Understanding poverty in developing countries
Poverty remains one of the most pressing challenges. Ending poverty in all its forms everywhere, as the first of the Sustainable Development Goals, reflects the central role of poverty eradication in achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Progress on poverty reduction is foundational to advancing on the other Goals and ensuring dignity, rights and shared prosperity for all. Given the continued importance of this issue for member States and the urgent need to accelerate poverty eradication prior to 2030, there is a critical need to deepen understanding of the underlying causes of poverty and of the policies and tools required to address it effectively. This course is aimed at providing a policy-oriented understanding of how poverty is defined, measured and experienced across developing regions and of the key economic, social and institutional drivers shaping poverty outcomes; and practical insights into how policies can effectively contribute to poverty reduction in diverse contexts. At the end of the course, delegates will have gained knowledge of the following:
- Concepts and measurement of poverty
- Regional trends in poverty
- Socioeconomic characteristics of people living in poverty
- Key drivers and structural determinants of poverty
- Linkages between poverty, inequality and economic growth
- Policies and tools for poverty reduction, illustrated through selected case studies
