Defining, measuring and combatting POVERTY Defining, measuring and combatting

The poverty threshold, or poverty line, is the minimum level of income deemed necessary to achieve an adequate standard of living in a given country The common international poverty line has been roughly $1 a day

Determining the poverty line is usually done by finding the total cost of all the essential resources that an average human adult consumes in one year This approach is needs-based in that an assessment is made of the minimum expenditure needed to maintain a tolerable life

Absolute vs relative poverty These are the two main ways of measuring poverty: Absolute poverty The term absolute poverty is also sometimes used as a synonym for extreme poverty It is characterised by severe deprivation of basic human needs, including food, safe drinking water, sanitation facilities, health, shelter, education

Relative poverty The wealth or lack of, is measured against “average” or “median” income of the country If the median household earns US$1 million each year, then a family that earns US$100,000 would be considered poor Relative poverty is a standard of living or level of income that is high enough to satisfy basic needs but still lower than that of the majority of the population

COMBATTING POVERTY WHAT CAN BE DONE?