Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the Way to Fight Global Poverty
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- Create Date：2021-04-19 11:56:56
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Abhijit V. Banerjee
- ISBN：1586487981
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Summary
Winner of the 2011 Financial Times/Goldman Sachs Best Business Book of the Year Award
Billions of government dollars， and thousands of charitable organizations and NGOs， are dedicated to helping the world's poor。 But much of their work is based on assumptions that are untested generalizations at best， harmful misperceptions at worst。
Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo have pioneered the use of randomized control trials in development economics。 Work based on these principles， supervised by the Poverty Action Lab， is being carried out in dozens of countries。 Drawing on this and their 15 years of research from Chile to India， Kenya to Indonesia， they have identified wholly new aspects of the behavior of poor people， their needs， and the way that aid or financial investment can affect their lives。 Their work defies certain presumptions: that microfinance is a cure-all， that schooling equals learning， that poverty at the level of 99 cents a day is just a more extreme version of the experience any of us have when our income falls uncomfortably low。
This important book illuminates how the poor live， and offers all of us an opportunity to think of a world beyond poverty。
Learn more at www。pooreconomics。com
Billions of government dollars， and thousands of charitable organizations and NGOs， are dedicated to helping the world's poor。 But much of their work is based on assumptions that are untested generalizations at best， harmful misperceptions at worst。
Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo have pioneered the use of randomized control trials in development economics。 Work based on these principles， supervised by the Poverty Action Lab， is being carried out in dozens of countries。 Drawing on this and their 15 years of research from Chile to India， Kenya to Indonesia， they have identified wholly new aspects of the behavior of poor people， their needs， and the way that aid or financial investment can affect their lives。 Their work defies certain presumptions: that microfinance is a cure-all， that schooling equals learning， that poverty at the level of 99 cents a day is just a more extreme version of the experience any of us have when our income falls uncomfortably low。
This important book illuminates how the poor live， and offers all of us an opportunity to think of a world beyond poverty。
Learn more at www。pooreconomics。com
Reviews
Sergio Medinaceli
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Excelente libro para entender los detalles de la pobreza， criticar las visiones generalistas y lograr más empatía con la gente que vive con menos de 1 dólar al día。 Es un análisis micro que， espero， en el futuro podría complementarse con modelos macro， que permitan analizar los trade-offs de la política económica。
Alonso Corvera Díaz
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Recomendado para quienes se encuentren inmersos en proyectos con impacto social o relacionados a políticas públicas。 El libro estriba en un estudio revolucionario sobre nuevas estrategias para atacar la pobreza， con suficiente evidencia empírica para llevarlos a cabo。 La filosofía que los autores（Banerjee y Duflo， Premios Nobel de Economía） persiguen es prestar atención a los detalles， comprender cómo toma decisiones la gente y estar dispuestos a experimentar。 Metodologías que ya utilizamos en p Recomendado para quienes se encuentren inmersos en proyectos con impacto social o relacionados a políticas públicas。 El libro estriba en un estudio revolucionario sobre nuevas estrategias para atacar la pobreza， con suficiente evidencia empírica para llevarlos a cabo。 La filosofía que los autores（Banerjee y Duflo， Premios Nobel de Economía） persiguen es prestar atención a los detalles， comprender cómo toma decisiones la gente y estar dispuestos a experimentar。 Metodologías que ya utilizamos en proyectos， pero esta vez aplicadas a solucionar la situación económica de millones de personas que viven con menos de 99 centavos de dólar al día。 。。。more
Chun Fui Tham
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Randomised Controlled Test for economics theories。 Refreshing and impactful findings on the topic of poverty。
حمده الشامسية
，
الباحثان الزوجان الحائزان على جائزة نوبل للإقتصاد （أبههيجت بارنجي و استردفلو） يبحثان في هذا الكتاب القيم الأسباب التي تجعل الفقراء يدورون في دائرة الفقر رغم الحلول الواضحة التي قد يراها من حولهم، وكيف يتخذ الفقير قرارارته المصيرية المتعلقة بالمال، لماذا لا تنجح المشاريع التي يعمل فيها الفقراء من إنتشالهم من الفقر، ولماذا يصرف الفقير على الكماليات في الوقت الذي توجد كثير من الأساسيات في حياته، لماذا تفشل برامج المساعدات الدولية على حجمها الهائل في إنتشال الفقراء من فقرهم، وأسئلة كثيرة اخرى يط الباحثان الزوجان الحائزان على جائزة نوبل للإقتصاد （أبههيجت بارنجي و استردفلو） يبحثان في هذا الكتاب القيم الأسباب التي تجعل الفقراء يدورون في دائرة الفقر رغم الحلول الواضحة التي قد يراها من حولهم، وكيف يتخذ الفقير قرارارته المصيرية المتعلقة بالمال، لماذا لا تنجح المشاريع التي يعمل فيها الفقراء من إنتشالهم من الفقر، ولماذا يصرف الفقير على الكماليات في الوقت الذي توجد كثير من الأساسيات في حياته، لماذا تفشل برامج المساعدات الدولية على حجمها الهائل في إنتشال الفقراء من فقرهم، وأسئلة كثيرة اخرى يطرحها الكتاب الجميل هذا الذي يقع في 471 صفحة。قام بترجمة الكتاب للعربية بأسلوب جميل وسهل （أنور الشامسي） استمتعت شخصيا بالكتاب 。。。more
Sarah Al-Jishi
