Advertisement

Poverty and Social Inequality: Bangladesh Experience

Chapter
First Online:
  • 73 Downloads

Abstract

In response to relatively limited research on the subject, this study attempts to critically review the nature and processes of poverty and inequality in Bangladesh. By deploying a Qualitative Interpretative Meta-Synthesis (QIMS) method, it examines poverty and inequality from diverse angles including region, income, gender, education, land ownership and social opportunities. After revealing the intertwined dynamics and implications of poverty and inequality, the chapter offers some relevant policy options that may illuminate strategic decisions towards reducing poverty and social inequality in Bangladesh. The results reveal that notwithstanding the government’s clear recognition and commitment towards reduction, poverty and social inequality continue to pose and prompt formidable challenges for the country—notably the high level of rural–urban disparity in terms of income, education, gender, health facilities, land ownership and social opportunities. The chapter argues that Bangladesh would require an integrative action plan with a view to achieving progressive yet sustained income growth, empowering and promoting socio-economic and political inclusion, ensuring equal opportunities and reducing inequalities by eliminating discriminatory laws, policies and practices for achieving greater equality.

Keywords

Poverty Social inequality Rural-urban disparity Social policy Bangladesh 
This is a preview of subscription content, log in to check access.

Notes

Acknowledgments

This chapter is based on the literature review section of the project ‘Poverty and inequality in Bangladesh: Regional disparity in particular reference to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)’ funded by the Ministry of Education, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh and organized by the Bangladesh Bureau of Educational Information & Statistics (BANBEIS). The authors are grateful to the funding authority and organizer.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Funding

The Ministry of Education, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh.

