Poverty & Income Generation

Poverty can be defined in different ways. 'Absolute poverty' occurs when the family or individual lacks the money necessary to meet their basic needs – food, clothing, and shelter. But people also have other important needs. ‘Relative poverty’ occurs when low income prevents people from participating in the way that most other members of society enjoy.

A deeper view is that poverty is really about human rights – economic (the right to work and sufficient income), social (access to healthcare and education), political (freedom of expression and association) and cultural (the right to maintain one's cultural identity and be involved in community life).

In most countries, social mobility is very limited, so poverty is inherited. Usually it arises a result of forces that have weakened family or community structures and are outside their control – predatory globalisation, local corruption, environmental degradation. It can be seen as holes in the local social and economic fabric. 

The best way to address poverty is through projects, including microfinance, that enable the poor to generate their own income in their own setting with local resources.