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كتاب رائع جدًا وغني جدًا بالمعلومات، يتناول قضية الفقر من عدة جوانب ويحلل ماهي الأسباب التي تجعل الفقراء فقراء ، بداية ببعض الاعتقادات العامة لدى المجتمع مثل عدم قدرتهم على الادخار او انهم فقط بحاجة لبعض المساعدة لانتشالهم من هذه الدائرة ، يتكلم عن مصيدة الفقر وصعوبة الخروج منها والعوامل المتعددة التي تلعب دورًا في قرارات الفقراء كما يطرح عدة تجارب لمؤسسات قدمت حلولا للفقراء مثل توزيع المساعدات المجانية أو الإقراض متناهي الصغر وغيرها الكثيرونتائج هذه الحلول على المدى الطويل والقصير في أماكن متفر كتاب رائع جدًا وغني جدًا بالمعلومات، يتناول قضية الفقر من عدة جوانب ويحلل ماهي الأسباب التي تجعل الفقراء فقراء ، بداية ببعض الاعتقادات العامة لدى المجتمع مثل عدم قدرتهم على الادخار او انهم فقط بحاجة لبعض المساعدة لانتشالهم من هذه الدائرة ، يتكلم عن مصيدة الفقر وصعوبة الخروج منها والعوامل المتعددة التي تلعب دورًا في قرارات الفقراء كما يطرح عدة تجارب لمؤسسات قدمت حلولا للفقراء مثل توزيع المساعدات المجانية أو الإقراض متناهي الصغر وغيرها الكثيرونتائج هذه الحلول على المدى الطويل والقصير في أماكن متفرقة حول العالم مثل الهند و اندونوسيا وجنوب افريقيا والمكسيك والبرازيل 。ختاما يلخص الكتاب 5 دروس اساسية تعلمها من دراسة حياة الفقراء:1- يفتقر الفقراء غالبًا إلى معلومات ذات اهمية بالنسبة لهم ويؤمنون بأفكار خاطئة2- يتحمل الفقراء مسؤولية جوانب كثيرة من شؤون حياتهم ، وكلما ازداد المرء غنى زادت القرارات الصائبة التي يتخذها الآخرون لأجله3- هناك بعض الاسباب المقنعة التي تجعل بعض الأسواق غائبة عن الفقراء أو تجعلهم يواجهون اسعارًا غير محتملة فيها 4- إن الدول الفقيرة ليس محتومًا عليها بالفضل لكونها فقيرة أو لكونها مرت بتاريخ حافل من البؤس5- إن التوقعات بشأن ما يستطيع الناس وما لا يستطيعون تحقيقه كثيرا ما تتحول في الأخير إلى نبوءات تحقق ذاتهابعض الاقتباسات:-إن أحسن الصيحات （سواء كانت سدودًا أو أطباء حفاة أو قروضًا متناهية الصغر أو اي شي كان ） تتحول إلى سياسات دون التفات للواقع الذي يفترض أنها ستعمل خلاله。- أحيانًا ما تولد أسوأ السياسات من رحم أصلح النيات ، وذلك عند القراءة الخاطئة لماهية المشكلة الحقيقية。شراء وظيفة:- فالوظيفة المستقرة في حد ذاتها يمكن أن تغير نظرة الأشخاص للحياة على نحو حاسم- وغالبًا ما تبدو مشروعات الفقراء كوسيلة لشراء وظيفة عندما لا تتاح أمامهم فرص عمل تقليدية أكثر من كونها إنعكاسًا لدافع خاص للانخراط في عالم الأعمال الحرة。- وربما لا تعتبر المشروعات الكثيرة التي ينفذها الفقراء دليلا على تمتعهم بروح ريادة الأعمال بقدر ماهي علامة على الفشل الذريع من جانب الاقتصادات التي يعيشون في كنفها والتي لم توفر لهم حياة أفضل。الوظائف الجيدة:- يبدو أن الاستقرار الوظيفي هو أبرز ما تتميز به الطبقات الوسطى على الفقراء- وربما تكون فكرة أن هناك مستقبلا ينتظرهم هو ما يصنع الفارق بين الفقراء والطبقة المتوسطة- وهذا هو ما يجعل（الوظيفة الجيدة） ذات أهمية؛ فالوظيفة الجيدة هي وظيفة تدر راتبا ثابتا ومجزيًا。 وهي تتيح لصاحبها أيضًا الهامش الذهني اللازم بما يسمح له بالنهوض بكل الأشياء التي تقوم بها الطبقة الوسطى على نحو جيد。عن تفضيل بعض الفقراء للعيش في القرى:على الفقراء أن يتكدسوا في كل بقعة أرض يتسنى لهم انتزاعها على نحو ما من المدينة ، وهي غالبا ما تكون مستنقعا أو حتى مقلب قمامة。وعند المقارنة فإن المناطق التي يسكنها المعدمون من الفقراء الذي يعيشون في القرى تتسم بأنها أكثر اخضرارًا وأفضل تهوية وأقل ضجيجًا؛ فضلًا عن أن البيوت تكون أوسع مساحة؛ وتضم مكانًا يمكن للأطفال ممارسة ألعابهم فيه。 。。。more
Jishnu Chatterjee
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Simply brilliant。 A must read for all。
Jurij Fedorov
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1 Think Again， Again 16，5/10Very basic audiobook intro chapter with some interesting ideas presented。 Like， is giving poor countries or people free money and things the best way to fight poverty or is it ineffective？ The author never really answers these questions。 He just asks them。My main issue with this chapter is a huge blindspot。 The author uses economic theories only。 So he sees all people as exactly alike。 No one is taller or stronger genetically so all are basically following the same si 1 Think Again， Again 16，5/10Very basic audiobook intro chapter with some interesting ideas presented。 Like， is giving poor countries or people free money and things the best way to fight poverty or is it ineffective？ The author never really answers these questions。 He just asks them。My main issue with this chapter is a huge blindspot。 The author uses economic theories only。 So he sees all people as exactly alike。 No one is taller or stronger genetically so all are basically following the same simple economic theories。 No human is more smart than any other human and the same therefore applies to groups。 It's such a huge blindspot that you have to wonder how terrible some of the later chapters could turn out？ Group and individual differences is the first thing you should point out。 Some groups are genetically stronger and therefore better farmers。 Or some groups are more intelligent and therefore overall better able to produce more with fewer resources。 I'm not really sure why or how he overlooked such simple concepts。 A new edition of the book would be in order。Edit: I've now read the whole book。 It doesn't get better。 It actually gets worse with each chapter。 Shame。PART I: PRIVATE LIVES2 A Billion Hungry People？ 195/10There are enough nonsensical theories here to make this chapter not recommendable。 He creates an argument by presenting a slew of specific hypothesis that all must be true for his main claim to be true。 One of the theories his main theory rests upon is the assumption that all groups of people have basically the same genetic height。 So if that assumption is true his main theory can still be true。 If it's false he's completely wrong about most of his main claims or at best correct， but doesn't understand why he's correct。And according to the research we have from biology and social science unfortunately his theories rest on false assumptions。 There are in fact groups that are genetically shorter or taller than other groups。 According to his claim you could have a Japanese or Indian group moving to Holland and then if they only reproduce in their ingroup in this richer environment the average height of their grandchildren will basically be the same as the average height of a Hollander。 