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Doctor of Philosophy / Department of History / Donald Mrozek / Scholars identify the early 1960s as the moment when Americans rediscovered poverty – as the time when Presidents, policymakers, and the public shifted their attention away from celebrating the affluence of the 1950s and toward directly helping poor people within the culture of poverty through major federal programs such as the Peace Corps and Job Corps. This dissertation argues that this moment should not be viewed as a rediscovery of poverty by Americans. Rather, it should be viewed as a paradigm shift that conceptually unified the understanding of both foreign and domestic privation within the concept of a culture of poverty. A culture of poverty equally hindered poor people all around the world, resulting in widespread illiteracy in India and juvenile delinquency in Indianapolis. Policymakers defined poverty less by employment rate or location (rural poverty in Ghana versus inner-city poverty in New York) and more by the cultural values of the poor people (apathy toward change, disdain for education, lack of planning for the future, and desire for immediate gratification). In a sense, the poor person who lived in the Philippines and the one who lived in Philadelphia became one. They suffered from the same cultural limitations and could be helped through the same remedy. There were not just similarities between programs to alleviate poverty in either the Third World or America; the two became one in the mid-1960s. Makers of policy in the War on Poverty understood all poverty around the world as identical and approached it with the same remedy. President John Kennedy inspired the paradigm shift. After reading about the culture of poverty in Dwight Macdonald’s review of Michael Harrington’s book The Other America: Poverty in the United States, Kennedy began to bring together experts within a new mentality to discuss a program to end poverty. The experts had been working for separate programs that focused on seemingly disparate issues—juvenile delinquency, poverty in New England, and Third World development—but they now realized that they were all working on the same problem, namely, the culture of poverty. The understanding that cultural values created poverty led them to unify their programs and approaches as they created the War on Poverty in 1964. The discovery was not the beginning of national attention on poverty but a culmination that brought together prominent people, ideas, and programs already in existence within a new paradigm.

Poverty persists as one of the critical challenges in South Africa, predominantly because it is inbred. Currently, the majority of South Africa’s children live in households that are incapable of providing basic needs. Children born from deprived households have a high chance of being trapped into the cycle of poverty. Thus, household poverty affects child differently from adults; children tend to be more vulnerable to deprivation and poverty. The purpose of this study was to analyse the relationship between household poverty and child deprivation in Jabulani, a South African township. The study used an asset index and a child deprivation index to measure the scope of household poverty and child deprivation in Jabulani Township. The main focus of the study was to determine if household poverty has an impact on the deprivation status of a child living in a particular household. Therefore, analysing demographics of the household and its poverty status was also important. The empirical analysis of the study was centred on data collected from Jabulani Township in May 2015 by means of a survey questionnaire with a sample of 178 randomly selected households. Several statistical methods were used such as descriptive statistics, correlations and regression analysis to identify the overlaps between household poverty and child deprivation. The asset index was used to determine the poverty status of the household by measuring its wealth, thus identifying if a child from a poor household will be deprived of certain items by comparing it to the child deprivation index. The child deprivation index was constructed based on specific items a child may lack. The relationship between household poverty and child deprivation was determined and it was found that most of the children from poor households are not severely deprived; they are either less deprived or moderately deprived at most. Similarly, there are children from the well-off households who are deprived moderately and severely. However, the majority of the children living in less poor households are also less deprived. Thus, it was concluded that household needs are different from child needs, hence we find children who are not deprived in poor households and vice versa. The Relationship between Household Poverty and Child Deprivation in Jabulani Township Page vii The extent of household poverty was determined and as defined by the asset index the study found that 59 percent of the households in Jabulani Township are not poor, 31.5 percent have poverty levels just below average (based on the asset index measuring long-term wealth) and 9.6 percent are poor. Furthermore, it was found that the majority of the sampled population of Jabulani Township has low income levels, most of the asset poor households were also found to be income poor and vice versa. The study revealed that females head most households in Jabulani Township; female heads of household were found to have lower poverty levels compared to male heads of household. It was found that the majority of the heads of household have no schooling and quite a few of them have tertiary level education. The largest source of income in Jabulani Township is child support grant (87.1 percent) and wages or salaries contribute 77 percent to household income. The prevalence of child deprivation was determined based on the child deprivation index. It was found that 62.9 percent of the children in Jabulani Township are less deprived, 29.2 percent are moderately deprived and only 9.9 percent of the children are severely deprived. Therefore, the majority of the children in Jabulani Township are not severely deprived. The regression analysis results revealed that the total income of the household is a significant determinant of the asset index and the child deprivation index. Based on these findings it is recommended that more investments should be made towards education in Jabulani Township, as this could be a great move towards the alleviation of household poverty and, in turn, child deprivation. There is a need for skills empowerment especially in baking and sewing as most of the unemployed heads of households are skilled in those areas, this will curb dependence on the government and create more job opportunities so that the parents can provide for the needs of their children.

