scholarly journals Inequality, poverty and living conditions in Greece: Recent developments and prospects

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Theodore Mitrakos
Keyword(s):  
Household Income ◽  
Poverty Line ◽  
Living Conditions ◽  
Absolute Poverty ◽  
Significant Deterioration ◽  
Income Sources ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Recent Trends ◽  
The Eu

<p>This paper presents the recent trends and<br />the characteristics of inequality, poverty and<br />living conditions in Greece, emphasising on<br />the distributional effects of the austerity<br />measures adopted during the current<br />economic crisis. Moreover, the decomposition<br />analysis of the study examines the structure<br />of inequality and the contribution of various<br />income sources in overall inequality, while<br />the main characteristics of the Greek social<br />solidarity system and the poor distributional<br />impact of social benefits are also discussed. For<br />this purpose, the household income from the<br />Greek Household Budget and the EU Statistics<br />of Income and Living Conditions surveys are<br />used. The available data indicate that income<br />inequality and relative poverty increased,<br />yet not dramatically, during the current<br />crisis, although the composition of the poor<br />population changed considerably. However,<br />the sharp decline in disposable income and<br />the dramatic increase in unemployment led<br />to a significant deterioration in economic<br />prosperity and absolute poverty, i.e. when<br />the poverty line in real terms remains stable<br />in the pro-crisis levels.</p>

Measuring Poverty: Context-Specific but not Relative

2010 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 241-262 ◽  
Author(s):  
KRISTIAN NIEMIETZ
Keyword(s):  
Low Cost ◽  
National Level ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Poverty Line ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Median Income ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Absolute Poverty ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Context Specific

AbstractPoverty in developed countries is commonly defined in relative terms. It is argued that a relative definition formalises the insight that poverty is a context-specific phenomenon, and that the understanding of what constitutes poverty changes with overall economic development. Yet this article argues that tagging a poverty line to mean or median incomes does not automatically anchor it in its social context. Relative measures rely on the implicit assumptions that social norms are formed at the national level, and that median income earners set social standards. A comparison with studies on ‘Subjective Well-Being’ (SWB) shows that these assumptions are rather arbitrary. At the same time, relative indicators do not take account of changes in the product market structure that disproportionately affect the poor. If low-cost substitutes for expensive items become available, the poor will be relatively more affected than median income earners. Conventional ‘absolute poverty’ indicators will be equally dismissed for not solving these problems either. A combined ‘Consensual Material Deprivation’ and ‘Budget Standard Approach’ indicator will be proposed as a more robust alternative.

scholarly journals Basic Needs and Absolute Poverty in Lithuania: Method and Estimation

2019 ◽  
Vol 58 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-38
Author(s):  
Jekaterina Navickė ◽  
Aušra Čižauskaitė ◽  
Ugnė Užgalė
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
Basic Needs ◽  
Poverty Line ◽  
Consumption Patterns ◽  
Absolute Poverty ◽  
Eu Accession ◽  
Poverty Indicators ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Poverty Levels ◽  
The Eu

We propose a methodology for estimating the cost of the basic needs and applying it on the data for Lithuania in a decade after the EU accession (2006-2016). The basic food costs account for the minimal nutrition requirements, while the cost of other needs is estimated in relative terms, taking actual consumption patterns in the population into account. A reduction in the cost of the basic needs for additional members of the household is accounted for by a specially constructed consumption-based equivalence scale estimated on the HBS data. We show that the cost of the basic needs in Lithuania is close to the relative at-risk-of-poverty line (at 60% of the median equivalized disposable income) for a single adult but exceeds it for larger households. The share of people with income below the basic needs’ cost was above the relative at-risk-of-poverty levels in the EU-SILC data for all years, except of 2016. Albeit, the actual level might be lower due to the under-reporting of shadow income in the EU-SILC. Ability to meet basic needs and related absolute poverty indicators shows anti-cyclical dynamics in times of the economic growth and recession. Children are consistently the most deprived group of the Lithuanian population when it comes to meeting the basic needs. The official absolute poverty indicator used in Lithuania under-estimates the cost of the basic needs for households with more than one member.

