Bulgaria : A Changing Poverty Profile

Bulgaria's economic progress in recent years has been notable. Since 1997, the country has implemented a range of structural reforms alongside substantive fiscal and sectoral reforms. Measures have included the introduction of a currency board to stabilize the lev and more aggressive privatization of large state owned enterprises. These developments have led to a significant turnaround from the period of economic crisis in 1996-1997, which was marked by a decline in real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of 18 percent and annual inflation of 579 percent in 1997. Growth resumed in 1998 and has been sustained. Bulgaria's current government, which took office in July 2001, has affirmed its commitment to the objectives of macrostability, including a continuation of the currency board and market reforms. Poverty in 2001 has become more concentrated among distinct and identifiable groups within the population than in previous years. In this regard, the profile of poverty in Bulgaria has come to resemble poverty patterns in other countries in Central and Eastern European countries more closely. The strong link between unemployment and poverty, and the emergence of children and households in rural areas as high poverty risk groups, as well as ethnic minorities are features of poverty common to ED accession countries. While the concentration of poverty among specific groups indicates that targeting interventions to address poverty in Bulgaria will be easier, on the other hand, these pockets of chronic poverty are more resilient and harder to reach than shallower poverty linked to transient declines in incomes. These developments highlight the need for a long term commitment to poverty reduction in Bulgaria which will require continuity in policy, as well as on-going monitoring and evaluation.

Bibliographic Details

Main Author:	World Bank
Language:	English en_US
Published:	Washington, DC 2002-10-29
Subjects:	ABSOLUTE POVERTY, ABSOLUTE POVERTY LINE, ACCESS TO DISTRICT HEATING, ACCESS TO EDUCATION, ACCESSION REQUIREMENTS, AGRICULTURAL INCOMES, AGRICULTURAL POLICY, AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY, AGRICULTURAL WAGES, ANTI-POVERTY, ANTI-POVERTY STRATEGY, BASIC EDUCATION, BASIC HEALTH, CHANGES IN POVERTY, CHILD ALLOWANCES, CHRONIC POVERTY, CLEAN DRINKING WATER, COMPULSORY EDUCATION, CONSUMER PRICE INDEX, CONSUMPTION AGGREGATE, CORRELATES OF POVERTY, CURRENCY BOARD, DECLINE IN POVERTY, DECLINE IN POVERTY RATES, DENSITY FUNCTION, DEVELOPMENT REPORT, DIMENSIONS OF POVERTY, DROP IN POVERTY, DROUGHT, EDUCATION LEVEL, EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT, EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES, ELDERLY HOUSEHOLDS, EMPLOYMENT CREATION, EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES, ESTIMATES OF POVERTY, EXPENDITURE ISSUES, EXTREME POVERTY, FAMILY BENEFITS, FARM EMPLOYMENT, FARM EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES, FEMALE-HEADED HOUSEHOLDS, FINANCIAL MARKETS, FINANCIAL SECTOR, FOOD EXPENDITURES, FOOD INDUSTRY, FOOD ITEMS, FOOD NECESSITIES, FOOD SHARE, FUNCTIONING STATE, GINI COEFFICIENT, HEALTH CARE, HEALTH INSURANCE, HIGH POVERTY, HOUSEHOLD BUDGET, HOUSEHOLD CONSUMPTION, HOUSEHOLD EXPENDITURES ON FOOD, HOUSEHOLD HEAD, HOUSEHOLD HEADS, HOUSEHOLD INCOME, HOUSEHOLD SIZE, HOUSEHOLD SURVEY, HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS, HOUSEHOLD WELFARE, HOUSEHOLDS WITH CHILDREN, HOUSING, HUMAN CAPITAL, HUMAN DEVELOPMENT, IMPACT ON POVERTY, IMPROVING GOVERNANCE, INCOME, INCOME GROUPS, INCOME POVERTY, INCREASING INEQUALITY, INEQUALITY, INEQUALITY MEASURES, INFANT MORTALITY, INFANT MORTALITY RATE, INFORMAL EMPLOYMENT, INSURANCE, INVESTMENT CLIMATE, LABOR FORCE, LABOR MARKET, LABOR MARKET PROGRAMS, LIFE EXPECTANCY, LIVING STANDARDS, LOW WAGES, MACROECONOMIC STABILITY, MATERNAL MORTALITY, MEASURING POVERTY, MEAT, NON-INCOME DIMENSIONS, NON-POOR HOUSEHOLDS, PER CAPITA CONSUMPTION, PER CAPITA INCOME, POLICY CHANGES, POLICY IMPLICATIONS, POLICY LEVEL, POOR, POOR CHILDREN, POOR FAMILIES, POOR HEALTH, POOR HOUSEHOLDS, POOR INDIVIDUALS, POOR POPULATION, POVERTY ASSESSMENT, POVERTY GAP, POVERTY LEVELS, POVERTY LINE, POVERTY LINES, POVERTY MAP, POVERTY MEASURE, POVERTY MEASUREMENT, POVERTY MEASURES, POVERTY POVERTY, POVERTY PROFILE, POVERTY RATE, POVERTY RATES, POVERTY REDUCTION, POVERTY REDUCTION STRATEGY, POVERTY RISK, POVERTY SEVERITY, POWERLESSNESS, PRIMARY EDUCATION, PRO-POOR, PUBLIC EXPENDITURE, PUBLIC PROGRAMS, PUBLIC SECTOR, REDUCTION IN POVERTY, REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, REGIONAL DIFFERENTIALS, REGIONAL LEVEL, REGIONAL POVERTY, REMOTE COMMUNITIES, RURAL, RURAL AREAS, RURAL DIMENSION, RURAL HOUSEHOLDS, RURAL INCOMES, RURAL POOR, RURAL POPULATION, RURAL POVERTY, RURAL RESIDENTS, RURAL UNEMPLOYMENT, RURAL WELFARE, SAFETY NET, SANITATION, SCHOOL ATTENDANCE, SCHOOLING, SECTOR ACTIVITY, SELF-EMPLOYMENT, SHARP REDUCTION, SIGNIFICANT IMPACT, SOCIAL ASSISTANCE, SOCIAL PROGRAMS, SOCIAL PROTECTION, SOCIAL SECURITY, SPATIAL DIFFERENCES, SPATIAL DIMENSION, STABILIZATION POLICIES, STRUCTURAL REFORMS, SUBSISTENCE, TARGETING, TAXATION, TRANSACTION COSTS, TRANSITION COUNTRIES, TRANSITION ECONOMIES, UNEMPLOYMENT, URBAN AREAS, VEGETABLES, VULNERABLE GROUPS, WORKING CONDITIONS,
Online Access:	http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2002/10/15639483/bulgaria-changing-poverty-profile-poverty-assessment https://hdl.handle.net/10986/13971
Tags:	Add Tag No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!