Poverty persists as one of the critical challenges in South Africa, predominantly because it is inbred. Currently, the majority of South Africa’s children live in households that are incapable of providing basic needs. Children born from deprived households have a high chance of being trapped into the cycle of poverty. Thus, household poverty affects child differently from adults; children tend to be more vulnerable to deprivation and poverty. The purpose of this study was to analyse the relationship between household poverty and child deprivation in Jabulani, a South African township. The study used an asset index and a child deprivation index to measure the scope of household poverty and child deprivation in Jabulani Township. The main focus of the study was to determine if household poverty has an impact on the deprivation status of a child living in a particular household. Therefore, analysing demographics of the household and its poverty status was also important. The empirical analysis of the study was centred on data collected from Jabulani Township in May 2015 by means of a survey questionnaire with a sample of 178 randomly selected households. Several statistical methods were used such as descriptive statistics, correlations and regression analysis to identify the overlaps between household poverty and child deprivation. The asset index was used to determine the poverty status of the household by measuring its wealth, thus identifying if a child from a poor household will be deprived of certain items by comparing it to the child deprivation index. The child deprivation index was constructed based on specific items a child may lack. The relationship between household poverty and child deprivation was determined and it was found that most of the children from poor households are not severely deprived; they are either less deprived or moderately deprived at most. Similarly, there are children from the well-off households who are deprived moderately and severely. However, the majority of the children living in less poor households are also less deprived. Thus, it was concluded that household needs are different from child needs, hence we find children who are not deprived in poor households and vice versa. The Relationship between Household Poverty and Child Deprivation in Jabulani Township Page vii The extent of household poverty was determined and as defined by the asset index the study found that 59 percent of the households in Jabulani Township are not poor, 31.5 percent have poverty levels just below average (based on the asset index measuring long-term wealth) and 9.6 percent are poor. Furthermore, it was found that the majority of the sampled population of Jabulani Township has low income levels, most of the asset poor households were also found to be income poor and vice versa. The study revealed that females head most households in Jabulani Township; female heads of household were found to have lower poverty levels compared to male heads of household. It was found that the majority of the heads of household have no schooling and quite a few of them have tertiary level education. The largest source of income in Jabulani Township is child support grant (87.1 percent) and wages or salaries contribute 77 percent to household income. The prevalence of child deprivation was determined based on the child deprivation index. It was found that 62.9 percent of the children in Jabulani Township are less deprived, 29.2 percent are moderately deprived and only 9.9 percent of the children are severely deprived. Therefore, the majority of the children in Jabulani Township are not severely deprived. The regression analysis results revealed that the total income of the household is a significant determinant of the asset index and the child deprivation index. Based on these findings it is recommended that more investments should be made towards education in Jabulani Township, as this could be a great move towards the alleviation of household poverty and, in turn, child deprivation. There is a need for skills empowerment especially in baking and sewing as most of the unemployed heads of households are skilled in those areas, this will curb dependence on the government and create more job opportunities so that the parents can provide for the needs of their children.

