Other Poverty Study

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Sub-Saharan Africa

Sub-Saharan Africa, home to more than 1 billion people, half of whom will be under 25 years old by 2050, is a diverse ...

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Informing the Refugee Policy Response in Uganda: Results from the Uganda Refugee and Host Communities 2018 Household Survey

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-09-27) World Bank

The recent refugee influx is testing Uganda’s approach to managing refugees. Ensuring the success of Uganda’s refugee response is crucial. This report analyzes the living conditions, wellbeing and socio-economic profile of refugees and host communities in Uganda in order to inform this policy response.
Informing Durable Solutions for Internal Displacement in Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan: Technical Aspects

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-04-18) World Bank Group

Understanding forced displacement and developing effective solutions requires closing several critical gaps in the data. With forced displacement rising worldwide, the body of work on displacement is growing rapidly. Data on internally displaced persons (IDPs) are particularly problematic, as the distinction between IDPs and internal migrants are not consistent across countries, and as the presence and number of IDPs is often politicized. While efforts have been made to create standardized frameworks for collecting quantitative data on forced displacement, important data gaps persist. This study helps to close data gaps by using micro-level data to profile IDPs. The report uses micro-data, defined as individual and household-level data that is collected directly through personal interviews. Comprehensive micro-data surveys cover IDP populations in four countries in Sub Saharan Africa: Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan. The micro-data surveys represent IDPs, refugees, and non-displaced populations. The analysis is guided by the durable solutions indicator framework while the policy insights focus on overcoming displacement-induced vulnerability. The analysis examines the demographic structure of IDP and resident populations and draws on reasons triggering displacement.
Informing Durable Solutions for Internal Displacement in Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan: Country Case Studies

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-04-18) World Bank Group

Understanding forced displacement and developing effective solutions requires closing several critical gaps in the data. With forced displacement rising worldwide, the body of work on displacement is growing rapidly. Data on internally displaced persons (IDPs) are particularly problematic, as the distinction between IDPs and internal migrants are not consistent across countries, and as the presence and number of IDPs is often politicized. While efforts have been made to create standardized frameworks for collecting quantitative data on forced displacement, important data gaps persist. This study helps to close data gaps by using micro-level data to profile IDPs. The report uses micro-data, defined as individual and household-level data that is collected directly through personal interviews. Comprehensive micro-data surveys cover IDP populations in four countries in Sub Saharan Africa: Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan. The micro-data surveys represent IDPs, refugees, and non-displaced populations. The analysis is guided by the durable solutions indicator framework while the policy insights focus on overcoming displacement-induced vulnerability. The analysis examines the demographic structure of IDP and resident populations and draws on reasons triggering displacement.
Informing Durable Solutions for Internal Displacement in Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan: Overview

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-04-18) World Bank Group

Understanding forced displacement and developing effective solutions requires closing several critical gaps in the data. With forced displacement rising worldwide, the body of work on displacement is growing rapidly. Data on internally displaced persons (IDPs) are particularly problematic, as the distinction between IDPs and internal migrants are not consistent across countries, and as the presence and number of IDPs is often politicized. While efforts have been made to create standardized frameworks for collecting quantitative data on forced displacement, important data gaps persist. This study helps to close data gaps by using micro-level data to profile IDPs. The report uses micro-data, defined as individual and household-level data that is collected directly through personal interviews. Comprehensive micro-data surveys cover IDP populations in four countries in Sub Saharan Africa: Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan. The micro-data surveys represent IDPs, refugees, and non-displaced populations. The analysis is guided by the durable solutions indicator framework while the policy insights focus on overcoming displacement-induced vulnerability. The analysis examines the demographic structure of IDP and resident populations and draws on reasons triggering displacement.
Analysis of Spatial Patterns of Settlement, Internal Migration, and Welfare Inequality in Zimbabwe

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-04-18) Swinkels, Rob ; Norman, Therese ; Blankespoor, Brian ; Munditi, Nyasha ; Zvirereh, Herbert

