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Magister Commercii - MCom / With the transition to a democratic society, one of the challenges to emerge was to provide economic freedoms for all – that is, freedom from isolation, freedom from powerlessness, freedom from hunger, and freedom from poverty. Fighting poverty has always been high on the agenda of the democratic government since the transition. Numerous measures and policies were instituted aimed at reducing poverty. Researchers initiated serious efforts to try and understand the nature and extent of poverty, through various studies being conducted. Many of these studies focused only on money-metric measures, despite the fact that poverty is a multidimensional concept. What has resulted are various poverty-measurement methods producing different results on the extent of poverty. In addition, certain aspects of these money-metric approaches have serious shortcomings. The fuzzy sets approach addresses many of these shortcomings, as it is a multidimensional approach. Few studies have used this approach to measure poverty in South Africa. This thesis plans to use this method to analyse poverty levels and trends in South Africa, focusing on multidimensional, non-money-metric poverty. Data from Census 1996, Census 2001 and Community Survey 2007 will be used for the study. From the results of the analysis it was established that there is some divergence in the findings of money-metric approaches and those of fuzzy sets. A key result to emerge is the difference in poverty trends over the period 1996 – 2007. Most studies reviewed in Chapter Three that used the money-metric approach showed that poverty trends were upward in the 1990s, before a downward trend took place in the 2000s. This took place irrespective of the survey data used. The non-money-metric poverty trends derived in this chapter, however, show a continuous downward trend over the period. The overall mean deprivation in South Africa has declined since 1996. For people residing in provinces such as Limpopo, the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal, they are more likely to be poor under the fuzzy sets approach. This may be an indication of inadequate service delivery and the extent to which recent government measures to address poverty have been successful or not. In terms of race, blacks still have the highest mean deprivation, but enjoyed the biggest decline of mean deprivation between 1996 and 2007. Finally, mean deprivation for female-headed households in South Africa was also higher than for male-headed households over the period.

This thesis is articles-based submitted in fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. It consists of articles that were submitted and published, and others that were submitted and awaiting comments. This thesis makes a contribution to the ongoing debate on the most appropriate method of measuring poverty for interventionist purposes in rural areas. It is infonned by the Zimbabwe experience that income-based measures may not always adequately target those most in need of social support. A new approach is posited that focuses on the nonincome component of poverty. The aim is to assist 'technocrats' to better target the poor in need of a social safety net in crisis situations. The search is for a 'credible' measure that will be acceptable to various interest groups including the poor. Thus the proposed measure derived by means of a consensual approach meets this objective. The literature review describes and discusses the weaknesses of conventional poverty measures, divided into two broad categories of those pre- and post-dating Sen's introduction of the capability concept. The thesis then uses these to explore the conventional approaches (the dominant income measures) and flag their operational deficiencies, and then postulates an asset threshold model, the minimally adequate asset level (MAAL), based on the consensual approach. It also postulates the Poverty Diagnostic Model (PDM) which helps to describe and analyse factors that impact poverty at the individual level and helps in unpacking the linkages between the detenninants of poverty given its multi-dimensionality and how these are conditioned by both internal and external factors. Additionally to the contributions, this thesis posits drawing asset-poverty lines as well as combined asset and income poverty lines as a new contribution to yield asset-based Foster-Greer- Thorbecke (FGT) index, asset-income FGT index, networth FGT index and asset-gini coefficient. It also provides new tools with differentiating capacity to identify those who are either asset poor or income poor or both; as well as those who are 'networth poor', understood as asset-income threshold less debt. It advocates scaling of assets to enable capturing of the asset-holding of the poorest of the poor to fonn intensity scales on which an asset threshold is based. A further contribution of this thesis is the introduction of the notion of enclavity within a family around husband/wife relationships as a new fonn of resilience/collectivity due to deepening poverty. There is evidence to suggest that ethics and networks breakdown as a result of poverty. The final contribution of this thesis is the definition of a poverty line on the basis of an asset threshold using the consensual approach as postulated by Mack and Lansley (1985): thus this thesis posits an asset-by-asset point index. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2008.