Poverty has been a challenge for many years and continues to exist in many parts of the world, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa. In many countries, poverty reduction programmes remain the main preoccupation in economic policies. Poverty is not gender neutral, as women tend to be more likely exposed to poverty because of their restricted access to labour and other markets and their general lower level of education than men. This study aimed at investigating the relationship between gender and poverty in a South African township of Kwakwatsi. The study used the Lived Poverty Index (LPI) as a measurement of poverty to analyse the extent and level of access to basic necessities among inhabitants of Kwakwatsi. The major focus of this study was on comparing the poverty status between female-headed and male-headed households. It was also important to investigate the relationship between poverty status and demographic and socio-economic variables. A literature review of poverty indicates a multidimensional concept, with a need to be untangled from different perspectives. Poverty includes lack of factors such as food, income, sanitation facilities, shelter, health care, safe drinking water, education and information. The empirical portion of the study was based on data from a survey questionnaire with a sample of 225 households selected randomly from Kwakwatsi Township in April 2013. Various quantitative methods, including Principal Component Analysis (PCA), descriptive analysis (such as means core, cross tabulation and frequency tables) and regression analysis, were used to identify the level of access to basic necessities and how this access is influenced by identified demographic and socioeconomic variables among both female-headed and male-headed households. The LPI was used to assess people’s ability to secure income, food, fuel for cooking, electricity, clean water for home use and access to medicines and medical treatment. PCA indicated that all six items of basic necessities could be loaded into one component of LPI, indicating that the measure was adequate for the study. Households headed by females seemed to be poorer (53.62%) than those headed by males (45.51%), implying that female-headed households appeared more likely to experience the lack of basic necessities than male-headed households. Access to basic necessities such as medicines or medical treatment, water, electricity and fuel. The relationship between gender and poverty in a South African township for cooking have an effect on the quality of life. Access to medicines and medical treatment remains a lingering challenge for the inhabitants of Kwakwatsi, especially in female-headed households. Regarding the employment status of the participants, the unemployment rate of the head was found to be slightly higher for male heads than female heads, but the total number of employed people within a household was found to be less in households headed by females compare to those headed by males. The average total income in female-headed households was found to be lower than that of male-headed households. To add to this, a high number of female heads work in the informal sector, with low wages and poor working conditions. This was found to be associated with a higher level of illiteracy among female household heads, thus making it difficult for them to compete in the formal labour market. Deprivation levels were seen to decrease with the number of employed persons in female-headed households, while this was the opposite in male-headed households. The number of household members was found to increase with the poverty level in female-headed households, while there was no effect among male-headed households. Married male household heads were found to have less access to basic necessities than unmarried ones, while the relationship was the opposite where female married household heads appeared to have less access to basic necessities than those who are not married. Overall, descriptive analysis revealed that female-headed households tend to be deprived from stable and sustainable access to basic necessities. The results of the regression analysis showed that the number of household members who are employed, household head’s income and other income of the household are significant predictors of poverty in Kwakwatsi. The study recommends that the gender gap in income can be alleviated by empowering women labourers through collective action and increase of vocational education and training for better skills. There is a need for using public works programmes efficiently in order to address the problem of low income in the area. Furthermore, the importance of the informal sectors of the economy, especially in low income areas, should be acknowledged because it seems to be an important source of income for the residents of Kwakwatsi. Finally, there is a need to improve primary health care provision for the township of Kwakwatsi. The relationship between gender and poverty in a South African township / MCom (Economics), North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2014

