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Secondary towns and poverty reduction : refocusing the urbanization agenda

Author

Listed:
  • Christiaensen,Luc
  • Kanbur,Ravi
  • Christiaensen,Luc
  • Kanbur,Ravi

Abstract

This review is framed around the exploration of a central hypothesis: A shift in public investment toward secondary towns from big cities will improve poverty reduction performance. Of course the hypothesis raises many questions. What exactly is the dichotomy of secondary towns versus big cities? What is the evidence for the contribution of secondary towns versus cities to poverty reduction? What are the economic mechanisms for such a differential contribution and how does policy interact with them? The review finds preliminary evidence and arguments in support of the hypothesis, but the impacts of policy on poverty are quite complex even in simple settings, and the question of secondary towns and poverty reduction is an open area for research and policy analysis.

Suggested Citation

  • Christiaensen,Luc & Kanbur,Ravi & Christiaensen,Luc & Kanbur,Ravi, 2016. "Secondary towns and poverty reduction : refocusing the urbanization agenda," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7895, The World Bank.
    • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:7895
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Luc Christiaensen & Joachim De Weerdt & Ravi Kanbur, 2017. "Cities, towns, and poverty: Migration equilibrium and income distribution in a Todaro-type model with multiple destinations," Working Papers 434, ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality.
    2. Ingelaere, Bert & Christiaensen, Luc & De Weerdt, Joachim & Kanbur, Ravi, 2018. "Why secondary towns can be important for poverty reduction – A migrant perspective," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 273-282.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Inequality; Economic Growth; Industrial Economics; Economic Theory&Research; Labor Markets;

    JEL classification:

    • I32 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Measurement and Analysis of Poverty
    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers
    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure
    • R12 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Size and Spatial Distributions of Regional Economic Activity; Interregional Trade (economic geography)
    • R23 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Regional Migration; Regional Labor Markets; Population

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