Attaining the Millennium Development Goals : the role of macroeconomic policies

Purpose" The purpose of this paper is to shed some light on the role of macroeconomic policy-mix in achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), especially the goal of poverty reduction. Design/methodology/approach" The paper employs descriptive approach and provides an analytical narrative of historical experience. Findings" It is argued that macroeconomic policy-mixes pursued by many developing countries as part of conditions to receive support from international ï¬nancial institutions and the donor community have been largely restrictive. They have failed, in most cases, to generate high enough growth to have signiï¬cant impacts on poverty reduction. The poverty reducing impact of growth has also been weakened by the rise in inequality due to associated policy reforms promoting market liberalization and deregulation.