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Multidimensional Poverty and the Post-2015 MDGs

Development Aims and scope

Abstract

Sabine Alkire and Andy Sumner advocate the use of a global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) for the post-2015 Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Authors support the use of what they call a ‘headline’ MDG indicator to provide an intuitive, accessible measure of multidimensional poverty (comprising dimensions such as health, education, and standard of living) to complement the income-based approach to poverty exemplified by the World Bank’s $1.25/day standard. The Global MPI covers over 100 developing countries. Authors suggest that an ‘MPI 2.0’ could be created with dimensions, indicators and cutoffs that reflect the post-2015 MDG consensus.

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Notes

  1. 85 percent of pair-wise comparisons are the same if the weights on each dimension vary between 25 percent and 50 percent of the total (Alkire and Santos, 2010; Alkire and Santos, 2013).

  2. Alkire and Roche (2013) analyse trends in MPI for 22 countries (embargoed until 15 March 2013).

  3. OPHI has an ongoing research project on this topic.

  4. UNICEF’s ongoing work with governments to generate quality evidence on multidimensional child poverty and disparities, including the latest Multiple, Overlapping Deprivation Analyses, is another potential resource for a child-focused MPI that could monitor progress across time and space (Roche, 2013).

References

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  • Alkire, Sabina and Maria Emma Santos (2013) ‘Measuring Acute Poverty in the Developing World: Robustness and Scope of the Multidimensional Poverty Index’, OPHI Working Paper 59.

  • Alkire, Sabina and Jose Manuel Roche (2013, forthcoming) ‘How Successful are Countries in Reducing Multidimensional Poverty? Insights from Inter-Temporal Analysis in 22 Countries’, OPHI Working Paper.

  • Alkire, Sabina, Jose Manuel Roche and Suman Seth (2011) ‘Sub-national Disparities and Intertemporal Evolution of Multidimensional Poverty across Developing Countries’, OPHI Research in Progress No. 32a.

  • Alkire, Sabina, Maria Emma Santos, Suman Seth and Gaston Yalonetzky (2010) ‘Is the Multidimensional Poverty Index Robust to Different Weights?’, OPHI Research in Progress No. 22a.

  • Alkire, Sabina, Jose Manuel Roche and Andy Sumner (2013) ‘Where Do the Multidimensionally Poor Live?’ OPHI Working Paper 61.

  • Karver, Jonathan, Charles Kenny and Andy Sumner (2012) ‘MDGs 2.0: What Goals, Targets and Timeframe?’,Washington DC: CGD. Centre for Global Development (CGD) Working Paper.

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Additional information

Proposes a refined multi-dimensional poverty index (MPI 2.0), as a headline indicator, incorporating inequality, intensity of deprivation, and lack of participation

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Alkire, S., Sumner, A. Multidimensional Poverty and the Post-2015 MDGs. Development 56, 46–51 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1057/dev.2013.6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/dev.2013.6

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