logo
episode-header-image
Dec 2022
26m 19s

Why Are We Witnessing the Biggest Setbac...

World Bank
About this episode

COVID-19, the war in Ukraine, and other crises have dealt the biggest setback to global poverty reduction in decades. 2020 alone saw the largest one-year increase in extreme poverty since global monitoring began. In this episode of The Development Podcast, we comb through the recent Poverty and Shared Prosperity Report (PSPR) to understand what’s happening, where and why.  

Ruth Hill, a lead economist at the World Bank discusses the actions governments can take to help correct course. We also get a snapshot of just how hard the last few years have been for many people, such as Sonia Cifuentes in Bogota, Colombia, and how cash transfers helped her when she needed support to cover the basics for herself and her children. Listen now!

Tell us what you think of our podcast here >>>. We would love to hear from you! 

Featured Voices

  • Ruth Hill, Lead Economist, Global Unit of the Poverty and Equity Global Practice, World Bank. "There's evidence that households which receive cash transfers are more likely to have their kids in school. And that has a long run impact on household welfare."
  • Sonia Cifuentes, Colombian citizen benefited from a cash transfer program: "If I hadn't had access to those transfers, I would've had to have found someone to give me a donation because I had to feed my children."

Timestamps

[00:00] Welcome and introduction of the topic

[01:37] Understanding the data behind the Poverty and Shared Prosperity Report

[07:28] Visions from Bogota, Colombia: Vulnerability and cash transfer programs

[11:10] The meaning behind poverty

[12:42] 2020 saw the biggest setback to global poverty in decades

[14:36] Measuring poverty: Methodology and research

[15:33] Progress made in ending poverty over the last few decades

[17:05] The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on poverty reduction efforts

[19:40] Increase in poverty in different regions of the world

[20:35] Public policies to counter poverty trends

[21:37] Subsidies and cash transfer programs

[25:37] Closing and thanks for tuning in!

ABOUT THE DEVELOPMENT PODCAST

This international development podcast brings together the data, research—and solutions—that can pave the way to a sustainable future. Through conversations focused on revealing the latest data, the best research, and cutting-edge solutions, let us introduce you to the folks working to make the world a better place. Listen and subscribe for free on your favorite platform. And rate our show! ;)

Tell us what you think of our podcast here >>>. We would love to hear from you! 

ABOUT THE WORLD BANK

The World Bank is one of the world’s largest sources of funding and knowledge for low-income countries. Its five institutions share a commitment to reducing poverty, increasing shared prosperity, and promoting sustainable development.

Up next
Oct 2
What Do Shifting Demographics Mean For Future Development?
The world's population growth tells two stories: in many countries populations are aging, while in others, populations are getting younger. Projections show most countries will likely see shrinking populations within the next 25 years due to historically low fertility rates.But t ... Show More
27m 54s
Sep 4
Powering More With Less: All You Need To Know About Energy Efficiency | The Development Podcast
How can energy-efficient light bulbs, bricks, and buildings cut costs and improve energy security? In this episode of The Development Podcast, , we discover that energy efficiency doesn’t just save money—it also drives growth and creates jobs. In 2022 alone, energy efficiency bec ... Show More
21m 51s
Jul 3
De-Risking Development: All You Need To Know About Guarantees | The Development Podcast
Risk is all around us, an inherent part of life. And in the world of development, there are also risks, including war, civil disturbance and expropriation. In this episode of The Development Podcast, we take a deep dive into the work of MIGA, the Multilateral Investment Guarantee ... Show More
24m 48s
Recommended Episodes
May 2023
The Economics of Poverty
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is the world's poorest country, with a large majority of its 70 million citizens living in absolute poverty. For a long time, poverty in Africa has been seen as a purely humanitarian issue. But could the answer just be good economic management ... Show More
12m 5s
Jun 2024
[UNLOCKED] How the North Plunders the South w/ Jason Hickel
The imperial core—which is comprised of settler-colonial states like those in Western Europe, as well as states like the United States, Canada and Australia—have been stealing the resources and labor of the Global South—or the periphery—for centuries. It started with the direct c ... Show More
56m 59s
Dec 2021
208. The Progress of the Human Race, Part 1
All we ever hear about on the mainstream news is that the world is in dire straights, that we are going in an irreversible direction, and that it is all our fault. Throughout many conversations in Season 4 of this podcast, we have explored these narratives in depth. We would like ... Show More
1h 5m
Nov 2022
How a small island nation is leading the charge for more equitable global governance | Rethinking Humanitarianism
For many countries in the Global South, tackling today’s interlocking crises – climate change, the pandemic, the rising cost of living supercharged by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – is made practically impossible by sky-high interest rates on runaway government debt. Enter Barbad ... Show More
56m 13s
Mar 2023
Mark Robert Rank, "The Poverty Paradox: Understanding Economic Hardship Amid American Prosperity" (Oxford UP, 2023)
The paradox of poverty amidst plenty has plagued the United States throughout the 21st century--why should the wealthiest country in the world also have the highest rates of poverty among the industrialized nations? Based on his decades-long research and scholarship, one of the n ... Show More
33m 27s
Mar 2023
Mark Robert Rank, "The Poverty Paradox: Understanding Economic Hardship Amid American Prosperity" (Oxford UP, 2023)
The paradox of poverty amidst plenty has plagued the United States throughout the 21st century--why should the wealthiest country in the world also have the highest rates of poverty among the industrialized nations? Based on his decades-long research and scholarship, one of the n ... Show More
31m 42s
Sep 2023
Calling for the "reglobalization" of trade: WTO chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala
Ian Bremmer sits down with World Trade Organization Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the first woman and first person from Africa to lead the organization, for a conversation about the good, the bad, and the future of global trade on the GZERO World podcast.   In the last ha ... Show More
17m 42s
Aug 2017
#024 Inequality Is Killing Us All. Are We Going To Stop It? (with Jason Hickel)
Author and anthropologist Jason Hickel joins me to explain how a handful of rich countries have been able to control economic policies in the rest of the world; why we’re being lied to about poverty; and the radical revolution required to stop the global inequality machine. Hoste ... Show More
1h 4m