Of course this would also suppose that the current low Japanese height is caused by some mysterious starvation。 Even this is not true。 His own ethnic group examples on the other hand are perfectly selected to support his own theory about all groups being genetically the same。 He picks one short immigrant group from a poor country and then looks at their height compared to the population in the very short USA。 Unfortunately for him this one example， in this one experiment， showed him the data he wanted to see so he didn't have the need to test his hypothesis further and maybe uncover counter evidence。It's one example， but overall the whole chapter is a bunch of logical fallacies even though he did talk about some more logical ideas too。 Some interesting info is that you are not supposed to just send food to poor countries as it won't necessarily make them eat better。 They will just spend their own money on other stuff and eat just as little or even less。 But even his better arguments are not fully developed。 They are just interesting and well-written enough to make much of the chapter good。 I do suggest that economists read about heritability studies before creating huge social science theories explaining everything in the world。 It should be a minimum， but unfortunately not everyone is hardworking/smart enough to read up on studies outside their field。3 Low-Hanging Fruit for Better （Global） Health？ 416/10Some good ideas about how poor people are not great at spending money on medicine。 But it does feel a bit unfocused。 It's hard to always understand his points and arguments。4 Top of the Class 713/10This chapter has so many basic misunderstandings， overlooked points and extremely simplified ideas that it's very hard to even read let alone enjoy。 The logical fallacies are so simple that anyone should see this chapter as pseudoscience。The basic logical mistake he makes is to assume all children have equal potential。 So every time he makes a point about any child or society he constantly blames parents and teachers for having any bad students whatsoever。 If there is a bad student somewhere it's because the parents don't believe in their child and because teachers see the child as stupid and poor and therefore don't want to educate it。 These basic unsaid assumptions are so extremely wrong that you have to wonder how the author could possibly argue his way into these points。 But it all makes sense if you notice how he constantly tries to support his main idea of expanding the welfare state and public support system。 If even a single kid has stable low IQ it goes against his main assumptions so he rather not even mention it。 The various anecdotes he uses are so simplified that it hurts。 A random poor man gets a high IQ score in a test and is hired。 He then does well at his job。 This supposedly implies that people have huge hidden potentials。 He doesn't go into why this man got a high IQ score or into the high heritability of IQ。 It's just some magical IQ element that is there， but doesn't really count for anything。 So a child doing bad in school or a person not being able to do well at work is just because their magical potential is hidden away as other people just don't believe in the person。 He tries to create a magical world where the assumption is that leaders and adults overall are just too damn stupid to implement his simple ideas to make all cities or countries rich in a generation。 It's embarrassing。5 Pak Sudarno’s Big Family 1035，5/10It's about family planning。 I did notice some points that go against current social science research。 But largely it's guesswork as he focuses on unscientific or vague ideas here。 At any rate the chapter is much better and more scientific。 It's just dull and empty。 Which of course is better than making stuff up like he did in the last chapter。 But it's still not at a level where I want an economic or social science book to be at intellectually and scientifically。PART II: INSTITUTIONS6 Barefoot Hedge-Fund Managers 1334，5/10A chapter about how some insurances can't be made by private companies so the public sector needs to get into this market。 It's never clearly explained why a private market won't go into an industry where the author claims they can make a good profit。 So seemingly it's both easy and too hard to make a profit in this industry。Besides that the chapter focuses on how poverty keeps people poor and how poor people buy TVs instead of food， as stated in prior chapters too。 His proposed solution is always a stronger powerful hold over poor people。 So ruling them top-down and making sure they invest in good things and have access to free stuff they need。 But even this is not really his main point in all chapters as he also claims that just giving them cheap stuff/food is pointless。7 The Men from Kabul and the Eunuchs of India: The （Not So） Simple Economics of Lending to the Poor 1575，5/10The chapter goes into loans。 This again is based on mostly anecdotes and not good evidence so it's hard for me to conclude anything on this without looking into research first。It's about microloans and how poor people often refuse to repay them so the loan companies have a hard time making any profit here。 Instead gangs， that by force can get their money back， are often making the loans instead。 Major loan companies are often attacked by politicians and the public sector。 Based on loose rumors about the industry some politicians have made it illegal for the companies to get payments on their loans。 Unfortunately he's not critical so it's not even clear if he understands all his own points and anecdotes。 He had no issues with creating spin and unscientific claims in prior chapters so why this problem with describing actual facts？8 Saving Brick by Brick 1835，5/10This chapter is largely about anecdotes without much focus on theory。 