'25pc still extreme poor'

They said one out of every two Bangladeshis earns less than one dollar a day.

The press conference was held following a workshop on 'Extreme Poverty' organised jointly by Brac and Department for International Development (DFID).

The speakers said the absolute number of poor people remained constant since the 1970s.

Moreover, rising level of inequality threatens to exclude the poorest of the population from the benefits of national economic growth, they added.

They said to attain the Millennium Development Goal (MDG), Bangladesh must reduce the proportion of its people whose income is less than one dollar from 49.6 percent to 29.4 percent by 2015 and the proportion of people in extreme poverty to 14 percent.

While speaking at the press conference Country Representative of DFID David Wood said extreme poverty is not acceptable and the extreme poor need special assistance.

To address the ultra poor group Brac in association with DFID has started a programme titled ' Challenging the Frontiers of Poverty Reduction Targeting the Ultra Poor' (CFPR-TUP) in 2002, as the rate of extreme poor is alarming in rural areas and spreading in urban areas too.

The objectives of the CFPR-TUP programme is to assist the ultra poor population graduate from ultra poverty level and to assist them getting access to the mainstream development programme, the speakers said.

"It is also aimed to assist the hardcore poor through asset transfer and development support for skill, health and confidence," said Brac Executive Director Abdul Muyeed Chowdhury.

The extreme poor especially the women receive training and production component under the programme that already reached one lakh ultra poor women and their households in 15 poorest districts in the country, he added.

He said the programme has been extended to its second phase from 2007-2011 following the success of the first phase targeting three lakh households in six more districts.

Lack of resource is the main constraint in poverty reduction and as such multiplicity of programmes and approaches as well as community support are needed for poverty alleviation, he added.

Brac Director for Research and Evaluation Department Imran Matin and Livelihoods and Environment Advisor of DFID Yolande Wright were also present at the press conference.

Earlier, the workshop attended by more than 80 participants recommended community mobilisation to create an enabling environment and educating the ultra poor members regarding their future plan and changing their mindset at all levels.