Locating the “poverty threshold” in Russia

2018 ◽  
pp. 104-127 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. D. Slobodenyuk ◽  
V. A. Anikin
Keyword(s):  
Family Income ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Poverty Line ◽  
Median Income ◽  
Absolute Poverty ◽  
Subsistence Level ◽  
Relative Poverty ◽  
Economic Determinants ◽  
Poverty Threshold ◽  
The Poor

The present paper focuses on identification of relative “poverty line” and a threshold of high poverty risks. The paper also studies key poverty factors in contemporary Russia. It demonstrates that the relative approach to poverty which is widely used in Western countries is applicable in Russia too. However, the relative poverty thresholds set at 0.5 and 0.75 medians per capita family income identify quite different groups of the poor. The threshold of 0.5 median income indicates deep poverty happened mostly to the unemployed workforce. The relative poverty threshold equal to 0.75 median income identifies the poverty of the elderly who are not considered as the poor by the absolute approach because pensions of Russians have been recently equalized to the subsistence level. Above all, the paper provides econometric estimates of socio-economic determinants of both absolute and relative poverty. It was revealed that the relative deep poverty of the working population was primarily caused by “bad” jobs rather than by “bad” human capital. Absolute poverty of workers is more or less determined by both factors.

scholarly journals Poverty in Karachi: Incidence, Location, Characteristics, and Upward Mobility

1993 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 159-178
Author(s):  
Mir Anjum Altaf ◽  
Aly Ercelawn ◽  
Kaiser Bengali ◽  
Abdul Raidm
Keyword(s):  
Upward Mobility ◽  
Indirect Evidence ◽  
Poverty Line ◽  
Downward Mobility ◽  
Absolute Poverty ◽  
Mobility Data ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Poor Households ◽  
Tentative Evidence ◽  
Residential Movement

The paper examines the incidence and spatial distribution of poverty in Karachi, Pakistan. Based on a survey of 6000 households, it locates the clusters of poverty and presents a profile of the poor in the city. Just over one-third of the households in Karachi can be classified as poor, based on an absolute poverty line derived from standard consumption norms. Poverty is concentrated in six geographical clusters, which account for 60 percent of the sample households but 90 percent of the very poor households. Analysis of residential movement is used to derive some indirect evidence of socioeconomic mobility. This suggests that, historically, the incidence of upward mobility amongst the poor in Karachi, based partly on the acquisition of skills and education, has been quite high. Poverty in Karachi has not been endemic as a continuous influx of migrants at the bottom replaced those who moved up the economic ladder. The little evidence of downward mobility also identifies it as a more recent occurrence as compared to upward mobility. Data on education show that generational inequalities in educational attainments across different groups among the poor are not being perpetuated over time. At the same time, an analysis of investment in the education of children suggests some very tentative evidence of a possible loss of faith in education as a mechanism for upward mobility. Such indicative evidence is of considerable value given the absence of panel data for most cities in developing countries.

scholarly journals One Method to Improve the Official Poverty Line in Indonesia

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-52
Author(s):  
Carunia Mulya Firdausy
Keyword(s):  
Research Question ◽  
Group Discussion ◽  
Poverty Line ◽  
Absolute Poverty ◽  
Subjective Poverty ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Per Capita ◽  
The Government ◽  
Policies And Programs ◽  
Depth Interviews

