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

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.

2018 ◽  
pp. 221-248
Author(s):  
Gary S. Fields

“Poverty” has been defined as the inability of an individual or a family to command sufficient resources to satisfy basic needs. The workman who, in Adam Smith’s day, could not appear in public wearing a proper linen shirt, was ipso facto poor, not only to Smith but to Amartya Sen who, commenting on Smith’s observation, wrote: “On the space of the capabilities themselves – the direct constituent of the standard of living – escape from poverty has an absolute requirement, to wit, avoidance of this type of shame. Not so much having equal shame as others, but just not being ashamed, absolutely” (Sen 1984, p. 335). Over time, the poverty line needs to be adjusted for changes in the cost of acquiring the basket of basic needs. When the poverty line is adjusted for inflation and only for inflation, the line defines “absolute poverty.”


Food Control ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 22 (6) ◽  
pp. 843-850 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zuzanna Pieniak ◽  
Monika Kołodziejczyk ◽  
Barbara Kowrygo ◽  
Wim Verbeke

2018 ◽  
pp. 119-128
Author(s):  
Norbert Bozsik ◽  
Róbert Magda

This paper presents the situation of the agricultural labour employment and evaluates the agricultural labour productivity in Hungary. Since Hungary’s EU accession, the share of agricultural employment in the total employed population has been stabilized at around 5% in the country. Due to low wages, low profit and low prestige, agricultural jobs are not attractive. The gross and net labour productivity gap between Hungary and the EU have been significant since the EU accession. The agricultural labour productivity of the Hungarian regions also shows a different picture. The labour productivity influences the cost, profitability and competitiveness of products. The advantage of the cheap labour force in Hungary’s agriculture significantly decreased due to low labour productivity. There are several opportunities to increase the agricultural labour productivity such as the increase of labour force qualification, moving toward producing higher value added agri-food products, rejuvenation of population in agriculture and the improvement of the conditions of financing agriculture.


1977 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdul Wasay

A fundamental policy objective in developing countries is the reduction of poverty and the provision of an adequate level of income sufficient to allow for the basic consumption needs of the lowest income group. It is not an easy objective because resources are limited. Moreover, the definition of basic needs itself is difficult since these needs vary from region to region, and over time. Nevertheless, the poverty problem is sufficiently important to justify the development of practical measures of at least the biological and physical needs: food, clothing, and shelter. With such measures, a translation of basic consumption needs from physical to expenditure units and the calculation of an absolute poverty line is possible.


2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Theodore Mitrakos

<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>


Author(s):  
Dieter Grimm

This chapter examines the democratic costs of constitutionalization by focusing on the European case. It first considers the interdependence of democracy and constitutionalism before discussing how constitutionalization can put democracy at risk. It then explores the tension between democracy and fundamental rights, the constitutionalization of the European treaties, and the European Court of Justice’s (ECJ) two separate judgments regarding the relationship between European law and national law. It also assesses the impact of the ECJ’s jurisprudence on democracy, especially in the area of economic integration. The chapter argues that the legitimacy problem the EU faces is caused in part by over-constitutionalization and that the remedy to this problem is re-politicization of decisions with significant political implications.


2020 ◽  
Vol 79 (Suppl 1) ◽  
pp. 1289.1-1290
Author(s):  
S. De Souza ◽  
R. Williams ◽  
E. Johansson ◽  
C. Zabalan ◽  
T. Esterine ◽  
...  

Background:Patient and public involvement (PPI) is gaining increasing recognition as important in ensuring research is relevant and acceptable to participants. Rheuma Tolerance for Cure (RTCure) is a 5 year international collaboration between academia and industry; focusing on earlier detection and prevention of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) through the use of immune-tolerising treatments.Objectives:To bring lived experience and insight into scientific discussions; and to evolve collaboration between lay representatives and academia/industry.Methods:9 Patient Research Partners (PRPs) from 5 European countries were recruited via the EULAR PARE Network and institutions within the RTCure Consortium (8 PRPs with RA and 1 ‘at risk’). They were asked to enter into a legal agreement with the Consortium. PRPs participated in teleconferences (TCs) and were invited to attend face-to-face (F2F) meetings at least annually. Requests for input/feedback were sent from researchers to PRPs via the project’s Patient Engagement Expert [SK].Results:PRP involvement has given researchers and industry partners a new perspective on patient priorities, and focused thought on the ethics of recruitment for and participation in clinical trials of people ‘at risk’ of developing RA. PRPs have helped define the target populations, given their thoughts on what types of treatments are acceptable to people ‘at risk’ and have aided the development of a survey (sent to EULAR PARE members) regarding the use of animal models in biomedical research. Positive informal feedback has been received from researchers and industry regarding the contribution of PRPs to the ongoing project (formal evaluation of PPI in RTCure will be carried out in 2020 and at the project end in 2022).Challenges:Legal agreements- Many PRPs refused to sign the Consortium’s complex PRP Agreement; feeling it unnecessary, incomprehensible and inequitable. After extensive consultation with various parties (including EULAR and the Innovative Medicines Initiative) no similar contract was found. Views for its requirement even varied between legal experts. After 2 years of intense discussion, a simple non-disclosure agreement was agreed upon. Ideally any contract, if required, should be approved prior to project onset.Meeting logistics- Other improvements identified were to locate the meeting venue and accommodation on the same site to minimise travel, and to make it easier for PRPs to take breaks when required. This also facilitates informal discussions and patient inclusivity. We now have agreed a policy to fund PRPs extra nights before and after meetings, and to bring a carer if needed.Enabling understanding– Future annual meetings will start with a F2F meeting between PRPs and Work Package Leads. Researchers will be encouraged to start presentations with a summary slide in lay language. Additionally, an RTCure Glossary is in development.Enabling participation– SK will provide monthly project updates and PRP TCs will be held in the evening (as some PRPs remain employed). PRPs will be invited to all project TCs and F2F meetings. Recruitment is underway to increase the number of ‘at risk’ PRPs as their viewpoint is vital to this study.Conclusion:Currently PPI in RTCure is an ongoing mutual learning process. Universal guidance regarding what types of contracts are needed for PPI would be useful. Communication, trust and fruitful discussions have evolved through F2F meetings (both formal and informal) between PRPs, academia and industry. It is important that all parties can be open with each other in order to make PPI more meaningful.Acknowledgments:This work has received support from the EU/EFPIA Innovative Medicines Initiative 2 Joint Undertaking RTCure grant number 777357.Disclosure of Interests:Savia de Souza: None declared, Ruth Williams: None declared, Eva Johansson: None declared, Codruta Zabalan: None declared, Tom Esterine: None declared, Margôt Bakkers: None declared, Wolfgang Roth: None declared, Neil Mc Carthy: None declared, Meryll Blake: None declared, Susanne Karlfeldt: None declared, Martina Johannesson: None declared, Karim Raza Grant/research support from: KR has received research funding from AbbVie and Pfizer, Consultant of: KR has received honoraria and/or consultancy fees from AbbVie, Sanofi, Lilly, Bristol-Myers Squibb, UCB, Pfizer, Janssen and Roche Chugai, Speakers bureau: KR has received honoraria and/or consultancy fees from AbbVie, Sanofi, Lilly, Bristol-Myers Squibb, UCB, Pfizer, Janssen and Roche Chugai


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