Jacques Silber’s Handbook constitutes a veritable intellectual treat to all those interested in poverty measurement. In a strange way, this compendium may constitute one of the very few silver linings of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the Introduction, Professor Silber candidly narrates how he was...

Africa is a land of contrasts where poverty and plenty co-exist. The continent is endowed with untapped natural resources, a conducive climate, and a burgeoning youth population. However, it remains home to a very large poor population. This chapter reviews the situation and drivers of poverty...

This chapter assesses levels and trends in multidimensional poverty for two different years in Algeria (2012/13 and 2018/19), Iraq (2011 and 2018) and Tunisia (2012 and 2018) using the M-gamma multidimensional poverty measures suggested by Alkire and Foster (2019). The decomposition properties...

Using national accounts means from PWT9.1 and PWT10, four absolute poverty lines, and two relative poverty lines, the magnitude of poverty is estimated for nine Southeast Asian countries for the years 2000, 2006, 2012 and 2017. We find large reductions in poverty from 2000 to 2012, very little...

This chapter explores poverty and inequality in Western and Central Asia, aiming to assess progress and identify persisting and emerging challenges. The countries in Western and Central Asia have achieved substantial poverty reduction since the early 2000s. Nonetheless, progress in reducing...

This chapter discusses the measurement of monetary and multidimensional poverty in Latin America. It presents the main methodological and practical issues, limitations, and challenges in measuring poverty in the region. It also provides an overview of the evidence on the main patterns, across...

This chapter presents an overview of the evolution of poverty and inequality in Australia using data from the HILDA survey from 2001 to 2018. We report trends in poverty and income inequality and show that poverty has fallen over the last two decades, while inequality has risen modestly....

This chapter provides readers a succinct summary of how official poverty estimates are measured in India, what have been some of the major debates and what has been the history in terms of setting poverty thresholds. It also provides a glimpse at some of the more recent developments in poverty...

This chapter analyzes how the poverty rate has changed since 1985 due to demographic changes, long-term economic stagnation, and how tax and social security transfers have affected the poverty rate. The results can be summarized as follows. Looking at the poverty rate by age group in Japan, the...

This chapter begins by attributing miracle poverty reductions in China to the opening-up and market-oriented reform strategy. The strategy led to fast growth as well as rising inequality, whose roles in driving poverty trends are then quantified and discussed. The contributions and effectiveness...