Comparative Assessment of Poverty Measures: Recent Evidences from Nigeria Household Data

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume III, Issue X, October 2019 | ISSN 2454–6186

Comparative Assessment of Poverty Measures: Recent Evidences from Nigeria Household Data

Adesina, M.A.*, Akin-Olagunju, O.A., Salman, K.K.

Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Ibadan, Nigeria
*Corresponding author

Abstract: – There has been a surge in research interest on effective measurement of household poverty as seen in the different approaches being adopted. In this vein, this study contrasts unidimensional and multidimensional measures of poverty using data from 2015-2016 General Household Survey (GHS)conducted by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The results of Foster-Greer-Thorbecke (FGT) (unidimensional) and Alkire and Foster (multidimensional) measures showed respective analogous poverty headcounts of 55% and 57%. Also, approximately 31.94% and 68.2% of the poor population (unidimensional) and 85.40% and 14.60% (multidimensional) reside in urban and rural areas, respectively. Moreover, both measures showed contributions of 81% and 19% to overall poverty for married and non-married household heads, respectively and the male-headed households contributed higher percentage to poverty than the female-headed households in both cases. With the exception of location dimension, both measures showed similar results. Thus, for a detailed analysis, using both measures might be necessary in defining the poor and identifying target programmes to aid poverty alleviation.

Keywords: Poverty headcount, Multidimensional Poverty Index, Expenditure.

JEL code: D30, D60, I32

I. INTRODUCTION

Poverty is a composite phenomenon which has been examined by many economists and development experts in several dimensions. Though efforts have been made to achieve public consensus in poverty definition, there has not been a specific and general accepted definition of poverty due to its multi-faceted nature (Megbowon, 2018). The World Bank (2016) defined poverty as the inability to live up to a particular set standard of a society. The standard set by the World Bank is that a household that is unable to live up to poverty line of $1.90 per day is classified as poor. In another perspective, Abdul-Mumin and Shamshiry (2014) defined poverty as a diversity of deprivations a person or household experiences simultaneously or separately which stifles abilities to function, live a life of purpose and fulfillment and be productive in the society. These deprivations could be economic, social, political, cultural, physical or spiritual. From these definitions and various perspectives, poverty can be viewed as a phenomenon which transcends income and consumption standards to include state of wellbeing (Megbowon, 2018).

Read More