Are we there yet? Using the Bristol Approach to examine trends in absolute poverty in sub Saharan Africa between 1995 and 2015.

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This project will provide reliable, high quality data for assessing trends in poverty in sub Saharan Africa (SSA) between 1995 and 2015. The region contains many of the world's poorest countries, and as the 2015 deadline for the internationally-agreed Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) approaches, it is important to know whether or not poverty in the region is falling. Using an internationally-accepted definition of absolute poverty, and a ground-breaking peer-reviewed methodology, the project will use nationally-representative household surveys, with individual-level data, to develop age- and gender- relevant indicators of deprivation for basic needs. These data and indicators will be used to answer a series of important questions about the extent and distribution of poverty in SSA. For example, do women and girls make up a disproportionate share of the poor in Africa? Is poverty reduction occurring more rapidly in urban areas than in rural areas? Which counties in SSA have achieved the largest reductions in poverty, and how have they achieved this? Has child poverty declined at the same rate as adult poverty? What are the implications for policy of using different methods to measure poverty in Africa? Data produced by the research will allow for the creation of thematic maps, which will reveal graphically the countries/regions making most progress in reducing poverty and deprivation of basic needs. These data will be of interest to and can be used by academics across a range of disciplines, policy makers, non-governmental organisations and international development agencies interested in poverty and development in SSA. The work is important because existing indicators of extreme poverty, like the World Bank's $1/day measure, have been roundly criticised on both theoretical and methodological grounds. Critics have demonstrated that such indicators underestimate the extent of poverty, and as such are not reliable of valid measures. This project will demonstrate that meaningful alternative indicators can be developed and used to show how levels of poverty in SSA have changed over time. It builds on earlier work done by the University of Bristol for UNICEF and the UK DfID, which made a significant impact in the ways in which poverty is conceptualised, defined and measured. For example, the methods of poverty measurement and indicators developed by the University of Bristol now form a core part of UNICEF's Global Study of Child Poverty and Disparities, being conducted in over 50 countries around the world, including India and China. This new project will provide data to show whether or not anti-poverty policies applied in sub Saharan African countries over the last twenty years have been successful.