As developing Asia turns from a low-income region into a largely middle-income
region, there is growing popular demand for political and social participation.
Related to this, there is also an increasingly vocal demand for more inclusive
growth, which includes as much of the population as possible in the growth process
and spreads the fruits of growth to the entire population. In the past, growth
strategies, which were geared almost exclusively toward growth with little regard
for equity, helped deliver rapid growth and poverty reduction. However, in light of
the rising demand for more equality and inclusion, growth strategies will have to
be adjusted if the region is to continue to enjoy the economic success it enjoyed
prior to the global financial crisis. There is a growing recognition among the
region’s policy makers of the need to respond to the popular pressure for more
inclusive growth. While there is some scope for redistributive policies, in light of
the region’s still low income levels and development gaps, a more fundamental
solution lies in modifying the pattern of the growth process in a more inclusive
direction.