Ce travail analyse sous différentes approches la pauvreté au Sénégal en s’appuyant notamment sur les données fournies par les deux dernières enquêtes auprès des ménages (ESAM 2-2002 et ESPS-2006) réalisées par l’Agence Nationale de la Statistique et de la Démographie en partenariat avec la Banque mondiale.Dans l’analyse de la pauvreté monétaire, nous faisons apparaître des différences importantes en termes de seuils de pauvreté dans les régions avec aux extrêmes la région Dakar 923,55 F CFA (1,40 €) et Tambacounda 515,70 F CFA (0,78€), ce qui suggère le peu de pertinence quant à l’utilisation d’un seuil établi au seul niveau national. Sur la base de ces seuils, les indices de pauvreté issus de la formule générique de Foster, Greer et Thorbecke (FGT) dévoilent une baisse du taux de pauvreté entre 2002 et 2006 de 57,1% à 50,8%, soit de 6,9 point dans l’ensemble du pays et un écart à la ligne de pauvreté passant de 18% à 16,4%. Cette baisse est particulièrement observée dans les régions de Dakar, Diourbel, Kaolack, Saint-Louis et Thiès. Au niveau départemental, les taux de pauvreté montrent une concentration importante dans les zones rurales et l’existence de poches de pauvreté enclavées dans les zones urbaines. L’estimation d’un modèle économétrique spatial met en évidence les facteurs socioéconomiques susceptibles d’expliquer les différences interdépartementales de taux de pauvreté constatées en 2006, notamment le degré de développement économique des territoires (urbanisation, emploi) ainsi que les comportements des ménages liés au niveau d’infrastructures (d’éducation, de santé et de fécondité).Par ailleurs, nous proposons un modèle dichotomique à partir duquel il est possible de mettre en évidence les déterminants de la pauvreté monétaire des chefs de ménage. Les résultats montrent que les femmes chefs de ménage ne sont pas la couche la plus pauvre. De manière générale, les disparités de pauvreté manifestes entre milieux urbain et rural sont largement corrélées à des handicapes en matière de d’éducation et à l’inégal accès aux moyens d’information et de communication.Nous abordons une analyse multidimensionnelle de la pauvreté au Sénégal, à travers une estimation des degrés de privation de certains besoins essentiels des ménages. L’approche par la théorie des ensembles flous utilisée à cet effet suggère que la pauvreté a faiblement diminué : 1 % contre 7 % pour la pauvreté monétaire. Contrairement à l’approche monétaire, la baisse de la pauvreté non monétaire observée concerne d’autres régions comme Kolda et Ziguinchor et les régions de Diourbel et Kaolack connaissent une hausse. L’estimation des indices flous unidimensionnels a permis d’identifier les domaines dans lesquels les ménages affichent le degré de privation le plus important : la qualité du logement, le niveau d'instruction et les moyens d’information et de communication, au-delà du revenu.Les profils de pauvreté monétaire aussi bien que multidimensionnelle sont d’excellents outils pour cibler les groupes les plus nécessiteux de la population. En revanche, ces outils restent muets sur la perception de ces pauvres quant à leur propre situation socioéconomique. En ce sens, une analyse économétrique des facteurs déterminants de la pauvreté ressentie au Sénégal en 2006 fait apparaître l’importance de certaines dimensions non économiques (exclusion sociale, culturelle et manque de concertation des intéressés sur les politiques de développement et de lutte cotre la pauvreté). / This paper analyzes different approaches in poverty in Senegal, relying in particular on data provided by the last two household surveys (ESPS-2-2002 and ESAM 2006) conducted by the National Agency of Statistics and Demography in partnership with the World Bank.In the analysis of monetary poverty, we reveal important differences in terms of poverty lines in regions with at extremes, Dakar 923,55 F CFA (1,40 €) and Tambacounda 515,70 FCFA (0,78€), suggesting little relevance to the use of a threshold at national level alone. On basis of these thresholds, the indices of poverty stemming from the Foster's generic formula, to Greer and Thorbecke (FGT) reveal a reduction in the rate of poverty between 2002 and 2006 from the 57.1 % to 50.8 %, that is 6.9 in the whole of country and a gap in the poverty's line passing from 18 % to 16,4 %. This decline is particularly observed in the regions of Dakar, Diourbel, Kaolack, Saint-Louis and Thies. At the departmental level, poverty rates show a significant concentration in rural areas and the existence of pockets of poverty enclaved in urban areas. The estimation of a spatial econometric model highlights the socioeconomic factors that may explain the interdepartmental differences in poverty rates observed in 2006, including the level of regional economic development (urbanization, employment) and household behavior related at infrastructure (education, health and fertility). Furthermore, we propose a dichotomous model from which it is possible to identify the determinants of income poverty of household heads. The results show that female-headed households are not the poorest layer. In general way, differences of poverty apparent between urban and rural areas are largely correlated with disabilities in terms of education and unequal access to information and communication resources.We are entering a multidimensional analysis of poverty in Senegal, through an estimate of the degree of deprivation of some basic household needs. The approach by the theory of fuzzy sets used for this purpose shows that poverty declined slightly: 1% against 7% for monetary poverty. Unlike the monetary approach, the observed decrease from non-monetary poverty affects other regions as Kolda and Ziguinchor and Kaolack and Diourbel saw an increase. The estimation of one-dimensional fuzzy indexes allowed identifying the domains in which the households post the degree of largest deprivation: the quality of housing, education and information and communication technologies, beyond income.The profiles of monetary poverty as well as multidimensional are excellent tools to target the most destitute groups of the population. However, these tools remain dumb on the perception of these poor people as for their own socioeconomic situation. In this sense, an econometric analysis of the determinants of poverty felt in Senegal in 2006 brings up the importance of certain non-economic dimensions (social exclusion, cultural and lack of consultation of stakeholders on policy development and cutter fight poverty).

