In Central America and the Dominican Republic, one in three people live in poverty, a figure above the average for Latin America. While there are substantial differences among the countries that make up the region, it is inequality.
Despite the progress made in Central America and the Dominican Republic in recent decades, the main determinant of a person's success continues to be the economic condition of the household in which he or she was born. Breaking the intergenerational cycles of poverty, what we can call inherited poverty, should be the priority of all countries in the region.
Michel Kerf, Director for Central America and the Dominican Republic at the World Bank, shares this in this message for the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.