Poverty Analysis

Recent research on the intertemporal dynamics of poverty using microeconomic data often hints at the existence of poverty traps, where some find themselves trapped at a low-level stable equilibrium while others enjoy a higher stable equilibrium. Without a sizable positive shock to well-being, those trapped at the low equilibrium will not automatically outgrow destitution, but merely fluctuate around that low-level equilibrium. Given the dramatic policy consequences implied by such a theory, knowledge about the location of the different equilibria would be extremely helpful.

This article examines the role of men's and women's asset inheritance in poverty and well-being in rural Ethiopia. Data from the Ethiopian Rural Household Survey (1997, 2004, and 2009) are used to investigate the following. (i) What is the long-term impact of gender differentials in inheritance on household consumption, poverty and food security? (ii) Are there significant differences in poverty and well-being between male-and female-headed households?

A Challenge Paper on Hunger and Malnutrition has been written by John Hoddinott, Mark Rosegrant, and Maximo Torero and released by the Copenhagen Consensus Center.

Using nationwide longitudinal household survey data from rural Kenya (1997–2004) and Zambia (2001–2004), we estimate probit models to identify the socio-economic correlates of disease-related mortality of individuals between the ages of 15 and 59.

"The 2011 Global Hunger Index, published jointly by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Concern Worldwide, and Welthungerhilfe, shows that although the world has made some progress in reducing hunger, the proportion of hungry people remains too high. Of course, the absolute number of hungry people remains unacceptably high as well. This is the sixth year that IFPRI has calculated the Global Hunger Index and analyzed this multidimensional measure of global hunger.

Global food prices have increased substantially since mid-2010, as have prices in many developing countries. In this study we assess the poverty impact of the price changes between June and December 2010 in twentyeight low and middle income countries. This is done by gathering detailed information on individual households' food production and consumption levels for thirtyeight agricultural and food commodities to assess the impacts on household welfare.