Inclusive Growth and Inequality in Senegal

The paper examines Senegal's growth performance from the perspective of its povertyreducingand distributional characteristics, and discusses policies that might help makegrowth more inclusive. The main findings are that poverty has fallen in the last two decades,but poverty reduction has slowed in recent years. Although available indicators sometimesgive conflicting signals on distributional shifts, people in the middle of the incomedistribution have received the most benefit, mainly in urban areas. Further progress inpoverty reduction and inclusiveness would require sustained high growth and exploration ofgrowth opportunities in the sectors with high earning potential for the poor. Better-targetedsocial policies and more attention to the regional distribution of spending would also helpreduce poverty and improve inclusiveness.