Publication: Assessing Poverty Measurement Practices and Statistical Capacity in Central America
Date
2012-05
ISSN
Published
2012-05
Author(s)
World Bank
Abstract
It is important for countries to measure
and track poverty as frequently and accurately as possible,
particularly in Central America. That information allows
identifying the poor and keeping them on the agenda,
understanding the evolution of poverty trends over the short
and long term, assessing the determinants of poverty,
targeting policy interventions geared to poor people, and
evaluating the effectiveness of policy actions. The need to
frequently updating and collecting precise and inclusive
poverty data is critical for countries in Central America, a
sub-region that has proven vulnerable to various types of
shocks in the past (including the recent fuel, food price,
and financial crises from 2007-2008). Of particular
importance for governments and donors is the issue of
calculating poverty at high levels of geographic
disaggregation to help them best target policy interventions
for poor and vulnerable populations, while efficiently
allocating resources. Notwithstanding important advances in
recent years, there are a variety of elements in current
poverty measurement and mapping practices in Central America
that are susceptible to further improvement. The purpose of
this note is to take stock of current poverty measurement
practices and the status of statistical capacity for
effective poverty measurement in Central America. The first
section reviews the main aspects that characterize poverty
methodologies currently employed by each of the six
countries in Central America, laying out similarities and
differences and highlighting where there's room for
improvement. The second section takes a closer look at
national statistical capacity for poverty data collection
and evaluation, with a special focus on periodicity. The
final section lays out the key constraints to poverty
measurement in Central America parsed out by the topics of
poverty measurement methodology, poverty mapping, and
statistical capacity.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“World Bank. 2012. Assessing Poverty Measurement Practices and Statistical Capacity in Central America. © Washington, DC. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/11918 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”