Skip NavigationMenu
INASIA

Insights and Analysis

Rule of Law Can Rid the World of Poverty

October 3, 2012

By Sir Fazle Hasan Abed and George Soros

Poverty is on the retreat. Despite the global economic downturn, the World Bank and UN reported this year that the number of people living in extreme poverty has dropped in every region of the world for the first time since record keeping began. Though progress on the UN’s Millennium Development Goals has been uneven, we should be heartened that we have already reached, three years before the target date of 2015, the first of these eight goals – that of halving the number of people still living on less than $1 a day. However, we risk allowing these gains to come undone if we fail to strengthen the rule of law in developing countries. Without basic legal empowerment, the poor live an uncertain existence, in fear of deprivation, displacement and dispossession.

Read the full article which originally appeared in the Financial Times on September 26. From September 9-19, The Asia Foundation hosted the co-author of this article, Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, founder of BRAC, the largest nongovernmental development organization in the world, as a Chang-Lin Tien Distinguished Visiting Fellow. Read an interview with Sir Fazle conducted by In Asia on September 19.

Related programs: Inclusive Economic Growth
Related topics: International Development

0 Comments

About our blog, InAsia

InAsia is a bi-weekly in-depth, in-country resource for readers who want to stay abreast of significant events and issues shaping Asia’s development, hosted by The Asia Foundation. Drawing on the first-hand insight of renowned experts, InAsia delivers concentrated analysis on issues affecting each region of Asia, as well as Foundation-produced reports and polls.

InAsia is posted and distributed every other Wednesday evening, Pacific Time. If you have any questions, please send an email to [email protected].

Contact

For questions about InAsia, or for our cross-post and re-use policy, please send an email to [email protected].

The Asia Foundation
465 California St., 9th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94104


Mailing Address:
PO Box 193223
San Francisco, CA 94119-3223

The Latest Across Asia

Program Snapshot

September 26, 2023

Change Starts Here Campaign Impact

Thank you for powering The Asia Foundation’s mission to improve lives and expand opportunities.