So obviously it's better than bad theory chapters。 But it's boring and feels pointless at times。 Without a main theory it feels like a collection of stories。 Usually that's a bad thing in books here it somehow actually improves this book as it at least lacks his terrible macro theories。There is not much here。 Overall the book has been a dud so far。9 Reluctant Entrepreneurs 2055/10Nothing of note。 Yet again ideas about how basically all people have potential to get richer and become powerful and happy。 A bit too simplified and only focuses on culture and government instead of considering personality and individuals too。10 Policies， Politics 2354/10Among other things a few progressive statements about how women are better leaders than men and how areas in India only allow women to run for offices。 According to the author women leaders is a great thing so he seems to make a case for top-down leadership again and supports forceful sex discrimination。 It's still the progressive ideology showing its face。 The issue is not so much that he's wrong。 We don't have enough data on this yet to know for sure if he's wrong on everything。 The issue is that he's very ideologically progressive at times and it's predictably ideological points。 There is no great intellectual point or clever logical argument。 So while progressive readers will nod in agreement there is nothing much to take away from the book for them either。It's basically "private industry can't fix many poverty problems so we need a bigger government"。 All fine， but it's not scientific。 I do think some more gullible left-wing readers can easily love such a book。 Just like Muslims love the Quran。 But that doesn't tell us anything about the quality of the message。In Place of a Sweeping Conclusion 2674/10More about women in politics and the expected progressive ideological stuff。 Boring。Overall this book is a big letdown。 Unfortunately he doesn't see the individual in the process。 He speaks about himself changing culture via the government and experiments。 But the individual is so overlooked that his whole power grab idea is creepy。Probably a 1，5 to 2 stars book。 Not terrible book。 Lots of good stories and clear writing。 But his lack of even basic understanding of some social science research is head scratching。 It would only take him a few weeks to read the basic research he overlooked。 But personal blindspots can be hard to see。 。。。more
Đăng Bảo
，
Một góc nhìn mà đối với mình là hoàn toàn mới。 Người nghèo và những hoạt động kinh tế của họ。 Người ta cứ nghĩ là mình thấy đúng， nhưng thực tế thì lại hoàn toàn khác。 Ứng dụng những kiến thức đã học， đã hiểu về cách nền kinh tế vận hành để rồi đưa nó áp dụng cho những hoạt động kinh tế của người nghèo ư？ Không đâu， người nghèo， bản thân họ có nhiều vấn đề hơn đó。 Cần phải lắng nghe， quan sát họ nhiều hơn nữa。 Quyển sách này đã dạy mình rất nhiều về cách nhìn nhận một vấn đề， nếu chỉ nhìn bề ngo Một góc nhìn mà đối với mình là hoàn toàn mới。 Người nghèo và những hoạt động kinh tế của họ。 Người ta cứ nghĩ là mình thấy đúng， nhưng thực tế thì lại hoàn toàn khác。 Ứng dụng những kiến thức đã học， đã hiểu về cách nền kinh tế vận hành để rồi đưa nó áp dụng cho những hoạt động kinh tế của người nghèo ư？ Không đâu， người nghèo， bản thân họ có nhiều vấn đề hơn đó。 Cần phải lắng nghe， quan sát họ nhiều hơn nữa。 Quyển sách này đã dạy mình rất nhiều về cách nhìn nhận một vấn đề， nếu chỉ nhìn bề ngoài thì bạn chẳng thấy gì。 ^^。 Mình sẽ đọc lại khi cần。 。。。more
Juan David Diez Cortés
，
Benerjee y Duflo hacen un análisis espectacular de la pobreza， no desde las perspectivas tradicionales， sino una revisión que va hasta los prejuicios generalizados que se tiene contra las personas pobres y como las cosas tienen mucha más profundidad de lo que se puede pensar。 A través de casos como el acceso financiero， educación， salud， ahorro y otros aspectos centrales los autores ilustran como las medidas que se suelen tomar para combatir la pobreza no funcionan porque no atienden las verdade Benerjee y Duflo hacen un análisis espectacular de la pobreza， no desde las perspectivas tradicionales， sino una revisión que va hasta los prejuicios generalizados que se tiene contra las personas pobres y como las cosas tienen mucha más profundidad de lo que se puede pensar。 A través de casos como el acceso financiero， educación， salud， ahorro y otros aspectos centrales los autores ilustran como las medidas que se suelen tomar para combatir la pobreza no funcionan porque no atienden las verdaderas necesidades o no transforman mentalidades para permitir su funcionamiento。 Evidencian como la capacidad de la economía para realizar "experimentos" ha permitido expandir el conocimiento que se tiene acerca de la efectividad de las políticas， los cambios efectivos que generan apoyos y la contribución a la calidad de vida de las personas pobres de los programas nacionales e internacionales para combatirlo。 Siendo el compendio de muchas investigaciones realizadas por los autores y otras personas de la academia con este respecto da una perspectiva muy diferente que deja muchos espacios abiertos de reflexión y da pie a más preguntas que respuestas en como estamos trabajando para reducir la pobreza en el mundo， así sea en los próximos 100 años。 。。。more
José Antonio Roca
，
Understanding the lives， counterintuitive challenges and complex decisions that people who live under 99 cents a day face， is no easy task。 Banerjee and Duflo， through a thorough research both theoretical and in the field， give great insight on this crucial subject for economic development。 Their groundbreaking use of empirical evidence， specifically randomized controlled trials， as a way to asses aid programs helps to rethink how public policies should work。 Small changes can have big effects。
Vishnu Rajanikanth
，
