A compilation of research funded by the World Bank released Monday revealed that over time, evidence shows that China will show rapidly declining poverty rates even among indigenous people -- the move to reduce poverty among China's ethnic minorities in the wake of the pro- minority policies.

"It is widely believed that indigenous peoples are the poorest people (and) are among the poorest of the poor in society," said Harry Patrinos, author and lead education economist at the World Bank, in a press briefing at the UN Headquarters in New York.

With the poverty gap that continues between indigenous and nonindigenous peoples, the gap is found to be "narrowing" in China, whereas, it is stable or widening in most other countries, the report said.

"The good news is that over time, there is evidence of rapidly declining poverty rates, even among indigenous peoples, in emerging Asia (notably, China, India and Vietnam)," said the report, entitled Indigenous Peoples, Poverty and Development, which provides a global snapshot of the world's indigenous peoples.

"China, like India, has implemented some pro-indigenous policies -- easing access to political office, looser fertility restrictions, and affirmative action policies for matriculations into colleges and universities along with subsidies," the report said.

The report is based on poverty and social welfare among the ethnic Zhuang, Manchu, Hui, Miao and Uygur populations, China's five largest ethnic minority groups, as well as other minorities in the country.

(Xinhua News Agency April 27, 2010)