Proverty Reduction

In social planning it is often extremely difficult to decide on the most successful course of action. This is especially true if ideologies are used as a measuring rode of the solutions. For example, there is an intense debate about the best way to relieve poverty: is it through social programs such as social assistance, job re-training, etc. or is through the reduction in these programs and forcing these individuals into the labour market.

Some governments of lately have won elections proclaiming success of the later approach. Certainly, there has been a reduction of individuals on social programs. However, this is both because of the reduction of the programs themselves as well as increase in demand in the labour market. In short, we cannot use one measure to define success as this is misleading: just because there are less people using social programs does not mean there is less demand nor does it mean the demand is the same.

My point here is not to get into a social debate about poverty; instead, it is to show that a multi-pong approach is need in determining the action needed for social planning and these actions should not be influenced by ideologies. The first step, is to ask questions such as what poverty is and how it can be measured? The next step is to keep these questions and answers constant so comparisons of any changes that occur over time. How do we determine what to try?

Again ideologies should not influence what is chosen. If a reduction in poverty is to occur then the derived plan of action needs to either have been shown to work elsewhere[1] or proven to begin working here to be permitted to continue. Often it is said that we needed to look at existing models in other countries to see what improvements can be done to ours.


http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2007/11/26/child-poverty.html


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[1]with all outlying factors been taken into account such as an increase in economy: statistically these factors can be counted for i.e., so many people leaving social assistance because of gaining employment—as compared to being cut-off—or a ratio between those leaving social assistance and jobs being created in the economy, including types of jobs which could be used to predict how many met have entered the available jib market in comparison to their qualifications (i.e., education levels, etc.).