Demystifies poverty and humanity's struggle to escape it。 I now realize not to be poor is a lot about readymade decisions made for you by society/state/system on nutrition， health， education， financial assets etc。As in most things the details matter， understanding how and why the poor make decisions regarding nutrition， health， how many kids to have， educating their kids， saving， repaying debt and managing their risks is key to designing tools that nudge them in the right direction。Much energy a Demystifies poverty and humanity's struggle to escape it。 I now realize not to be poor is a lot about readymade decisions made for you by society/state/system on nutrition， health， education， financial assets etc。As in most things the details matter， understanding how and why the poor make decisions regarding nutrition， health， how many kids to have， educating their kids， saving， repaying debt and managing their risks is key to designing tools that nudge them in the right direction。Much energy and resources have been wasted due to over reliance on Ideology， interventions born from ignorance of ground realities of the poor and the inertia caused by so created measures。A pragmatic approach that relies on understanding how poor make decisions and empirical testing before scaling up interventions as way to keep chipping away on what is essentially a super complex challenge of eradicating poverty。 。。。more
Anh Hoang
，
My new favorite
Robert Jere
，
This book discusses the challenge of world poverty。 It is written in such a way that each chapter deals with one issue affecting poor people and policy recommendations on how to mitigate that problem。 The issues include; health， education， saving e。t。c。I learnt a lot of new things in this book。 Some things weren't really new but they are put in such a way that i was reminded of how complicated the world really is。The theme of the book is quite simple。 Poverty is a problem that requires the atten This book discusses the challenge of world poverty。 It is written in such a way that each chapter deals with one issue affecting poor people and policy recommendations on how to mitigate that problem。 The issues include; health， education， saving e。t。c。I learnt a lot of new things in this book。 Some things weren't really new but they are put in such a way that i was reminded of how complicated the world really is。The theme of the book is quite simple。 Poverty is a problem that requires the attention of all well meaning people。 You can make significant progress in the fight against poverty by using interventions that have proved to be efficacious。 The authors dismiss the idea that people can only escape poverty if their political and economic institutions change。 Their method is to use randomized control trials to figure out which interventions solve a specific problem。 This is my first issue with the book。 I was not convinced that the information they got from these RCTs was useful。 It is one thing to use controlled experiments to find out the effect of sunlight on plant growth and quite another to find out the effect of a speech on ethnic voting in Benin。 This speech example is actually from the book and i found it absurd， it was pseudoscience。 The second issue with this book is that it largely ignores the central problem of people in poor countries: bad government。 For example， the chapter on why poor people do not save in banks does not once mention the habit of third world governments to tax through inflation。 In my country Zambia right now， the official inflation is more than twenty percent！ The real one is probably much higher。My final issue， and probably the reason this was hard to read for me， is the shameless paternalism。 My god。 The authors explicitly state that poor people should be "nudged" and sometimes forced to do the 'right' thing because they are not always 'rational'。 Apparently， they have to make too many decisions in their lives so it makes it hard to get them all right。 The irony for me is that most of the recommendations in this book involve the government doing something。 I guess banana republic governments are stuffed with rational people， at least more rational than the people they loot。 。。。more
Stan Rea
，
It's hard to define exactly what this book accomplishes。 I think the subtitle is a bit over blown。 The book doesn't really offer a "radical rethinking" on poverty。 The book examines several questions or commonly held beliefs about the poor。 These questions often underlay current approaches to aid to these same people。 For example， can the poor save money？ Current western thinking says of course not， they are poor。 On the contrary， the authors point out that the poor in general do a great deal of It's hard to define exactly what this book accomplishes。 I think the subtitle is a bit over blown。 The book doesn't really offer a "radical rethinking" on poverty。 The book examines several questions or commonly held beliefs about the poor。 These questions often underlay current approaches to aid to these same people。 For example， can the poor save money？ Current western thinking says of course not， they are poor。 On the contrary， the authors point out that the poor in general do a great deal of saving in one form or another。 They just don't do it in a bank account （which is another topic）。 In other words， the book asks you to reexamine the bases for aid and the authors often suggest minor tweaks to an aid system that have empirically been proven to accomplish the required goal。 。。。more
Laura Daniela Morales
，