The thesis has considered an asset-based alternative to the conventional use of consumption or expenditure in defining well-being and poverty. The motivation for the study was to derive a measure of economic status by households in the absence of income or consumption data. This is particularly important for a country like Tanzania where consumption, expenditure and price data are either limited or unavailable. The thesis uses data from The Tanzania 2002 Population and Housing Census information on housing conditions and ownership of certain durable goods to construct an asset index. This index is a proxy for long-run household wealth. When tested for reliability the asset index was found to be robust, coherent and a good predictor for economic status among the "poor" and "non-poor". The study has revealed that with further research, poverty analysts in Tanzania may also use the household asset index as an explanatory or as a means of mapping welfare in the country. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2006.

This thesis derives an alternative subjective-objective poverty line (SPL) using self-reported qualitative assessments of perceived adequacy for different categories of consumption namely, food, housing and clothing. Modeling the probability of reporting that actual consumption in each category is adequate, I find that actual measures of consumption are highly significant predictors of perceived consumption adequacy. The perceived adequacy for different consumption components respond more elastically to spending on the corresponding category of goods than to that on other types. The results suggest that the implied subjective poverty lines and regional profiles are different from those predicted by popular objective methods. This thesis also estimates the effects of human capital, employment and basic facilities on household poverty status in Nepal. Delving into this topic seems very policy relevant for the country, where there is a huge need of public education and unemployment insurance programs. To investigate this causal relationship, I use the Living Standards Measurement Survey Data for the year 2010/11, which includes information on past and present educational attainment, current employment, and availability and status of infrastructure in different communities of the country. I find that higher educational attainment, employment and improved perceived status of public amenities contribute to higher subjective wellbeing and reduced likelihood of poverty, controlling for value of assets owned, socio-demographic attributes and geographic location.

A healthy diet is related to a low risk of chronic diseases. A large body of research is devoted to improving social welfare by promoting healthy eating. This dissertation addresses the relation of food and health by analyzing the money and time inputs in food, the food poverty measurement, and a corresponding health outcome. The second chapter extends the current food poverty measure in headcount and proposes a set of Foster, Greer, and Thorbecke (FGT) indices, which is commonly used in development literature, in food poverty to allow for a more comprehensive understanding in food poverty evaluation. The counter-factual analysis on removing the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) component from the food expenditure shows that the original metrics underestimate the reduction to food expenditure poverty associated with ARRA, whereas the FGT indices indicate a slightly larger impact of ARRA in alleviating food poverty. The third chapter uses the same FGT indices in food poverty measurement but focuses on the sensitivity of these measurements to a different spatial and temporary food price. We use linear regression to estimate the local level of food poverty thresholds. The results show the spatial and temporal-specific thresholds are higher than the national threshold. The West region shows the most severe poverty situation, indicating the importance of considering spatial and temporal variations in measuring food expenditure poverty. The decompositions of food expenditures show that both the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits and money spent on protein play an essential role in reducing food expenditure poverty. The fourth chapter combines the two datasets used in the previous two chapters to investigate the connection between the resources (money and time) devoted to food and a corresponding health outcome (Healthy Eating Index, HEI). Two-Sample-2-Stage-Least-Square (TS2SLS) model is used to account for the two different datasets in predicting the time spent on food-related activities. After obtaining the time input, a Three-Stage-Least-Square (3SLS) model shows the time input improves the HEI for Non-SNAP households, who are more constrained by time. The decomposition of the impact of education on the HEI shows the indirect impact account for 22% of the total impact. This analysis breaks down the impact of the characteristics on HEI through different channels, thus offers more comprehensive policy recommendations. / Doctor of Philosophy / A healthy diet is related to a low risk of chronic diseases. A large body of research is devoted to improving social welfare by promoting healthy eating. This dissertation is a series of studies on food and health regarding the money and time input on food, the food poverty measurement, and the corresponding health outcome. The second chapter extends the current food poverty measure in headcount and proposes a set of distributional metrics: depth and severity, which measures how far away households are away from the targeted threshold and how severe the food poverty is respectively. These distributional metrics allow for a more comprehensive understanding of food poverty evaluation. We also analyzed the change of the metrics when removing part of the food expenditure funding source. The analysis shows the original metrics tend to underestimate the reduction to food expenditure poverty and indicates a slightly larger impact of removed funding source in alleviating food poverty. The third chapter uses the same distributional food poverty metrics, but focuses on the sensitivity of these measurements to different spatial and temporal food prices. We use linear regression in estimating the local food poverty thresholds. The results show the spatial and temporal-specific thresholds are higher than the national threshold. The West region shows the most severe poverty situation, indicating the importance of considering spatial and temporal variations in measuring food expenditure poverty. The forth chapter combines the two datasets used in the previous two chapters to investigate the connection between the resources (money and time) spent on food and a corresponding health outcome. A special econometrics model is used to predict the time spent on food-related activities with two datasets. After obtaining the time input, a system of equations model shows the time input improves the healthy eating for households who are more constrained by time. The decomposition of the impact of education on healthy eating shows the indirect impact account for 22% of the total impact. This analysis breaks down the impact of the characteristics on HEI through different channels, thus offers more comprehensive policy recommendations.

