Implications for investments

Many poor rural households suffer from “ecological poverty”, their livelihoods
constrained by the impoverishment of the natural resources they depend on. Investing in
natural capital can be a central part of poverty reduction strategies addressing the needs of
poor rural households. These investments must be coupled with efforts to ensure that the
poor obtain a fair share of the benefits generated by the natural assets they already own
and manage. And greater attention must be devoted to sound stewardship of “open access”
environmental resources, often appropriated by the more economically powerful in
society, to the disadvantage of poor people.
Aid needs to be channelled through effective mechanisms, such as those linked to the
poverty reduction strategies of governments, especially where economic growth and rural
poverty are being targeted. For Development Assistance Committee (DAC) member
countries, this implies substantial, long-term commitments and a more harmonised
approach to aid investment. For national governments it implies policies, developed with
the participation of the poor, that give priority to the reduction of poverty and are
conducive to the promotion of pro-poor growth.