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POVERTY AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM DESIGN FOR RURAL CAMEROON.

Problem Analysis

Definition of poverty in Cameroon.
In Cameroon, income related elements are seen as the most important characteristics of poverty in Cameroon. As people put it, "being poor means not having the money to satisfy basic needs”, in particular for food, housing, health care and education. From another perspective, even with adequate incomes, the lack of essential services keep rural Cameroonians poor. To them "Poverty means trouble in getting safe drinking water, electricity, staple products, it means lack of roads and means of communication"; "poverty is when schools are far away, and when the schools offer no real teaching"; "a poor person is one who is in bad health and has trouble finding medical care". Social dysfunction is also seen as a characteristic of poverty. This term covers a number of failures, not necessarily related to financial capacity. As people put it, poverty is characterized by the collapse of morals (delinquency, prostitution, etc.), the loss of self-esteem and of social standing. Poverty also means living with insecurity, crime and unsanitary conditions. It means the inability to seek justice, to enforce rights, and to avoid everyday abuses.
According to (IMF August 9,1999) The share of the population living below the food poverty line in Cameroon in 1996 was estimated at 50 percent, with large variations between rural and urban areas (55 percent and 22 percent, respectively), and with a higher incidence for women. The government is determined to reduce the share of people living in poverty to 40 percent by 2000/01 and to reduce it further to about 15 percent by end-2010. In this context, it has prepared a policy framework paper for a poverty-reduction strategy containing measures to (a) promote high and sustainable economic growth that preserves ecosystems; (b) increase access to basic social services (education, health, and drinkable...