Growth and Poverty
Are the reduction of poverty and the acceleration of growth in conflict? Or are they complementary? Traditionally, a body of opinion held that rapid growth is bad for the poor because they would be bypassed and marginalized by the
structural changes of modern growth. Beyond this, there had been considerable concern in policy circles that the public expenditures required for the reduction of poverty would entail a reduction in the rate of growth. The concerns that concentrated efforts to lower poverty would slow the rate of growth paralleled the arguments that countries with lower inequality would experience slower growth. In particular, if there were redistribution of income or assets from rich to poor, even through progressive taxation, the concern was expressed that savings would fall.