Definition
of Poverty
( Extracted from Poverty and Health in
the Caribbean, Dennis Brown et al. (1998).
Poverty
is a multifaceted phenomenon that can be defined and measured in any
number of ways. No single definition or measurement of poverty is
adequate to allow for an understanding of the complex nature
of poverty. Whilst recognizing the need for standardization in
discussing poverty across time and space and between different
social categories, it sometimes becomes necessary to use more than
one notion of poverty to further our understanding of the effects of
deprivation on other social variables. The following are some
definitions of poverty.
§
Poverty Line
- This is a measurement of the monetary value of the minimum food
and non-food items that are necessary if the household is to meet
its basic survival needs.
§
Absolute and
Relative Measures of Poverty
- The concept of poverty centers
around the notion of deprivation. It speaks of an individual or
group possessing less than some standard which has been defined as
acceptable. This standard can be relative to what others
possess, or it can be an absolute measure of a gap between
that which is possessed and some objective indicator of basic needs.
In most conceptualizations of absolute poverty the one basic need
that is specifically identified is nutrition, in some cases, though,
this need may be defined in terms of clothing or shelter. The more
popular uses of the concept of absolute poverty, however, identify
the poor as those who are unable to consume (through gifts or
earnings) that which is sufficient to allow them those minimum
amounts of food and non-food items considered necessary to sustain
life. The non-food items in this approach are usually identified as
a residual category.
§
Public and
Private Poverty - Private
poverty refers to deprivation that is due to low levels of
income or limited access to economic resources on the part of the
individual or household. As indicated above, it can be measured in
either absolute or relative terms. Public poverty occurs
where the State’s revenues cannot adequately meet the costs that
are usually borne by government in the areas of education, health,
welfare and civic matters. The usefulness of this distinction is
based on the fact that there are some conditions of deprivation
which even though outside the control of the household nonetheless
can have negative effects on its well-being. Similarly the level of
provision of government services can ensure that households that
have low levels of income or consumption nonetheless are provided
with certain basic needs
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