References

  1. Abusaleh, K., & Islam, M. R. (2019). Traditional practices of Panchayat system among ex-enclave dwellers in Bangladesh. GeoJournal, 84(3), 657–669.Google Scholar
  2. Afsar, R. (2010). Poverty, Inequality and the Challenges of Pro-Poor Governance in Bangladesh. Journal of South Asian Development, 5(2), 187–219.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  3. Ahmed, S. M., Alam, B. B., Anwar, I., Begum, T., & Huque, R. (2015). Bangladesh Health System Review. Health Systems in Transition, 5(3), 1–186.Google Scholar
  4. Al-Samarai, S. (2008). Governance and Education Inequality in Bangladesh. Retrieved from http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0018/001800/180086e.pdf.
  5. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS). (2010). Bangladesh Household Income and expenditure Survey. Dhaka: BBS, Bangladesh Planning Commission.Google Scholar
  6. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS). (2013). Bangladesh Labour Force Survey. Dhaka: BBS.Google Scholar
  7. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS). (2015). Bangladesh Labour Force Survey. Dhaka: BBS.Google Scholar
  8. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS). (2016). Preliminary Report on Bangladesh Household Income and Expenditure Survey. Dhaka: BBS, Bangladesh Planning Commission.Google Scholar
  9. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS). (2017). Preliminary Report on Household Income and Expenditure Survey 2016. Dhaka: Planning Commission, People’s Republic of Bangladesh.Google Scholar
  10. Barkat, A. (2004). Poverty and Access to Land in South Asia: Bangladesh Country Study. Prepared for the National Resources Institute, University of Greenwich, UK.Google Scholar
  11. Bastiaensen, J., De Herdt, T., & D’exelle, B. (2005). Poverty Reduction as a Local Institutional Process. World Development, 33(6), 979–993.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  12. Blackburn, R. M. (2008). What Is Social Inequality? International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, 28(7/8), 250–259.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  13. Blau, P. M. (1977). Inequality and Heterogeneity: A Primitive Theory of Social Structure (Vol. 7). New York: Free Press.Google Scholar
  14. Burt, R. S. (1982). Toward a Structural Theory of Action Network Models of Social Structure, Perception, and Action. New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
  15. Carter, P. L., & Reardon, S. F. (2014). Inequality Matters. William T. Grant Foundation Paper. New York: William T. Grant Foundation.Google Scholar
  16. Chowdhury, S. R., Wahab, H. A., & Islam, M. R. (2019). The role of faith-based NGOs in social development: Invisible empowerment. International Social Work, 62(3), 1055–1074.Google Scholar
  17. Davies, J., Lluberas, R., & Shorrocks, A. (2014). Global Wealth Report 2014. The Year in Review, Credit Suisse Research Institute.Google Scholar
  18. Encyclopedia of Sociology. (2001). Social Inequality. New York: Blackwell.Google Scholar
  19. Ferdaush, J., & Rahman, K. M. (2011). Gender Inequality in Bangladesh. Dhaka: Unnayan Anneshan.Google Scholar
  20. Goetz, A. M., & Jenkins, R. (2005). Reinventing Accountability. Making Democracy Work for Human Development. PrimeraEdición. Gran Bretaña: Palgrave Macmillan.Google Scholar
  21. Green, M., & Hulme, D. (2005). From Correlates and Characteristics to Causes: Thinking about Poverty from a Chronic Poverty Perspective. World Development, 33(6), 867–879.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  22. Hoffmann, R. (2008). Socioeconomic Differences in Old Age Mortality (Vol. 25). Springer Science & Business Media.Google Scholar
  23. Hradil, S. (2001). SozialeUngleichheit in Deutschland (8th ed.). Opladen: Leske + Budrich.Google Scholar
  24. Islam, M. R. (2016). Hunger reduction in China: An analysis of contextual factors. Asian Social Work and Policy Review, 10(3), 295–310.Google Scholar
  25. Islam, M. R. (2017). Population shifting and risks of street children in Asia: Possible social work interventions. Global Social Welfare, 4(3), 149–157.Google Scholar
  26. Islam, M. R., & Morgan, W. J. (2012). Non-governmental organizations in Bangladesh: their contribution to social capital development and community empowerment. Community Development Journal, 47(3), 369–385.Google Scholar
  27. Islam, M. R., & wa Mungai, N. (2016). Forced eviction in Bangladesh: A human rights issue. International Social Work, 59(4), 494–507.Google Scholar
  28. Joffres, C., Mills, R., Joffres, M., Khanna, T., Walia, H., & Grund, D. (2008). Sexual slavery without borders: Trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation in India. International Journal for Equity in Health, 7, 1–11.Google Scholar
  29. Kamruzzaman, P. (2015). An Overview of Understanding Poverty from Diverse Perspectives. In Dollarisation of Poverty: Rethinking Poverty Beyond 2015 (pp. 7–19). Palgrave Macmillan.Google Scholar
  30. Kerbo, H. R. (2003). Social Stratification and Inequality: Class Conflict in Historical and Global Perspective. New York: McGraw Hill.Google Scholar
  31. Khan, M. M. H., Krämer, A., Khandoker, A., Prüfer-Krämer, L., & Islam, A. (2011). Trends in Sociodemographic and Health-Related Indicators in Bangladesh, 1993–2007: Will Inequities Persist? Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 89(8), 583–593.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  32. McCarthy, F. E., & Feldman, S. (1988). Processes of Impoverishment in Bangladesh: Reconceptualizing Poverty and Resources. The Journal of Social Studies, 39, 1–21.Google Scholar
  33. Nguyen-Marshall, V. (2008). In Search of Moral Authority: The Discourse on Poverty, Poor Relief, and Charity in French Colonial Vietnam. Peter Lang.Google Scholar
  34. Ossowski, S. (1963). Class Structure in the Social Consciousness. New York: The Free Press.Google Scholar
  35. Planning Commission. (2017). 7th Five Year Plan 2016–2020. Dhaka: Planning Commission, Bangladesh.Google Scholar
  36. PPRC and UNDP. (2016). Bangladesh 2016 Politics, Governance and Middle Income Aspirations Realities and Challenges an Empirical Study. Dhaka: PPRC and UNDP.Google Scholar
  37. Reza, M. M., Subramaniam, T., & Islam, M. R. (2019). Economic and social well-being of Asian labour migrants: A literature review. Social Indicators Research, 141(3), 1245–1264.Google Scholar
  38. Ruiz, E., & Praetorius, R. T. (2016). Deciphering the lived experience of Latinos with diabetes and depression: A qualitative interpretive meta-synthesis. Social work in public health, 31(2), 70–82.Google Scholar
  39. Schwartz, J. E., & Winship, C. (1980). The Welfare Approach to Measuring Inequality. Sociological Methodology, 11, 1–36.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  40. Schuman, D. (2016). Veterans’ experiences using complementary and alternative medicine for posttraumatic stress: A qualitative interpretive meta-synthesis. Social Work in Public Health, 31(2), 83–97.Google Scholar
  42. Sen, A. (1976). Welfare Inequalities and Rawlsianaxiomatics. Theory and Decision, 7(4), 243–262.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  43. Sen, A. (1981). Issues in the Measurement of Poverty. In Measurement in Public Choice (pp. 144–166). Palgrave Macmillan.Google Scholar
  44. Tilly, C. (1998). Durable Inequality. California: University of California Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  45. UNICEF. (2018). Maternal and newborn health disparities Bangladesh. Dhaka: UNICEF.Google Scholar
  46. Villar, A. (2017). Introduction. In Lectures on Inequality, Poverty and Welfare (pp. 1–15). Springer International Publishing.Google Scholar
  47. Wade, R. H. (2014). The Piketty Phenomenon and the Future of Inequality. Real World Economics Review, 69(7), 2–17.Google Scholar
  48. Web of Science. (2018). Search al databases. https://clarivate.libguides.com/webofscienceplatform/alldb.
  49. World Bank. (2016). Poverty Headcount Ration. Retrieved from https://data.worldbank.org/topic/poverty?locations=BD.
  50. Yunus, M. (2002). Toward Eliminating Poverty from the World: Grameen Bank experience. In Making Progress: Essays in Progress and Public Policy (pp. 371–378). Dhaka: Grameen Bank.Google Scholar

Copyright information

© The Author(s) 2020

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Institute of Social Welfare and ResearchUniversity of DhakaDhakaBangladesh
  2. 2.Department of Development StudiesUniversity of DhakaDhakaBangladesh
  3. 3.Department of Social WelfareUniversity of MohammadiyahJakartaIndonesia
  4. 4.Bangladesh National Commission for UNESCOMinistry of Education, People’s Republic of BangladeshDhakaBangladesh

Personalised recommendations

Cite chapter

Buy options