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Taking a Closer Look at Poverty

The MIMAP program is helping give the poor a voice. (IDRC Photo: R. Lemoyne)

2003-01-10

The fight against poverty is fraught with uncertainties. Even the very definition of poverty is elusive: its manifestations and causes vary from country to country; its magnitude fluctuates according to the social and economic context. How to explain why in India, for instance, poverty is high although unemployment is low while the inverse is true in Morocco — or at least, poverty there is not as blatant? And why is it too often true that economic growth in poor countries has done little to reduce poverty — and may in fact have exacerbated it?

These are some of the fundamental questions a network of researchers from 12 Asian and African countries has been grappling with. Members of the International Development Research Centre’s (IDRC) Micro Impact of Macroeconomic and Adjustment Policies (MIMAP) research network, they have worked for the past decade to develop tools and methods for better understanding the dynamics of poverty. Bringing that information to the attention of decision makers is integral to their mission.

The articles in this dossier present some of the activities and some of the people involved.

Features

Community-based poverty monitoring is a concept that’s gaining ground, reports Michelle Hibler.

From Research to Policy in Bangladesh

Putting research to use requires close collaboration, by Michelle Hibler.

The Importance of Timely Economic Information

In Conversation with Celia M. Reyes, MIMAP-Philippines team leader, by Keane Shore.

Researcher Profile

For Dr Abdelkhalek, fighting poverty is a personal crusade, by Michelle Hibler.

News

Consolidating the efforts of three networks in the fight against poverty.

Resource

A unique software program, available free online from Laval University.

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