural bottlenecks that tighten aggregate supply and curb investment. The document concludes by proposing an outline of a revamped path of research within the Basic Income’s larger debates. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/8692/ Fri, 17 Dec 2010 00:00:01 GMT <div>Nalubiri, Agnes Grace</div> This study explored how local NGOs and community groups act towards sustaining NGO social interventions at community level. It sought to understand why it is so difficult to sustain benefits that accrue from NGO work. Exploration was made into the assumptions behind NGO social interventions, nature of benefits, indicators, and broadly into strategies used by community groups and local NGOs towards benefit-sustainability. Findings reveal a number of dilemmas for NGOs and community groups to pursue benefit sustainability at community level. These dilemmas were concealed in a toxic mix of aid chain dynamics, community groups‟ dependency syndrome, and local NGOs lack of proper methodology to gradually withdraw from group support. Despite of these dilemmas and toxic mix the study recognizes that local community groups if availed with relevant information, skills and a stable less conditioned source of income can embed local NGO social intervention benefits into their own existing community structures, and pursue them for a prolonged lifespan. In the same way, local NGOs depending on their nature of relationship with the funding agencies and the government are able to respond creatively and strategically to external pressures and demands, and put in place strategies geared towards benefit sustainability. -- Relevance to Development Studies -- Sustainability of NGO benefits is a key to alleviating abject poverty in developing countries; however attempts to address this challenge remain futile. There-fore, documenting approaches employed towards addressing this problem is essential to lay grounds upon which further reflection into the topic can be made. In addition, literature related to sustainability in community development is largely focused on NGO financial aspects: Insufficient research has been done on how NGO benefits can be sustained in communities for a life-span beyond the funding agency. This research will therefore supplement on the already existing literature about the topic, and hopes to offer lessons to development actors grappling with the problem. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/8599/ Fri, 17 Dec 2010 00:00:01 GMT <div>Appreku, Felicia Esi</div> This study investigates the relations between trade policies and poverty with the focus on the PRSPs which have become the main tool for poverty reduction in most Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries. Africa and for that matter SSA has been said to assume the face of poverty and there have been efforts to reduce the menace (Ndulu, 2006). One strategy which has dominated the development agenda for poverty alleviation from the 1980s through to the 1990s is the PRSPs. The paper seeks to find out how PRSPs relate trade and poverty reduction and what has been the outcome of the mix. With regards to the analytical framework which rests on the assumption of trade policies, the study emphasizes that trade policies are relevant in any trade arrangement. This is evident in chapter two which discusses trade theories and its implications for the gains thereafter. The study reiterates that most African countries have implemented a number of trade policies such as liberalization. However, evidence from the study indicates that such policies often position SSA countries in their comparative advantage which is mostly static. The inability of SSA economies to escape their limitation to static comparative advantage rests on the failure to adopt strategic liberalization as was done in the case of South Korean and Taiwan. Moreover, the kind of industrialization policy pursued was inappropriate and inefficient. The result was that industrial policy on the sub-continent failed to yield the expected result. Thus, most SSA countries remain major exporters of primary commodities (Wood and Mayer, 2001). The paper posits that PRSPs actually consider trade-related issues but minimally. There is a greater focus on macro-economic stability achievement and other budgetary reforms in order to reduce poverty. Trade issues were not distinctively defined by the PRSPs; emphasis was on liberalization and export promotion policies. Findings of this paper however show that the EU and the emerging Chinese cooperations in Africa are not totally different strategies from what the Bretton Woods Institutions (BWIs) propagated. Although there are differences in approach, basically, they all aim at the objective of poverty reduction and preach the practice of trade cooperation. The paper therefore notes that what African governments must do is to critically assess the contents of what the new strategies to poverty reduction present in order not to repeat the mistakes of just signing agreements for aid. Anticipated effectiveness of aid therefore, must guide their choice for accepting aid for development and poverty reduction. -- Relevance to Development Studies -- This study contributes to the vast literature on trade and poverty with a focus on how the PRSPs have dealt with trade issues and its contribution for poverty reduction. Although this is not entirely a new area, the paper looks at how PRSPs have projected trade as a mean of poverty reduction and often reduce trade to promotion of imports and liberalization police. The insight of this paper invites African governments and development agencies to reflect on their development philosophies and practice. https://thesis.eur.nl/pub/8601/ Fri, 17 Dec 2010 00:00:01 GMT <div>Pindan, Adriana Datu</div> This research paper explores the extent of empowerment translated by Urban PNPM in practices. It focuses on issue of empowerment in relation to participation of the poor and local community in defining, financing, and organizing their priorities. It introduces the problems of community and the poor in decision making process regarding their problems and necessities. In the chapter of theoretical framework, the paper focuses on issues of empowerment in general terms, followed by reviews in specific context: defining and financing urban poor (public) needs. The next two chapters highlight overall design, financing and structure of Urban PNPM in Indonesia and how does it work in practice. -- Relevance to Development Studies -- Empowerment and Participation are crucial elements in development programs, especially for community development and poverty reduction programs.