This report aims to assess the spatial dimensions of settlement, internal migration, and welfare inequality in Zimbabwe, explore their relationship and implications, and identify policy options for addressing spatial disparities in social outcomes. It is exploratory in nature and identifies areas for further research to continue to unravel the drivers of the pattern that is observed. The study looks at where people are today (chapter 2), unpacks urbanization trends, and reviews population density and connectivity (chapter 3). Chapter 4 assesses the reasons behind the spatial settlement patterns and looks at Zimbabwe’s historical land allocation, land reform, and economic crisis in the 2000s. Chapter 5 discusses the consequences of this spatial distribution of the population in terms of poverty, nonfarm employment, and service delivery outcomes. Chapter 6 discusses policy implications.
Mauritius: Earnings Mobility and Inequality of Opportunity in the Labor Market

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-03-22) World Bank Group

This report sheds light on the extent to which earnings mobility and inequality of opportunity in access to the labor market have contributed to the increase in earnings inequality in Mauritius. Among the most important concerns about rising inequality is a situation where people become trapped in low-paying jobs and do not have the opportunity to improve their welfare through their own efforts. For this reason, this report takes a closer look at the extent and nature of earnings mobility and inequality of opportunity in the Mauritian labor market.
Measuring Inequality of Opportunities in The Gambia

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-02) Mungai, Rose ; Okiya, Stephen ; Scherer, Lauri

Located in West Africa, and The Gambia is the smallest country in mainland Africa. It stretches 400 kilometers along the Gambia River. Its sole neighbor is Senegal, with the remainder of the country bordering the Atlantic Ocean. The Gambia’s total land area is 10,689 square kilometers, with a population density of 208 persons per square kilometer of land area, ranking it the eighth highest in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The average population density in SSA is 50 persons per square kilometer of land area. The country’s estimated population was 2.1 million in 2017, with 60.6 percent residing in urban areas; however, the population of the largest city accounts for 33.9 percent of the urban population. Annual population growth remains high at 3.0 percent in 2017, with a faster growth in urban areas compared to rural areas, 4.1 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively. The Gambia has experienced decades of volatile growth. Gross domestic product (GDP) per capita started to increase during the first decade of the twenty-first century, before beginning a downward trend. The average real GDP per capita growth between 2000 and 2009 was about 0.6 percent, with a drop in 2002 to a low, 6.2 percent. The GDP per capita growth increased from US$515.30 in 1990 to about US$562.50 in 2010, but it has declined since then. The economy is driven by agriculture and tourism sectors and has experienced some shocks in recent times. The agricultural sector was affected by inadequate rainfall and tourism was shaken by the Ebola crisis in Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Guinea. The role of remittances is significant and has grown by approximately 150 percent since 2011; remittances accounted for 15.3 percent of GDP in 2017, the second-largest share in GDP in Africa and the seventh largest worldwide.
A Destiny Shaped by Water: A Diagnostic of Water Supply, Sanitation, and Hygiene and Poverty in Niger

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-01-24) World Bank

The Water Supply, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) Poverty Diagnostic (PD) in Niger is part of a global initiative to improve evidence on the linkages between WASH and poverty. The Diagnostic provides a detailed analysis of sector status, strengths, and weaknesses to inform the attainment of the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that aim for universal access to safely managed water supply and sanitation.
Fiscal Incidence Analysis for Kenya: Using the Kenya Integrated Household Budget Survey 2015-16

