Spreading the fruits of growth to the broadest swathe of the population requires
at least some redistribution from the rich to the poor. In fact, many developing
Asian countries have already begun to strengthen their social protection systems,
and to expand and improve social safety nets for the poor and the vulnerable.
However, in light of its still-low income levels, the region needs to maintain high
growth rates in order to continue to reduce poverty at a meaningful scale and
speed. Therefore, the more fundamental challenge for the region is to sustain
growth while, at the same time, tackling inequality. Put differently, the regionmust
continue to vigorously expand the size of the pie, even while it seeks to divide
up the pie more equitably. Therefore, devising and implementing a growth strategy
that delivers both growth and equity holds the key to ensuring politically and
socially sustainable growth in the post-crisis period. The two cornerstones of such
a growth strategy are equal access to education and equal access to employment,
which jointly constitute the core of equality of opportunity.