In the past few years the PRSP strategy has become increasingly popular and its effectiveness has become generally acknowledged with as many as 60 low-income countries currently using this strategy. Furthermore the approach has increasingly been embraced by countries' external development partners as PRSPs have helped to promote more open and inclusive national dialogue on the most effective policies and public actions for poverty reduction.

Based on the two pillars of country self-help and support from the international community, the PRSP approach promises to make development assistance more effective. An increasing number of low-income countries have recognized the need to put poverty reduction at the center of their development strategies. PRSPs support more successful outcomes of this trend, allowing better informed decision-making and a more effective public resource and servicing framework for better coordination of support from development partners. (World Bank Review of Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) Approach: Main Findings).

Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSP) are prepared by member countries in a participatory process involving domestic stakeholders and external development partners. Reports are prepared annually and the PRSPs are updated every three years. They describe the country's macroeconomic, structural and social policies and programmes, to be implemented over a three-year or longer horizon to promote broad-based growth and reduce poverty, as well as associated external financing needs and major sources of funding.

Realizing such a strategy is complex and challenging. Analysis and organization of long- and short-term goals is crucial for an effective strategy, its success measured by realizing plans through action. This requires exact planning by the parties involved - donors, civil society organizations and governments. It is important to realize that, while funding agencies play a catalytic role in launching PRSPs, ultimately the success of the strategy depends on the action taken by the countries themselves and the concerted support of their development partners.  Donor alignment and harmonization of the donor process are thus crucial to sustaining the PRSP approach and every effort should be made to achieve this objective.

Moreover, to achieve effective poverty reduction it is important to identify the vulnerable groups within a country and the key national characteristics of poverty, targeting country specific problems. In this way countries can decide on the most appropriate poverty reduction strategy which will best suit their specific needs. In Dominica for example, the PRSP is part of the structural adjustment process. In St. Lucia on the other hand, the government has recognized that the present economic trend calls for immediate action. The PRSP aims at complementing Government's policy programmes and seeks to provide the country's first comprehensive framework for concerted action towards poverty reduction

Although the PRSP is still a recent concept and implementation has been slow, there has been significant evidence of its benefits. Generally low-income countries, civil society organizations and their development partners have agreed that the PRSP process can improve joint efforts aimed at poverty reduction. Furthermore, previous efforts and experience have led to improvements in both process and content. It has been found that regardless of the initial poverty and development levels, PRSPs have been successful, suggesting that the process has been adaptable to different country circumstances.

Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers have had four key recognized achievements to date:

- Providing a growing sense of ownership of their poverty reduction strategies amongst most governments;
- Creating more open dialogue within governments and with some parts of civil society;
- Bringing poverty reduction to a more prominent place in policy debates; and 

Acceptance by the donor community of the principles of the PRSP approach, acknowledging that the strategy requires flexibility across countries and national circumstances.