Nutrition and Economic Adjustment

Abstract

The article by Reutlinger beginning on page 50 reviews the evolution of the World Bank's experience with policies to eliminate poverty through development and its current view of the effect of adjustment policies on the welfare of the poor.There were originally expectations that the benefits of development would trickle down to the poor and more recently that development policies could be designed to benefit the poor more directly.The assertion is made that the effects of structural adjustment operations that result in food price increases can be offset by other measures supported by the Bank that will mitigate the consequences and help the poor to weather structural adjustments.As other articles in this special issue indicate, however, the problem is that the adjustment policies result in higher prices for food and lower real wages, while formidable administrative obstacles usually block the implementation of measures to moderate their effects on the poor.The examples cited by Reutlinger do not provide convincing evidence to the contrary, although they indicate a significant effort.The statements by the Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMP) on page 87 suggest that the IMP would be responsive to innovative proposals to effect economic adjustment policies without worsening poverty or malnutrition.Nevertheless, discussion at the March 1987 meeting of the ACC Sub-committee on Nutrition revealed that no such country proposals have yet been made.Letters to the editor or articles are invited that can document the actual nutritional and health consequences, either positive or negative, of economic adjustment policies supported by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.-N.S.

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