Poverty is one of the long standing problems in Indonesia. Using the national absolute poverty line, itwas estimated that the proportion of the poor has declined from 40.1% in 1976 to 10.5% in 2014. However,many people claim that the above percentage of the poor is only true in terms of statistics. The poor argue thatthe amount of rupiah expenditure set as the ofcial poverty line is inadequate to fulfl their basic needs. Thispaper, based on a feld survey of 360 respondents of the poor and the non-poor in three villages in three different provinces located in the Eastern, Western and Central parts of Indonesia, aims at examining a methodto improve the national poverty line and to determine the minimum rupiah expenditure of the poverty lineusing a subjective approach. The method used to examine this research question is by - using questionnaires,Focus Group Discussion (FGD) and in depth interviews. Sample respondents were asked their perceptions onvariables, dimensions and indicators that should be accommodated in formulating the subjective poverty line.They were also questioned about the minimum rupiah expenditure threshold to defne the subjective povertyline. The study found that the ofcial poverty line that has been determined by the government was far belowthe subjective poverty line that was defned by the respondents. Also, the variables, dimension and indicatorsthat should be accommodated in the national poverty line should not only be food items, but also access toemployment, housing, health and education for children. The minimum rupiah expenditure of the povertyline was argued to be more than Rp 500 000 equal to US$40 per capita per month. This minimum rupiahexpenditure of the subjective poverty line is almost double that of the ofcial poverty line set at the average ofRp 300 000 or US$24 per capita per month. Therefore, the government not only needs to revise the presentpoverty line, but also needs to revise policies and programs to eliminate poverty by taking into account thedimension and variables of poverty viewed by the poor and the non-poor. If not, the incidence of poverty willremain with us.

scholarly journals Recent Developments in Alpine Tourism: A Life Cycle Approach

Turyzm ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 79-93
Author(s):  
John Tuppen
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Alpine Region ◽  
Maturity Stage ◽  
Life Cycle Approach ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Development Cycle ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Recent Trends ◽  
Tourist Economy ◽  
Further Development

The article presents recent trends in the tourist economy in the Alpine region. With reference to the development cycle of the tourist product, proposed by Butler, the author claims that the Alpine tourist centres have already reached the maturity stage. Their further development requires active intervention in order to refresh the tourist product. Further in the article, a variety of tourist development strategies have been presented, which might improve the poor condition of many tourist centres in the region under discussion.

Zmiany dochodowości gospodarstw mlecznych w Polsce i wybranych krajach europejskich należących do Europejskiego Stowarzyszenia Producentów Mleka w latach 2006–2012

2015 ◽  
pp. 97-109
Author(s):  
Sylwia Małażewska ◽  
Edyta Gajos
Keyword(s):  
Milk Production ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
European Countries ◽  
Global Markets ◽  
Agricultural Producers ◽  
Significant Deterioration ◽  
Gradual Improvement ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
National Market ◽  
The Eu

The aim of the article was to present the changes in the profitability of milk production in farms associated in EDF and situated in Poland and selected European countries in 2006–2012. It was found that after the Polish accession to the EU, the situation has improved for milk producers – economic and production results have risen. In 2008–2009, there was a significant deterioration in the profitability of milk production due to, among others, significant declines in milk prices. Since 2010, gradual improvement of the situation is observed. Similar changes occur in dairy farms in other European countries, such as Germany, France and the United Kingdom. This shows how big the interconnectedness between countries is and that the situation of agricultural producers in Poland does not depend only on the local and national market fluctuations, but primarily on fluctuations in the European and global markets.

The Role of Financial Innovation in EU Market Integration and the Capital Markets Union

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emilios Avgouleas
Keyword(s):  
Capital Markets ◽  
Risk Sharing ◽  
Market Integration ◽  
Financial Innovation ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Capital Markets Union ◽  
Critical Overview ◽  
The Eu

This chapter offers a critical overview of the issues that the European Union 27 (EU-27) will face in the context of making proper use of financial innovation to further market integration and risk sharing in the internal financial market, both key objectives of the drive to build a Capital Markets Union. Among these is the paradigm shift signalled by a technological revolution in the realm of finance and payments, which combines advanced data analytics and cloud computing (so-called FinTech). The chapter begins with a critical analysis of financial innovation and FinTech. It then traces the EU market integration efforts and explains the restrictive path of recent developments. It considers FinTech's potential to aid EU market integration and debates the merits of regulation dealing with financial innovation in the context of building a capital markets union in EU-27.

