Other Poverty Study

351 items available

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http://hdl.handle.net/10986/2119

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Compounding Misfortunes: Changes in Poverty Since the Onset of COVID-19 on Syrian Refugees and Host Communities in Jordan, the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and Lebanon

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2020-12-16) Joint Data Center on Forced Displacement ; World Bank Group ; UNHCR

COVID-19 (coronavirus) has had an enormous impact on nearly every country in the world. However, Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon were already facing difficult to extreme circumstances even before the pandemic erupted, making them particularly vulnerable. This report looks at the impact of the pandemic, associated lockdowns and economic shocks and other misfortunes which have compounded the crisis, such as sharply lower oil revenues in Iraq and the Port of Beirut explosion in Lebanon, as well as political instability in both. The report estimates that 4.4 million people in the host communities and 1.1 million refugees or IDPs were driven into poverty in the immediate aftermath of the crisis, and while this considers all of Lebanon, it only includes three governorates in Jordan and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, due to data limitations. A response commensurate with the magnitude of the shock is needed to prevent further misery. The poverty impact of COVID-19 and the ensuing confinement policies and economic contractions have been felt throughout the world, not least by marginalized communities. However, COVID-19 has compounded existing vulnerabilities or crises in Jordan, the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) and Lebanon. Syrian refugees – most of whom have been displaced for up to nine years – are particularly exposed given their perilous pre-crisis situation. Host communities in these three countries, who have supported and accommodated such large numbers of refugees, have also been heavily affected; all three countries were in strained positions prior to COVID-19, ranging from economic stagnation and high public debt in Jordan, to a collapse in public revenues due to international oil price shocks in KRI, to complete political and economic crisis in Lebanon. By March 2020, all three countries had witnessed their first cases of COVID-19 and introduced stringent containment policies ranging from partial closures of schools and shops to full curfew. While these measures were initially largely successful in containing the spread of the pandemic, they also led to a decline in economic activity across most sectors, particularly in the informal market. In Jordan and Iraq, the losses are estimated at around 8.2 and 10.5 percent of 2019’s GDP respectively. In Lebanon where the COVID-19 crisis is compounded by economic and political crises the losses are much higher, around 25 percent of GDP. Lebanon has experienced inflation of over 100 percent, largely due to its import dependence and currency depreciation. Unsurprisingly, given the magnitude of these shocks, recent rapid needs assessments and UNHCR administrative data show that refugees, who are highly concentrated in low-skilled jobs in the informal sector, have had to reduce food intake, incur additional debt and in some instances suffered eviction.
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.
Water and Sanitation for All in Tunisia: A Realistic Objective

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2018-11) World Bank

In recent decades, Tunisia has made remarkable progress in reducing poverty and increasing access to water supply, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services. More than 4 million people in Tunisia have gained access to improved sanitation between 1990 and 2015, and 4 million have gained access to water. This is a significant accomplishment, considering that Tunisia is currently home to 11 million people, 33 percent of whom live in rural areas. Despite this progress, however, around 250,000 people in Tunisia still rely on unimproved drinking water from mostly unprotected wells and springs; of the 900,000 people who use unimproved sanitation, about half use shared latrines, and the other half use mostly unimproved latrines. There are also substantial imbalances in terms of water-resource distribution between the better endowed North and the semi-arid South. If left unaddressed, deficiencies could become more severe in the coming years. Tunisia is a water-scarce country, and water supply security challenges are predicted to be exacerbated by climate change in the coming years. Opportunities for improvement are analyzed and condensed into five clear recommendations for the way forward for the WASH sector in Tunisia.
The Connections between Poverty and Water Supply, Sanitation, and Hygiene in Panama: A Diagnostic

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2018-07) World Bank Group

The present report summarizes the evidence and findings from a series of studies and new data collection around water supply, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) and poverty. This WASH poverty diagnostic was undertaken to increase our understanding of the linkages between monetary poverty and WASH services. The work focuses on answering four questions: who are the poor?, does access to WASH vary by poverty level?, what are the synergies between WASH and other sectors, and how does this affect welfare?, and what are the constraints to service and potential solutions to providing universal access to safely managed water supply and sanitation? Although the work done in the context of this diagnostic covered both urban and rural areas, the main focus has been on the rural, and particularly, the indigenous areas, as these are the ones facing the greatest gaps in services. A more in-depth exploration of urban issues has been left for a future date.
Maintaining the Momentum While Addressing Service Quality and Equity: A Diagnostic of Water Supply, Sanitation, Hygiene, and Poverty in Ethiopia

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2017-06-01) World Bank

This summary report presents the findings of the Ethiopia WASH Poverty Diagnostic (EWPD) study led by the World Bank`s Water and Poverty Global Practices. Though Ethiopia has made good progress in increasing access to water supply, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services in recent years, the quality of many services are below the standards set for meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The study review existing institutional structures and challenges that are inhibiting high-quality service delivery. The EWPD also reviews the quality and inequality in access to WASH service between those living in urban and rural areas, as well as different regions, areas of water insecurity and amongst the poorest households. EWPD also attempts to show the implications of poor access to WASH services on human development (health, nutrition, and education) and poverty reduction. The analysis aims to support the government and other stakeholders identify gaps in service delivery and answer questions on why these gaps exist. The report concludes by offering recommendations for moving Ethiopia`s WASH sector forward.
Bahia State, Brazil: Ariculture Sector Risk Assessment

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2015-11) Arias, Diego ; Caballero, Jorge

