Although charcoal is the single most
important energy source for millions of urban dwellers in
Tanzania, being used by all tiers of society from laborers
to politicians, it seems to be politically neglected and
even unwanted, given that it is not considered as a possible
mean to achieve long-term sustainable development, for
example as a low-carbon growth option contributing to energy
security, sustainable forest management, and poverty

At an average above 6.0 percent per year
over the past two decades, Uganda' s growth rate was
impressive by all standards. In parallel, poverty declined
significantly, not only in urban areas, but also to some
extent within the rural areas. This combination was possible
because the key drivers of growth were labor-intensive
services sectors, some of which are agriculture based. In
fact, Uganda's growth process has reduced overall

East Sudan has received a continuous
influx of internally displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees
over the last forty years. Mass influxes were witnessed
during years when the region experienced natural
catastrophes as droughts and floods, or an escalation of
tensions and conflict in neighboring countries, mainly
Eritrea and Ethiopia. Presently there is still a steady but
smaller in numbers influx of refugees, mostly from Eritrea,

The World Bank has had a long history of
supporting community driven development and urban upgrading
projects in Indonesia, reaching back to the 1970's. The
primary approach of all program nasional pemberdayaana
masyarakat (PNPM) urban projects is to provide block grants
at the kelurahan level to community trusts (BKM) that work
with their communities to identify, plan, and implement
activities (largely infrastructure) to improve urban

Over the past 10 years the government of
Uganda has endeavored to increase latrine coverage and
promote hygiene with a view to improving health outcomes. In
1997, in the Kampala declaration for sanitation, leaders
from all of Uganda's districts pledged to improve
sanitation. Then in 2001, three ministries, the Ministry of
Water, Lands, and Environment; the Ministry of Education and
Sports; and the Ministry of Health, signed a memorandum of

Liberia aims to achieve middle-income
status by 2030 through broad participation and inclusive
growth. The Government's growth strategy aims to
accelerate growth through the exploitation of natural
resources, while maintaining sound macroeconomic policies,
improving the business environment, and prudently allocating
aid and commodity-based financing resources to expand
infrastructure and formal sector employment. However,

Services are failing poor urban and
rural people in the developing world, and poverty remains
concentrated in rural areas and urban slums. This state of
affairs prevails despite prolonged efforts by many
governments to improve rural and urban services and
development programs. This book focuses on how communities
and local governments can be empowered to contribute to
their own development and, in the process, improve

This study was commissioned to analyse
the cost efficiency and economic viability of an ethanol
programme, for reducing disease, and protecting the forests
in Madagascar. This information is also expected to be of
interest regionally and internationally, given that the
World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that there are
nearly two million deaths per annum globally due to
Household Air Pollution (HAP), representing 2.7 percent of

This paper discusses the progress made
by Cambodia from the early 90s to 2007, in reduction of
poverty incidence. Reduced poverty occurred in both urban
and rural areas, and was experienced by rich and poor, and
by men and women. Households, including those in the poorest
groups, have improved their housing quality, increased
ownership of motorbikes, televisions, and mobile phones, and
are better able to access and afford schools and healthcare.

Ownership and control over assets such
as land and housing provide direct and indirect benefits to
individuals and households, including a secure place to
live, the means of a livelihood, protection during
emergencies, and collateral for credit that can be used for
investment or consumption. Unfortunately, few studies -
either at the micro or macro levels- examine the gender
dimensions of asset ownership. This paper sets out a

Over the past decade, faster growth and
smarter social policy have reversed the trend in Latin
America's poverty. Too slowly and insufficiently, but
undeniably, the percentage of Latinos who are poor has at
long last begun to fall. This has shifted the political and
policy debates from poverty toward inequality, something to
be expected in a region that exhibits the world's most
regressive distribution of development outcomes such as

Despite remarkable economic growth in
the past decade, undernutrition remains a serious public
health problem in Angola. High rates of child stunting and
micronutrient deficiencies are contributing to an under-five
mortality rate of 161 deaths per 1,000 live births, limiting
the growth and development of children, hindering
productivity, and preventing the country from reaching
millennium development goals one and four. In response to