This thesis explores the concepts and measurements of chronic poverty, with application to Kazakhstan. A rigorous analysis of different approaches in the measurement of poverty and chronic poverty is presented in this study. Five matching techniques have been applied for the construction of unintended panel data based on KHBS 2001-2009. The substantial test of reliability, representativeness and robustness of the constructed panel data has examined. The attrition biases of the longitudinal data have been studied rigorously. The appropriate equivalence scale has been determined through regression analysis to the Kazakhstan HBS. The sensitivity of conventional and chronic poverty measures to various poverty lines and equivalence scales studied in this thesis. The stochastic dominance analysis of per adult equivalent consumption expenditures has been presented. The chronic poverty measures and determinants of chronically and transient poor have been estimated. It illustrates that the main correlates of chronic poverty are education, employment status of the head of household, household composition, the ownership of assets such as a dwelling other than main dwelling, a car, access to water in the house and location. The correlates of transient poverty are similar to chronic poverty; however some of them have opposite signs, for example the ethnicity of the head of household, household compositions, an ownership of a dwelling other than main dwelling, location in urban area and repayments of loan in 2008. The Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition analysis of the gap in consumption expenditures between chronically and transient poor, chronically poor and non-poor explains the differences through returns to endowments. Poverty transitions analysis illustrate improvement in poverty dynamics in later period of the study in 2006-2009. Long durations of poverty prevail among singles with children and couples with children. Poverty exit rates are higher than poverty entry rates for the whole period of 2001-2009. The multivariate hazard regression models are estimated to examine differences in people's experience of poverty over a period of time. For individuals who enter poverty, the total span of time that they spend in poverty consequently depends on both the chances of exit from poverty and the chances of re-entry to poverty. The results confirm the negative duration dependence of the hazards of poverty exit and re-entry for longer lengths of state. The only factor significantly positive influence on poverty exit is a location in Almaty. Many correlates of the model estimation have the same signs for the hazard rate of poverty exit and re-entries. These facts mean that these factors are common for transient poor, who are moving in and out poverty in given period of time. As defined before the existence of children under age six will increase the hazard rate of poverty re-entry.