<p>Namibia is one of the most unequal countries in the world and has high rates of poverty. In the thesis the proposal for a basic income grant as a strategy for poverty alleviation in Namibia is analyzed. The study is based on six interviews with the Basic Income Grant Coalition in Namibia and their four publications. The theoretical and methodological framework is Fairclough’s critical discourse analysis and social theory of discourse. Conceptions about the economical and political situation of Namibia in relation to inequality are discussed, as well as the image of the desired citizen in neo-liberal societies. Poverty is conceptualized as a trap where the BIG is regarded as a way out from poverty to a situation of confidence, engagement and economic activity. Contemporary classifications and means testing for social grants are problematized as inefficient and discriminative. The BIG is regarded as right in the context of the big inequalities in Namibia. It is suggested that the BIG Coalition with the proposal for the grant also offers alternative conceptions about Namibia and about the possibilities for change in the situation of poverty.</p>

<p>This paper analyses rural poverty in Ethiopia using the 1997 round of household survey data from the Ethiopian Rural Household Survey. Poverty measurements are estimated using a consumption based two-step procedure through the implementation of the Foster-Greer-Thorbecke model. The results indicate that the incidence of rural poverty is high for villages that have lower conditions for agriculture. These findings imply that poverty reduction can be possible through effective policies toward improving the conditions for agriculture in the rural areas.</p><p>Moreover, examination of the connection between different socioeconomic characteristics and poverty indicates that households consisting of household heads with a higher age and availability of farmland are relatively less poor. However, households where the household head has completed at least primary school suffer from most incidence of poverty.</p><p>Furthermore, this study use three different definitions of poverty in connection to well-being to determine poverty. It is possible to state that these measurements are different modifications of each other with common variables and follow the same trend. The results of the paper may increase our understanding of the nature of rural poverty in Ethiopia and help in providing different poverty reducing policies, for the specific survey round.</p>

Namibia is one of the most unequal countries in the world and has high rates of poverty. In the thesis the proposal for a basic income grant as a strategy for poverty alleviation in Namibia is analyzed. The study is based on six interviews with the Basic Income Grant Coalition in Namibia and their four publications. The theoretical and methodological framework is Fairclough’s critical discourse analysis and social theory of discourse. Conceptions about the economical and political situation of Namibia in relation to inequality are discussed, as well as the image of the desired citizen in neo-liberal societies. Poverty is conceptualized as a trap where the BIG is regarded as a way out from poverty to a situation of confidence, engagement and economic activity. Contemporary classifications and means testing for social grants are problematized as inefficient and discriminative. The BIG is regarded as right in the context of the big inequalities in Namibia. It is suggested that the BIG Coalition with the proposal for the grant also offers alternative conceptions about Namibia and about the possibilities for change in the situation of poverty.

This paper analyses rural poverty in Ethiopia using the 1997 round of household survey data from the Ethiopian Rural Household Survey. Poverty measurements are estimated using a consumption based two-step procedure through the implementation of the Foster-Greer-Thorbecke model. The results indicate that the incidence of rural poverty is high for villages that have lower conditions for agriculture. These findings imply that poverty reduction can be possible through effective policies toward improving the conditions for agriculture in the rural areas. Moreover, examination of the connection between different socioeconomic characteristics and poverty indicates that households consisting of household heads with a higher age and availability of farmland are relatively less poor. However, households where the household head has completed at least primary school suffer from most incidence of poverty. Furthermore, this study use three different definitions of poverty in connection to well-being to determine poverty. It is possible to state that these measurements are different modifications of each other with common variables and follow the same trend. The results of the paper may increase our understanding of the nature of rural poverty in Ethiopia and help in providing different poverty reducing policies, for the specific survey round.