scholarly journals On-farm trees are a safety net for the poorest households rather than a major contributor to food security in Rwanda

Food Security ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alain Ndoli ◽  
Athanase Mukuralinda ◽  
Antonius G. T. Schut ◽  
Miyuki Iiyama ◽  
Jean Damascene Ndayambaje ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Household Income ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Safety Net ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Income Sources ◽  
Agroforestry Practice ◽  
On Farm ◽  
Agroforestry Practices

AbstractThe world is challenged to meet the food demand of a growing population, especially in developing countries. Given the ambitious plans to scale up agroforestry in Africa, an improved understanding of the effect of agroforestry practices on the already challenged food security of rural households is crucial. The present study was undertaken to assess how on-farm trees impacted food security in addition to other household income sources in Rwanda. In each of the six agroecologies of Rwanda, a stratified sampling procedure was used where two administrative cells (4th formal administrative level) were selected in which households were randomly selected for interviews. A survey including 399 farmers was conducted and farmers were grouped in three types of agroforestry practice (i) low practitioners (LAP) represented by the first tertile, (ii) medium practitioners (MAP) represented by the second tertile and (iii) high practitioners (HAP) represented by the third tertile of households in terms of tree number. Asset values, household income sources, crop production, farm size, crop yield, and food security (food energy needs) were quantified among the types of agroforestry practice. A larger proportion of HAP households had access to adequate quantity and diversity of food when compared with MAP and LAP households. Food security probability was higher for households with more resources, including land, trees and livestock, coinciding with an increased crop and livestock income. We found no difference in asset endowment among types of agroforestry practices, while farmers in agroecologies with smaller farms (0.42 ha to 0.66 ha) had more on-farm trees (212 to 358 trees per household) than farms in agroecologies with larger farms (0.96 ha to 1.23 ha) which had 49 to 129 trees per household, probably due to differences in biophysical conditions. A positive association between tree density and food security was found in two out of six agroecologies. The proportion of income that came from tree products was high (> 20%) for a small fraction of farmers (12%), with the more food insecure households relying more on income from tree products than households with better food security status. Thus, tree income can be percieved as a “safety net” for the poorest households.

scholarly journals Social health insurance for the poor: lessons from a health insurance programme in Karnataka, India

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. e000582 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neeraj Sood ◽  
Zachary Wagner
Keyword(s):  
Health Insurance ◽  
Financial Burden ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
Substantial Reduction ◽  
Unmet Need ◽  
Social Health Insurance ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Poverty Line ◽  
Social Health ◽  
The Poor

Life-saving technology used to treat catastrophic illnesses such as heart disease and cancer is often out of reach for the poor. As life expectancy increases in poor countries and the burden from chronic illnesses continues to rise, so will the unmet need for expensive tertiary care. Understanding how best to increase access to and reduce the financial burden of expensive tertiary care is a crucial task for the global health community in the coming decades. In 2010, Karnataka, a state in India, rolled out the Vajpayee Arogyashree scheme (VAS), a social health insurance scheme focused on increasing access to tertiary care for households below the poverty line. VAS was rolled out in a way that allowed for robust evaluation of its causal effects and several studies have examined various impacts of the scheme on poor households. In this analysis article, we summarise the key findings and assess how these findings can be used to inform other social health insurance schemes. First, the evidence suggests that VAS led to a substantial reduction in mortality driven by increased tertiary care utilisation as well as use of better quality facilities and earlier diagnosis. Second, VAS significantly reduced the financial burden of receiving tertiary care. Third, these benefits of social health insurance were achieved at a reasonable cost to society and taxpayers. Several unique features of VAS led to its success at improving health and financial well-being including effective outreach via health camps, targeting expensive conditions with high disease burden, easy enrolment process, cashless treatment, bundled payment for hospital services, participation of both public and private hospitals and prior authorisation to improve appropriateness of care.

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