This thesis is comprised of three distinct chapters, each of which is concerned in some way with the measurement of poverty. The first chapter provides social preference conditions which are both necessary and sufficient for a poverty line to arise endogenously. In so doing, it turns out that the apparently independent 'identification' and 'aggregation' problems in poverty measurement are subtly intertwined. Necessary and sufficient conditions are provided for the existence of both relative and absolute poverty lines. In each case, one of the conditions is a familiar weak monotonicity property. The other conditions are simple consistency requirements.In the second chapter, we propose classes of intertemporal poverty measures which take into account both the debilitating impact of prolonged spells in poverty and the mitigating effect of periods of affluence on subsequent poverty. The weight assigned to the level of poverty in each time period depends on the length of the preceding spell of poverty or of non-poverty. The proposed classes of intertemporal poverty measures are quite general and allow for a range of possible judgements as to the overall impact on a poor period of preceding spells of poverty or affluence. We discuss the properties of the proposed classes of measures and axiomatically characterize them.The third chapter is an empirical application of the intertemporal poverty measures proposed in the second chapter. The new measures, together with an existing intertemporal poverty measure from the literature, are used to analyse intertemporal poverty in Great Britain during the period 1991-2005, using data from the British Household Panel Survey. Previous studies on poverty using this data-set have employed static measures of poverty. We illustrate how the use of intertemporal poverty measures makes it possible to analyse aspects of poverty which cannot be captured by static, annual, measures of poverty. We then model the determinants of intertemporal poverty, conditional upon being poor, using a Heckman two-step selection model.

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p. 1-125 / Submitted by Santiago Fabio (fabio.ssantiago@hotmail.com) on 2013-03-13T17:51:34Z No. of bitstreams: 1 3333.pdf: 1825339 bytes, checksum: b6ba898110ebd9f710aaa0392d676485 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Tatiana Lima(tatianasl@ufba.br) on 2013-03-13T19:40:28Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 3333.pdf: 1825339 bytes, checksum: b6ba898110ebd9f710aaa0392d676485 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2013-03-13T19:40:28Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 3333.pdf: 1825339 bytes, checksum: b6ba898110ebd9f710aaa0392d676485 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2006 / Apesar do crescente aumento do estoque de riqueza material no mundo, a pobreza continua a ser um problema de grande extensão e gravidade devido, especialmente, às desigualdades sociais. Existe uma dificuldade inicial na formulação e acompanhamento das políticas de combate a pobreza que é a indefinição ou limitação das concepções de pobreza adotadas. Este trabalho considera as inúmeras críticas quanto ao caráter limitado da renda, a proxy mais utilizada para a descrição da pobreza, adotando uma abordagem multidimensional como a mais adequada para a análise. Concluiuse, entretanto que a abordagem da renda pode ser utilizada para a mensuração da pobreza como proxy de uma conceituação multifacetada deste fenômeno, desde que completada com indicadores sociais, mas é insuficiente para a análise das suas causas. Utilizouse a Bahia como estudo de caso para a discussão da adequação da renda como forma de medir a pobreza. Diferentes estudos apontavam resultados distintos desde o início da década de 90; um dos motivos seria a concepção de pobreza utilizada. O problema de pesquisa deste trabalho então foi o seguinte: a dinâmica da pobreza na Bahia demonstrada através de linhas de pobreza baseadas na renda é consistente com uma abordagem multidimensional? A hipótese inicial de que as análises da dinâmica da pobreza eram inconsistentes com uma abordagem multidimensional não foi comprovada, ou seja, a evolução da pobreza entre 1991 e 2000 descritas através da renda mostrouse semelhante à observada por meio das necessidades básicas ou das capacidades, mensuradas por meio de um sistema de indicadores sociais e do IDH, respectivamente. A distinção de resultados ocorreu na análise baseada nos indicadores de desigualdades, que buscavam refletir a abordagem de exclusão social. A observação das diversas dimensões da pobreza e seus comportamentos no período e a análise dos resultados foi objetivo específico deste trabalho. A pesquisa foi feita através de uma metodologia quantitativa com dados secundários a partir de quatro perspectivas em relação à pobreza (renda, necessidades básicas, capacidades e exclusão social). Concluíse assim que para se ter um quadro mais próximo da realidade, há uma necessidade de se analisar a pobreza utilizando abordagens distintas, mas complementares. / Salvador