This is a very easy to read book about economics。 A lot of well explain examples of how people in the developing world make decisions and what are some factors that affect them。 This book explains the rationale of some of the things I got to experience while growing in a developing country。 Corruption。。。 inequality。。。 and the role of the developed nations in fighting poverty。 One big question that keeps bouncing in my head after reading this book: How much should developed nations interfere to h This is a very easy to read book about economics。 A lot of well explain examples of how people in the developing world make decisions and what are some factors that affect them。 This book explains the rationale of some of the things I got to experience while growing in a developing country。 Corruption。。。 inequality。。。 and the role of the developed nations in fighting poverty。 One big question that keeps bouncing in my head after reading this book: How much should developed nations interfere to help the poor out of poverty ？ 。。。more
Diego Medina
，
“Si evitamos esa forma perezosa de pensar en términos de fórmulas que reducen cada problema al mismo conjunto de reglas generales; si escuchamos a la personas pobres y nos obligamos a entender la lógica de sus decisiones; si aceptamos la posibilidad de error y sometemos cada idea， incluso las que aparentemente tienen más sentido común， a un ensayo empírico riguroso， no solo seremos capaces de construir una caja de herramientas políticas eficaces， sino que también entenderemos mejor por qué los p “Si evitamos esa forma perezosa de pensar en términos de fórmulas que reducen cada problema al mismo conjunto de reglas generales; si escuchamos a la personas pobres y nos obligamos a entender la lógica de sus decisiones; si aceptamos la posibilidad de error y sometemos cada idea， incluso las que aparentemente tienen más sentido común， a un ensayo empírico riguroso， no solo seremos capaces de construir una caja de herramientas políticas eficaces， sino que también entenderemos mejor por qué los pobres viven de las forma en que viven”。 。。。more
Palimp
，
Es curioso que muchísima gente quiere erradicar la pobreza。 El ser humano no es alguien egoísta que disfruta viendo sufrir a los demás。 Pero cada mentalidad ofrece diferentes soluciones。 Los autores indican que， para saber cual es la correcta， no basta con pensar las cosas a priori。 Hay que hacer estudios y comprobarlo。 Y eso es lo que hacen a lo largo de las páginas de este libro。https://liblit。com/abhijit-v-banerjee。。。 Es curioso que muchísima gente quiere erradicar la pobreza。 El ser humano no es alguien egoísta que disfruta viendo sufrir a los demás。 Pero cada mentalidad ofrece diferentes soluciones。 Los autores indican que， para saber cual es la correcta， no basta con pensar las cosas a priori。 Hay que hacer estudios y comprobarlo。 Y eso es lo que hacen a lo largo de las páginas de este libro。https://liblit。com/abhijit-v-banerjee。。。 。。。more
David
，
Far from the simplification usually promoted by politics and ideology， this book develops a structured vision of the triggers for the poverty understanding the logic behind people's decisions and submitting every idea to a rigorous experimenting。 Recommended for everyone interested on effective initiatives to help people to overcome poverty Far from the simplification usually promoted by politics and ideology， this book develops a structured vision of the triggers for the poverty understanding the logic behind people's decisions and submitting every idea to a rigorous experimenting。 Recommended for everyone interested on effective initiatives to help people to overcome poverty 。。。more
Cajsa
，
this is the paragon of a non-technical economics book: an accessible & straight to the point piece that does *not* compromise on depth and should definitely be considered mandatory reading for any aspiring economist out there！ 270 pages have never taught me more！
David
，
No me ha gustado。 Denso， espeso pero sobre todo aburrido。 Solamente la parte del final， un capítulo en concreto， me ha causado cierto interés。
Mario Protopapa
，
Un grande libro che aiuta a delineare le trappole della povertà。 Perché i poveri sono poveri？ Cosa sbagliano？ Quali atteggiamenti conducono alla povertà e quali potrebbero aiutare ad uscirne？ Super consigliato！
Ujjyaini Bose
，
My knowledge of economics is limited to undergrad。This is how academicians should write books on social sciences， something that lay person can understand。This book isn't your one way ticket to eradicate poverty， moreover it's a way of seeing the problem from a different perspective。Do we really need to produce more food ？ Or we just need better distribution ？Do we need radical change in health care ？？ Or just some preventive measures can go a long way ？Can education provide economic stability ？ My knowledge of economics is limited to undergrad。This is how academicians should write books on social sciences， something that lay person can understand。This book isn't your one way ticket to eradicate poverty， moreover it's a way of seeing the problem from a different perspective。Do we really need to produce more food ？ Or we just need better distribution ？Do we need radical change in health care ？？ Or just some preventive measures can go a long way ？Can education provide economic stability ？？Is microfinance really helping the poor ？Why does the rich get to decides what's best for the poor ？why are they not included in the conversation ？Can a bit of supervision， reservation and communication solve the Big problems ？？Can Poverty be really eradicated ？ Or are we just digging off mud from a swamp ？？ 。。。more
Abigaela Bilbiie
，
