CONTENTS: Acknowledgements VII INTRODUCTION Governance, Poverty Reduction and Best Practices AMITA SINGH Section I UNDERSTANDING POVERTY IN SOUTH ASIA 1. CONCEPTUALIZING POVERTY The Importance of Stories STEVEN E. AUFRECHT and RASHMI PRASAD 13 2. POVERTY ERADICATION Lessons from History ALAN MAYNE 24 3 UNDERSTANDING POVERTY, CAUSE ANALYSIS AND RESPONSE Case Study of Pakistan SARFRAZ H. KHAWAJA36 4 HOW TO MAKE PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION REFORM WORK FOR THE RURAL POOR? Potentials and Challenges of Collaborative Governance REGINA BIRNER 51 5 ENGENDERING GROWTH FOR POVERTY REDUCTION The Pakistan Experience SARFRAZ KHAN QURESHI 64 6 GOVERNANCE INTERVENTION FOR ALLEVIATING POVERTY IN NEPAL TEK NATH DHAKAL 81 Section II POVERTY REDUCTION Good Practices, Stray Experiments 7 POVERTY ERADICATION through PARTICIPATORY DEMOCRACY An Experience in West Bengal DEBJANI SENGUPTA 101 8 POVERTY AND ITS MANAGEMENT IN PAKISTAN AQILA KHAWAJA 114 9 GLOBALIZATION, DECENTRALIZATION AND MICRO-FINANCE A Study of Self-Help Groups inthe District Burdwan RABINDRANATH BHATTACHARYYA 125 10 ROLE OF SELF HELP GROUPS (SHGs) IN PROMOTING HUMAN RIGHTS A Sample Study on a Village of North-24 Parganas District, West Bengal SANGHAMITRA MAJUMDAR and JHUMPA GHOSH ROY138 11POVERTY ERADICATION THROUGH TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION IN SRI LANKA S.W.S.B. DASANAYAKA 147 Section III CASE STUDIES Making Services Reach Ordinary People 12RESOLVING THE QUAGMIRE OF SERVICE DELIVERY IN NEPAL NARENDRA RAJ PAUDEL161 13CAPABILITY APPROACH AND THE DISTRIBUTION OF LAND, HOUSING AND ACCESS TO METRO IN THENATIONAL CAPITAL TERRITORY OF DELHI ASHOK KUMAR 181 14LIFE AND LIVELIHOOD OF THE POOR CHILDREN LIVING IN METROPOLIS DHAKA Problems, Prospects and Challenges TAIABUR RAHMAN 200 15POVERTY, FEMALE LABOUR MIGRATION AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT A Gendered Study Based on Sri Lankan Context WASANA S. HANDAPANGODA and M.H. AJANTHA SISIRA KUMARA 222 16 WOMEN'S PARTICIPATION AND LEADERSHIP IN ICTs An Action Agenda for Global Change CLAUDIA MORRELL 240 17 TELE-MEDICINE IN KARNATAKA Good Practice and Technology in a Public-Private Partnership J AMES WARNER BJORKMAN and A. VENKAT RAMAN 245 18 ASSESSMENT OF IMPLEMENTATION OF EMPLOYMENT GUARANTEE SCHEME IN INDIA A Spatial Dimension MAHI PAL and S.P. SINGH 262 19AN EVALUATION OF SAMURDHI PROGRAMME IN SRI LANKA (With Reference to Ten Villages in Panadura Divisional Secretariat) FERNANDO R. LALITHA S. 274 20 DECENTRALIZED PLANNING AND POVERTY ALLEVIATION A Case Study of Two Village Panchayats in Kerala State (India) E.M. THOMAS 297 21 GOVERNANCE, SOCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY, AND CIVIL SOCIETY Liberalism Bypassing Politics? RAZA AHMAD 310 About the Editors 337 About the Contributors 339