Book Description

During the 1980s, many developing countries have entered into an explicit process of structural adjustment. The need for such adjustment has been brought about through combinations of external and internal shocks which have led to unsustainable external deficits. Adjustment is not costless. It calls for changes in the composition of output, with more emphasis being placed on exports, and an outward looking strategy. Therefore, there will be distributional effects with both gainers and losers. Who are the likely losers? Are they already in poverty? If so, how can the adjustment process be managed so as to protect them? This paper addresses these questions by putting forward a conceptual framework and implementing it for the specific case of Cote d'Ivoire. This paper is divided into five sections : 1) lays out the conceptual framework of analysis at the macro and micro level; 2) reviews the structural adjustment program in order to highlight salient features that relate to poverty alleviation; 3) develops an empirical poverty profile for 1985; 4) attempts to link the macroeconomic developments of 1980-85 to poverty; and finally 5) looks ahead and draws out some policy conclusions for future design of structural adjustment loans (SALs).