Poverty and Inequality Statistics, March 2012

Description

The World Bank periodically prepares poverty assessments of countries in which it has an active program, in close collaboration with national institutions, other development agencies, and civil society, including poor people's organizations. Assessments report the extent and causes of poverty and propose strategies to reduce it. Countries have varying definitions of poverty, and comparisons can be difficult. National poverty lines tend to have higher purchasing power in rich countries, where standards used are more generous than in poor countries. Poverty measures based on an international poverty line attempt to hold the real value of the poverty line constant across countries, including when making comparisons over time. Data here includes measures of population living below the national poverty line as well as the international poverty line. Also included are income distributions and urban and rural poverty