Abstract
The main objective of this research is to identify the key determinants of poverty of household in Rwanda based on asset index and semi parametric modeling. The asset index for each household is established and thereafter the generalized additive mixed model is used to ascertain the key determinants of poverty of households in Rwanda. The semi parametric generalized additive mixed model allowed us to study the impact of nonlinear predictors as nonparametric and categorical predictors as parametric to the asset index. Using the Rwanda Demographic and Health Survey (2010), the characteristics of households and household heads are considered. Our findings show that the level of education, gender and age of household head, region (province), size of the household (number of household members) and place of residence (urban or rural) are significant predictors of poverty of households in Rwanda.
Highlights
The measurement of the socio-economic status of household is essential for health research, program targeting and policy monitoring and evaluation
Based on the asset index from RDHS (2010) and the generalized additive mixed model, this paper identified the key determinants of poverty of households in Rwanda
The results showed that the education level, gender and age of a household head, the size of household, place of residence and province are the determinants of poverty of households in Rwanda
Summary
The measurement of the socio-economic status of household is essential for health research, program targeting and policy monitoring and evaluation. The measurement and analysis of poverty in developing countries has classically been built on income and consumption. Sahn and Stifel (2003) studied the theoretical framework underpinning household income or expenditure as a tool for classifying socio-economic status (SES) in developing countries. Several researchers (Filmer & Pritchett, 1998; Filmer & Pritchett, 2001; Montgomery et al, 2000; Lokosang et al, 2014) used Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to create an asset index, using the demographic health survey variables such as durable goods, source of drinking water, toilet facility and housing quality to describe the household welfare, instead of using a household’s income or expenditure
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