The present study is part of an effort by the World Bank and the State of Bahia to assess agriculture sector risks as a contribution to the strategic economic development and poverty reduction agenda of the state government. It is composed of two phases: an agricultural sector risk identification and prioritization (volume one) and a risk management strategy and action plan (volume two). The study provides practical elements for the implementation of the Bahia sustainable rural development project - named Bahia Produtiva, which is currently implemented by Regional Development and Action Company of Bahia (CAR) and is financed by a World Bank loan. Risks in Bahia’s agricultural sector are highly concentrated in soybean, maize, cotton, cacao, fruits, vegetables, and beans. There are a number of relatively frequent (1 in 3, 1 in 5 and 1 in 10 year occurrence probability) risks that have moderate expected impact. These risks are climate (drought), pest and diseases, and price volatility. Although livestock production is greatly exposed to sanitary risks, Bahia has not suffered catastrophic animal or plant health events in recent years. Looking at risks from the combined perspective of their impact potential (moderate to critical) and management possibility (none to very high), severe drought and moniliase disease in cacao appear as the risks with the most critical potential impact and minimum risk management. Therefore, they require medium to long-term investment and strong preparation to cope. Considering output value as a measure of aggregated impact of risks in Bahia as a whole, the greatest challenges are drought, aggressive pests and diseases, and weeds resistant to herbicides in Western Bahia, taking into account the proportionally large economic size of that region. The present action plan reflects the strategic lines and includes some basic details on who, when, and how much is required for the implementation of the actions. This report presents the findings and conclusions of the first and second phases of the agriculture sector risk assessment for the state of Bahia.
Ghana Work Program (FY15): Poverty and Inequality Profile

(Washington, DC, 2015-06) World Bank

Since 1991 the national poverty rate of Ghana has more than halved. The estimated national headcount poverty ratio fell by 31.2 percentage points from 52.6 percent in 1991 to 21.41 percent in 2012. Heterogeneity of poverty outcomes is, however, high both across urban and rural areas and across regions. The robustness of these poverty trends is checked with trends of five correlates: urbanization and rural-urban migration, remittances, asset growth, labor market transformations, and agricultural productivity growth. Urbanization turns out to be highly correlated with poverty reduction. Poverty trends and asset index trends turn out to follow a similar pattern in both urban and rural areas and by regions: asset index increase where poverty decreases. In the report the authors try to understand the drivers of recent decrease in poverty in northern regions. The attention is focused on two different aspects, the agricultural productivity growth and the inflation patterns. In northern regions, there is a generalized increase in production of main food crops and an increase in productivity. To test the contribution of most of these drivers to poverty reduction, the authors estimated unconditional quintile regressions over the 20th, 40th, and 60th percentiles and decomposed the results using the Oaxaca Blinder method. To further strengthen the spatial analysis of poverty the authors constructed a new poverty map based on sixth Ghana living standard survey (GLSS 6) (conducted in 2012-13) in combination with the 2010 census, which was then compared with the 2000 map. This profile focuses on inequalities seen from three different perspectives: consumption inequality, inequalities of opportunities, and polarization.
FYR of Macedonia: Measuring Welfare using the Survey of Income and Living Conditions

(Washington, DC, 2015-05) World Bank

This note expands the analysis on poverty and income distribution reported by the FYR Macedonia SSO for 2010 and 2011. The present work is based on an analysis performed in-situ by World Bank staff on the offices of the FYR Macedonian SSO.
Geography of Poverty in Mali

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2015-04-23) World Bank

This study discusses the impact of economic geography and (low) population density on development outcomes in Mali and explores how policies to reduce poverty can be made more effective by taking these two factors into account. The crisis in north Mali which started in 2012 and continues to date has brought questions of economic geography to the center of attention. To help answer such questions, and to analyze how to reduce poverty in Mali as a whole, this study uses different sources of information to analyze the diversity of livelihood patterns, in access to services and in living standards. The study uses quantitative information from household surveys, population and firm censuses, administrative and geographic data, and qualitative information about livelihoods. This study argues that the authorities will need to employ all three policy instruments, while emphasizing that if the objective is poverty reduction, most attention should be focused on spatially blind approaches. The study is organized as follows: chapter one gives introduction. Chapter two emphasizes differences in population density which allows distinguishing between types of agglomeration from villages, to rural town, to large cities. Chapter three categorizes the country into various livelihood zones and considers how the agro-physical environment affects the way people live. In chapter four authors turn to household welfare. Chapter five considers access to services. Chapter six is forward looking.
Repbulic of Chad Poverty Notes : Dynamics of Poverty and Inequality following the Rise of the Oil Sector

(Washington, DC, 2013-09) World Bank

Chad's chronically unstable security situation has long undermined broad-based economic growth and sustainable poverty reduction. Since independence in 1960 Chad has suffered from sporadic political violence and ongoing tensions between different factions. The country's fragile security has been further compromised by interference from neighboring states and spillover effects from regional conflicts. However, after rebel attacks in 2008 and 2009, and following the recent conclusion of a peace agreement between Chad and Sudan, the security situation in the country has remained relatively calm, presenting a valuable window of opportunity for development efforts to take root. The objective of this Poverty Note is to examine changes in poverty and inequality in Chad since the emergence of the oil sector. It will focus on the evolution of poverty indicators from the 2003 pre-oil baseline captured in the Chadian Household Consumption and Informal Sector Survey, or ECOSIT2 to the more recent findings of the 2011 ECOSIT3 and compare current monetary and nonmonetary poverty conditions in Chad with those of comparable countries. It will go on to assess the impact of oil production on the non-oil sectors of the Chadian economy. Finally, it will evaluate the extent to which public expenditures in the social sectors benefit the poor by analyzing the progressivity of social spending.