Poverty should not be measured only in terms of income: Oxford professor

GUWAHATI, May 2:  Sabi Alkire, Director Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative at the University of Oxford delivered a lecture on the theme “Multi-Dimensiol Poverty: Ideas, measures and Policy Relevance” on Monday at the Conference Hall of Omeo Kumar Das Institute of Social Change and Development, a press release said.

Alkire in her speech spoke on the issue of different dimensions of poverty and how different aspects affect the very ture of it.  She stressed on the fact that a complex concept like poverty should not be measured only in terms of income. It warrants rather an all inclusive and broader understanding. To comprehend and measure this complexity, she had developed the Multi Dimensiol Poverty Index and in the lecture she has shown how that index is used in different contexts to measure poverty. In fact, in the fil documents of United tions Sustaible Development Goals (SDG), the concept of multi dimensiol poverty has been used extensively. Drawing on examples from different countries particularly from Latin America, she has demonstrated how the concept has been successfully used in poverty eradication. This measure is helpful in bringing about policy changes in those countries.  In her lecture she also made an appeal to the Government of Assam to develop its own index to better address poverty in the state.