De mic copil „oamenii din Africa”， oamenii săraci， au fost pentru mine o enigmă。 Ca orice copil， îmi puneam întrebări nevinovate precum de ce nu îi ajutăm noi？ De ce oamenii bogați nu le dau și lor bani să trăiască mai bine？ Și câte și mai câte。 Crescând， am înțeles mai multe lucruri， dar întrebările mi-au rămas aceleași。 De ce？ De ce？ De ce， oferindu-le o groază de lucruri și oportunități， țările sărace sunt incapabile să se dezvolte， să facă din puțin mai mult？ De ce aceleași lucruri care merg De mic copil „oamenii din Africa”， oamenii săraci， au fost pentru mine o enigmă。 Ca orice copil， îmi puneam întrebări nevinovate precum de ce nu îi ajutăm noi？ De ce oamenii bogați nu le dau și lor bani să trăiască mai bine？ Și câte și mai câte。 Crescând， am înțeles mai multe lucruri， dar întrebările mi-au rămas aceleași。 De ce？ De ce？ De ce， oferindu-le o groază de lucruri și oportunități， țările sărace sunt incapabile să se dezvolte， să facă din puțin mai mult？ De ce aceleași lucruri care merg la noi nu funcționează și la ei， când sunt atât de simple？ Ei bine， răspunsurile au început să apară abia în ultimii doi ani când， odată cu domeniul studiat （behavioral economics） mi-au ajuns în mână diferite studii， cărți， articole， etc。 care mi-au deschis orizonturile și mi-au oferit posibile explicații pentru care țărilor sărace le e atât de greu să se dezvolte sau să adopte obiceiuri simple。 Două cărți citite de mine până acum m-au făcut să înțeleg mai bine lumea și modul în care ea funcționează， în diferitele ei culturi și populații: Factfullness scrisă de Hans Rosling și Poor economics， ai cărei autori， Abhijit Banerjee și Esther Duflo， au primit Premiul Financial Times și Goldman Sachs pentru cartea business a anului。Poor economics își dorește să explice de ce și cum putem aprofunda și particulariza anumite aspecte care caracterizează țările sărace。 Ne îndeamnă să privim modul în care populațiile acestor țări gândesc， cum îi influențează cultura， ce anume fac și ce anume nu fac în ce privește eforturile mondiale de a-i ajuta să depășească această „capcană a sărăciei” și multe altele。 。。。more
Niranjan Venkatesan
，
Could read till page 235 I。e。 The 2nd last chapter。 Quite a tough read but an intresting one with good insights。 Couldn't finish the last chapter though。 Could read till page 235 I。e。 The 2nd last chapter。 Quite a tough read but an intresting one with good insights。 Couldn't finish the last chapter though。 。。。more
Alb85
，
Come si sconfigge la povertà？ Stiamo mettendo in campo gli strumenti giusti？ Come ragionano e che scelte compiono le persone in difficoltà economica。A queste e a molte altre domande， Abhijit Vinayak Banerjee， premio Nobel per l’economia， prova a rispondere con chiarezza e competenza。Il problema della povertà è molto complesso e l’autore non nasconde il fatto che non ci sono soluzioni efficaci senza controindicazioni。È importante ragionare in termini di problemi concreti， anziché promuovere aiuti Come si sconfigge la povertà？ Stiamo mettendo in campo gli strumenti giusti？ Come ragionano e che scelte compiono le persone in difficoltà economica。A queste e a molte altre domande， Abhijit Vinayak Banerjee， premio Nobel per l’economia， prova a rispondere con chiarezza e competenza。Il problema della povertà è molto complesso e l’autore non nasconde il fatto che non ci sono soluzioni efficaci senza controindicazioni。È importante ragionare in termini di problemi concreti， anziché promuovere aiuti su vasta scala， visto che le nazioni che hanno ricevuto più aiuti non sono cresciute più rapidamente delle altre。 – ideologia， ignoranza e inerzia – è il problema delle “tre I”， che ostacola molte iniziative volte ad aiutare i poveri。 I poveri sembrano intrappolati negli stessi tipi di problemi che affliggono tutti noi: tra questi， la mancanza di informazioni， convinzioni deboli e la tendenza a procrastinare。Ho trovato molto interessante il concetto di trappola della povertà rappresentata con la curva a “S”。 La curva a “L” rovesciata invece rappresenta l’assenza di trappola della povertà。 È importante prima di tutto capire in che situazioni è realmente presente la trappola della povertà e quali specifici strumenti utilizzare per superarla。 Secondo l'autore: "i benefici di una buona nutrizione potrebbero essere particolarmente significativi per due gruppi di individui che non decidono personalmente cosa mangiare: i feti e i bambini in tenera età。 In effetti， potrebbe sussistere una relazione a “S” tra il reddito dei genitori e il reddito futuro di questi bambini， determinata dagli effetti della nutrizione infantile。L’istruzione sembra giovare anche a coloro che non trovano lavoro nell’economia formale: per esempio， durante la Rivoluzione verde gli agricoltori istruiti guadagnavano di più di quelli analfabeti。 A questo si aggiungono poi tutti i benefici non finanziari。Le percezioni erronee possono essere determinanti。 In realtà， una trappola della povertà legata all’istruzione non dovrebbe esistere， perché l’istruzione ha valore a tutti i livelli。 Ma credendo che i benefici dell’istruzione abbiano forma a “S”， i genitori sono indotti a comportarsi come se una trappola della povertà esistesse， creandone inavvertitamente una。"Come creare un maggior numero di “occupazioni di qualità”？ Facilitare i movimenti migratori verso le città; le politiche relative alla destinazione delle terre urbane e all’edilizia popolare hanno un ruolo essenziale。 Più indirettamente， la migrazione può essere agevolata anche da una rete di sicurezza sociale efficace， basata su una combinazione di assistenza pubblica e assicurazione privata， che riduca la dipendenza dalle reti sociali。 Poiché， però， non tutti potranno trasferirsi in città， è importante creare opportunità di occupazione migliori non soltanto nelle grandi metropoli， ma anche nei centri urbani di minori dimensioni。 Per far questo， bisogna migliorare notevolmente le infrastrutture urbane e industriali di queste città。Spunti interessanti:- La fame nel mondo oggi esiste， ma solo in conseguenza del modo in cui il cibo viene ripartito tra la popolazione。 Non sussiste una scarsità assoluta di prodotti alimentari- Il messaggio ufficiale （“Abstain， Be faithful， Use a Condom。。。 or you Die”）， riassunto dall’acronimo Abcd， individua una chiara gerarchia di strategie: astinenza， fedeltà， uso del preservativo o morte- la politica demografica più efficace potrebbe essere quella di rendere superflua una prole numerosa （e soprattutto l’avere molti figli maschi）。 