Non-poor Groups Research Articles

Impact of Microcredit on Poverty Reduction in Bangladesh: a cross-sectional study

Purpose: Usually, microcredit is known as the providing of “small loans” to the poorer group of the population although it differs from country to country. Many poor and hardcore poor people have been taken the microcredit to reduce their poverty. This study aimed to detect the impact of microcredit on poverty reduction among different levels of poor people. Methodology: Primary data were collected using cluster sampling from the 14 different slum areas from Sylhet city in Bangladesh (n= 408) based on a semi-structured questionnaire during October 2023 to December 2023. Descriptive statistical analysis and Generalized Estimating Equations (GEE) were used to analyze the data. Findings: It was observed that among the participants 76% are male and 24% are female. Around 84.1% individuals were taking microcredit from the different NGOs and among them 91.6% got benefit from their loan and their income was increasing 14.6% as well. It was also observed that 54.4% people are anxious about their food and 15.9% people are sleeping with hunger. Results also revealed that after taking microcredit the average percentage of hardcore poor people are significantly decreased compared with non-poor. It may indicate that after taking microcredit hardcore poor people invest their loan more appropriately compare to poor and non-poor groups of people. Conclusions: Taken together, we conclude that microcredit might play better role for hardcore poor people. To get more success of microcredit and hence for sustainable development- government and non-government organizations should pay more attention to reduce the interest rate of loans.

THE EFFECT OF PARTICIPATION IN JKN ON UNMET NEEDS FOR HEALTHCARE SERVICES

Background: The National Health Insurance or Jaminan Kesehatan Nasional (JKN) program is one of the steps taken by the Indonesian government in developing Universal Health Coverage (UHC). However, increased participation in the National Health Insurance is not followed by an increase in met needs for healthcare services. Aims: This study aimed to examine the effect of participation in the National Health Insurance on unmet needs for healthcare services in poor and non-poor population groups. Methods: This study used data from the 2018 National Socio-Economic Survey/ Survei Sosial Ekonomi Nasional (SUSENAS) and Village Potential Survey/ Survei Potensi Desa (PODES). Data were processed using binary logistic model analysis to identify the effect of participation in the National Health Insurance on the unmet needs for healthcare services. Results: Participation in the National Health Insurance, including beneficiary program for poor groups could reduce the risks of unmet needs for healthcare services by 7.7%, while non-beneficiary program could reduce the risks of unmet needs for health services for non-poor groups by 10.4%. Conclusion: Both beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries affect the unmet needs for health services for both poor and non-poor groups. However, the non-beneficiary program is more elastic than beneficiary program to fulfill needs for both sample groups. Keywords: Healthcare services, national health insurance, logit, unmet need

Misclassification Error, Binary Regression Bias, and Reliability in Multidimensional Poverty Measurement: An Estimation Approach Based on Bayesian Modelling

ABSTRACT Measurement error affects the quality of population orderings of an index and, hence, increases the misclassification of the poor and the non-poor groups and affects statistical inferences from binary regression models. Hence, the conclusions about the extent, profile, and distribution of poverty are likely to be misleading. However, the size and type (false positive/negatives) of classification error have remained untraceable in poverty research. This paper draws upon previous theoretical literature to develop a Bayesian-based estimator of population misclassification and binary-regression coefficient bias. The study uses the reliability values of existing poverty indices to set up a Monte Carlo study based on factor mixture models to illustrate the connections between measurement error, misclassification, and bias and evaluate the procedure and discusses its importance for real-world applications.

Equity in the usage of biologics for psoriasis in the working poor.

Biologic therapy often produces excellent outcomes for psoriasis; however, their high cost may create a barrier to appropriate usage, especially in the working poor population. This study defines working poor as income below 150% of the federal poverty level and holding or seeking work at least half a year. Our study aims to identify gaps in access to biologic therapy for psoriasis based on working poor status. This retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted utilizing data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) from 2007 to 2018. Patients were stratified into working poor (57,091), non-working poor (43,421), and non-poor (693,841) groups for analysis. In univariate analysis, WP (4.0%, ph p = 0.003) and NWP (2.8%, ph p = 0.006) were less likely to use biologics than NP (15.8%) (X2 p < 0.001). A binary logistic regression showed that WP vs. NP status (OR 0.27, p = 0.05), female vs. male sex (OR 0.55, p = 0.05), Black vs. White race (OR 0.14, p = 0.02), and Medicare vs. private insurance (OR 0.09, p = 0.03) had lower odds of using biologics. After correcting for age, sex, race, and insurance, WP confers an independent risk factor to lower biologic prescriptions. The high cost of biologics in the setting of financial barriers for some patients should be considered by physicians prescribing biologic therapy for psoriasis.

Maternal and Child Health Benefits of the Mamata Conditional Cash Transfer Program in Odisha, India.

