An Inventory of the Development Programmes by Government and Non-Government Organizations in Selected Unions of Matlab (Excluding BRAC & ICDDR,B)

Endemic poverty is the stark reality that one confronts immediately about rural Bangladesh. Almost 50% of the rural households are now bereft of any visible resources, which could enable them to eke out three square meals. The Government's Household Expenditure Survey reports that well over 50% of the rural families now live below the poverty line defined as having an annual income of about Tk.6300 or less, against about 35% in the urban areas. A recent study on rural poverty notes that the prevailing poverty situation is still alarming, particularly for those located at the bottom of the structure (Rahman and Hossain 1995:286-87). [Working Paper Number: 17]