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2018-06-29) World Bank

Kenya has made satisfactory progress in reducing poverty and inequality in recent years. Economic growth in Kenya between 2005-06 and 2015-16 averaged around 5.3 percent, exceeding the average growth of 4.9 percent observed for Sub-Saharan Africa. This robust economic growth resulted in a reduction in poverty, whether measured by the national or international poverty line. The proportion of the population living beneath the national poverty line fell from 46.8 percent in 2005-06 to 36.1 percent in 2015-16, showing a modest improvement in the living standards of the Kenyan population. Similarly, poverty under the international poverty line of US$ 1.90 a day declined from 43.6 percent in 2005-06 to 35.6 percent in 2015-16. At this level, poverty in Kenya is below the average in sub-Saharan Africa and is amongst the lowest in the East African Community (World Bank, 2018b). However, the proportion of the population living in poverty remains comparatively high in Kenya and the rate at which growth translated into poverty reduction was lower than elsewhere. At twice the average, Kenya’s poverty rate is still high for a lower-middle income country, a group that Kenya joined only in 2015. In addition, the Kenya’s growth elasticity of poverty reduction, the percentage reduction in the poverty rate associated with a one-percent increase in mean per capita income is only 0.57, lower than in Tanzania, Ghana, or Uganda (World Bank, 2018b). This leads to the obvious question of what can be done to make economic growth more pro-poor in Kenya. This study assesses the distributional consequences of Kenya’s system of taxes and transfers, covering 60 percent of revenue and between 25 and 30 percent of government spending. The analysis of fiscal incidence and distributional consequences of Kenya’s tax and transfer system is an important input for designing pro-poor policies and potentially for influencing the rate at which economic growth translates into poverty reduction. In this study, direct taxes and transfers, indirect taxes (VAT and excise duties), as well as public health and education spending are assessed in terms of their distributional impacts. Overall, these taxes and transfers account for about 60 percent of revenue and between 25 and 30 percent of government spending.
Mauritius Addressing Inequality through More Equitable Labor Markets

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2018-03-26) World Bank Group

Mauritius is often cited as one of the few African success stories, and with good reason. In the aftermath of independence (1968), this small island nation in the Indian Ocean seemed to be bound for economic failure because of its high poverty rate and numerous vulnerabilities, including high population growth, ethnic tensions, substantial unemployment, and an economy greatly dependent on the production of sugar for international markets. However, Mauritius was successful in diversifying the economy and accomplishing an unprecedented structural transformation.The Inclusiveness of Growth and Shared Prosperity report (World Bank 2015a) turned the spotlight on the expanding gap of inequality in household incomes that occurred between 2007 and 2012 and on the negative impact on poverty. The report estimates that the incidence of absolute poverty between 2007 and 2012 would have declined twice as quickly had growth been shared more widely and inequality not worsened. Building on these earlier findings, this study investigates the driving forces behind the growing income inequality and identifies policy levers that could mitigate and, in the long run, possibly reverse the upward trend.This study takes a comprehensive approach to the determinants of inequality by including the role of the choices of households and individuals, markets, and institutions. The report is structured as follows. Chapter one sets the stage by presenting stylized facts on the trends in household income inequality between 2001 and 2015, comparing these trends with trends in consumption inequality, and identifying the main culprit behind the rapidly rising inequality in household incomes, that is, household labor income. Chapter two supplies a set of descriptive trends of the two groups of factors, namely, household demographics and labor market forces, that contribute to changes in household laborincome and follows up with a decomposition exercise on changes in household labor income between 2001 and 2015.Because the analysis indicates that an unequal increase in female labor force participation and rising inequality in individual earnings are among the main contributors to the expanding inequality in household labor income, Chapter three takes a deep dive into the issue of gender inequality in the labor market. The chapter illustrates the gender gap in labor market participation, describes the differences in the activities of working women in the labor market relative to men, and concludes with a detailed analysis of gender gaps in wages separately in the public and private sectors. Chapter four resumes the main analysis of the drivers of increasing inequality in individual earnings. The chapter first presents stylized facts about overall inequality in wages and then separates out changes in inequality between and within groups defined by demographic characteristics. The chapter distinguishes the role of changes in prices (or wages) and the role of changes in the composition of the workforce in rising earnings inequality. The second part of the chapter is devoted to the analysis of the role of the main potential drivers of expanding earnings inequality. The possible candidates include the interaction of changes in labor supply and labor demand, giving rise to skills shortages or surpluses, and changes in labor market institutions, namely, remuneration orders (ROs). The chapter concludes with an analysis of an additional source of skills mismatches among the employed population, namely, education mismatches, and advances potential explanations for the coexistence of a substantial skills shortage, over education, particularly among youth, and a large share of highly educated youth among the unemployed.