L’istituzione di valide reti di sicurezza sociale （come le assicurazioni sanitarie o le pensioni di vecchiaia） e persino la creazione di strumenti finanziari che permettono di risparmiare fruttuosamente in vista della pensione potrebbero favorire una significativa riduzione dei tassi di fecondità e forse anche una minore discriminazione nei confronti delle figlie femmine- La microfinanza， in questa narrazione， è un’idea meravigliosamente semplice: un’organizzazione che non miri ad arricchirsi alle spalle dei poveri può entrare nel mercato， chiedendo un interesse elevato quanto basta per essere finanziariamente sostenibile e magari realizzare un profitto modesto， ma nulla più。- Il movimento della microfinanza ha dimostrato che， nonostante le difficoltà， è possibile fare credito ai poveri。 Si potrebbe discutere della misura in cui i prestiti degli Imf trasformino realmente le vite dei poveri， ma il semplice fatto che l’attività creditizia di questi istituti abbia raggiunto le attuali dimensioni è di per sé un risultato straordinario。 Pochissimi altri programmi mirati ai poveri sono riusciti a raggiungere così tante persone。 Ma， per il modo in cui è strutturato， il microcredito non si presta a diventare un trampolino di lancio per la creazione e il finanziamento di imprese più grandi， malgrado sia proprio la sua struttura a consentire agli Imf di far credito ai poveri。- un briciolo di speranza e un po’ di rassicurazione e di conforto possono costituire incentivi poderosi。- non si può presumere che i bambini siano poveri e meno istruiti per il fatto di avere molti fratelli e sorelle 。。。more
Sudhakar
，
Devil is in the details is what is said， but the book actually makes you realise Solution is in the Details。 Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo have done extensive studies on various hypotheses using Random Controlled Trials， and came up with practical suggestions on poverty alleviation。 There are 5 lessons that are well conveyed through several examples:- 1。 Poor lack critical piece of information （like early education increases better salaries later， or mosquito nets improve health and reduce d Devil is in the details is what is said， but the book actually makes you realise Solution is in the Details。 Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo have done extensive studies on various hypotheses using Random Controlled Trials， and came up with practical suggestions on poverty alleviation。 There are 5 lessons that are well conveyed through several examples:- 1。 Poor lack critical piece of information （like early education increases better salaries later， or mosquito nets improve health and reduce downtime costs， or fertilisers improve harvest and their money）。 So， campaigns which are simple and effective should be made to let the poor know what they don’t know - 2。 Poor bear responsibility for too many aspects of their life - need to purify water as they don’t get piped and chlorinated water， need to take care of nutrients in their food as they don’t get ready made cereals， need to save enough for medical care as they don’t have insurance， etc。 It means their lives can be improved by making it easy for them to chose right options - providing cheap iron and iodine fortified salt or subsidising banks to get poor to save easily or providing chlorinated water - 3。 Govt to step in where poor are missing out on some markets - like insurance or cheaper nets or access to education or health care - 4。 Poor countries are not doomed to failure。 Policies fail because of 3 Is - Ignorance， Ideology， Inertia。 Making changes at the edges taking into consideration how poor， civil servants， politicians， etc think could help in better implementations - 5。 Expectations as to what people can or cannot do often become self fulfilling prophecies。 The positive side of expectations is that when things turn around， there is more optimism and demand My key take away from the book is that there is no single large lever to eradicate poverty。 Work with NGOs， Politicians， Bureucrats， etc and make incremental and sustainable changes to gradually alleviate poverty。 A great book to read and learn how poor think and how life can be improved for them 。。。more
Yuni Amir
，
A thorough investigation into the lives of those who are earning less than $1/day but presented in a simple， and straightforward way。 Highly recommended to those who wanted to make sense of why certain things are the way they are。There are few bits aren’t surprising， but still amazing works done by both authors。
Nandan
，
Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo have been doing economic research to develop new ways to help the neglected masses and gauge the impact - for which they received the 2019 Nobel prize。 This book details that work and their approach in a remarkably accessible way。Through experiment-based approach and surprisingly simple， common-sense outlook - they have showcased various cases where macroeconomic questions of development can be tackled in a new， thoughtful way that defies easy pigeonholing on th Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo have been doing economic research to develop new ways to help the neglected masses and gauge the impact - for which they received the 2019 Nobel prize。 This book details that work and their approach in a remarkably accessible way。Through experiment-based approach and surprisingly simple， common-sense outlook - they have showcased various cases where macroeconomic questions of development can be tackled in a new， thoughtful way that defies easy pigeonholing on the political/economical spectrum。 。。。more
Sara
，
الكتاب جميل جدا وممتع ومفيد، غير وجه نظري لحاجات كتير وأسلوب حياتي كمان
Ane
，