Conditional cash transfers (CCTs) are demand-side interventions that link cash receipt to fulfilment of health-promoting conditions such as regular health check-ups and investment in human capital. In 2011, the Indian state of Odisha, implemented a statewide CCT program-the Mamata Scheme-towards improving maternal/child health outcomes and promoting health-seeking behavior. Mamata targets pregnant and lactating women aged ≥19 y, and provides a sizable financial incentive relative to household income levels. We aimed to longitudinally examine whether, and to what extent, initiation of the Mamata scheme corresponded with changes in health and nutrition outcomes in Odisha, relative to comparison states in India. Outcomes included maternal health service utilization [antenatal care (ANC), iron-folic acid supplementation, breastfeeding counseling, full child immunization, tetanus vaccination, vitamin A supplementation] and nutrition [anemia during pregnancy and stunting, anemia in children <5 y old (U5)]. Data on outcomes and covariates were obtained from 3 waves of India's National Family Health Surveys corresponding to the years 1999, 2006, and 2016. We used difference-in-differences (DID) estimation strategy to estimate the impact of the program. The pooled sampled size comprised >200,000 mother-child dyads. Tests of parallel trends indicated that preintervention trends were similar across all outcomes in Odisha with the exception of anemia. When comparing Odisha with other states for health services, DID models indicated that exposure to Mamata corresponded with increased odds of counseling for breastfeeding (OR: 2.74; 95% CI: 1.97, 3.80), ANC receipt (OR: 1.51; 95% CI: 1.15, 1.99), and full immunization (OR: 1.69; 95% CI: 1.37, 2.08). DID models also indicated decline in stunting (OR: 0.92; 95% CI: 0.84, 1.02) and anemia (OR: 0.62; 95% CI: 0.54, 0.71) among U5 children in Odisha following Mamata, relative to comparison states. Models comparing poor with nonpoor groups indicated the presence of heterogeneous effects. This study provides proof-of-concept for potential improvements in maternal and child nutrition outcomes following CCTs that incentivize health care utilization in India.

Migration and child health: Understanding the coverage of child immunization among migrants across different socio-economic groups in India

Factors such as education, caste, religion, and wealth index have been known to influence child immunization coverage in India. We are interested in understanding whether migration has any influence on these factors. Not many studies have analyzed migration as a factor for child immunization uptake in India. This paper is therefore attempts to understand the inequality in accessing different child vaccination coverage across migrants and non-migrants in India. The objective of this study to look at the immunization uptake among migrants children in different socio-economic groups in comparison to non-migrants children in India. Study used data from the National Family Health Survey, the fourth in the NFHS series which was conducted in 2015–2016. Logistic regression was done to compare migrants and non– migrants by the selected background characteristics. Further, decomposition analysis was employed to decompose the difference between migrant and non-migrant. Overall, migrants’ children have better vaccination coverage compared to non-migrant. Education and wealth index is found to be an important variables to explain the vaccination status between migrants and non-migrants. The age of the mother is also an important variable explaining the difference between migrant and non-migrant. Regression analysis suggests that migration among poor, SC/ST and non-literate groups might not improve vaccination compared to non-migrants in those groups. On the contrary, migration help in improving vaccination of children in literate, other caste groups, and non-poor groups. The finding adds to the notion that migrants in literate, wealthy, non-SC/ST groups will be better positioned to improve their health. A focused approach to improving immunization for the low socio-economic vulnerable groups can be useful in improving immunization among children in India.

The Impact of Social Capital, Self-Efficacy, and Resilience on the Prosocial Involvement of Adolescents from Families with and without Economic Disadvantages

This study examined the effects of social capital, self-efficacy, and resilience on youth prosocial involvement. The investigation was based on a comparative sample of senior middle-school students, including 571 from families with economic disadvantages as the poor group and 1047 without these disadvantages as the non-poor group. The results from the multiple-group structural equation modeling suggest that among family, school, peer, and community social capital, only school social capital has a significant direct effect on prosocial involvement. In addition, community social capital could only indirectly affect prosocial involvement for the poor group, and family social capital could only indirectly affect prosocial involvement for the non-poor group, through self-efficacy and resilience. Compared with self-efficacy, resilience was found to be a more effective mediator between social capital variables and adolescent prosocial involvement. Most of the paths are similar for the poor and the non-poor groups; however, family social capital shows a stronger effect for the poor group, and school social capital has a stronger effect for the non-poor group. These findings have critical implications for theory, practice, and future research.

The suburbanisation of poverty in British cities, 2004-16: extent, processes and nature

ABSTRACTThis paper tracks changes in relative centralisation and relative concentration of poverty for the 25 largest British cities, analysing change for poor and non-poor groups separately, and examining parallel changes in spatial segregation. The paper confirms that poverty is suburbanising, at least in the larger cities, although poverty remains over-represented in inner locations. Suburbanisation is occurring through both the reduction in low income populations in inner locations and the growth non-poor groups in these places, consistent with a process of displacement. Relative centralisation of poverty has fallen more stronglythan relative concentration of poverty, as the outward shift of poorer groups leaves them still living in denser neighbourhoods on average. The paper also shows that spatial segregation (unevenness) declined at the same time although it remains to be seen whether this indicates a long-term shift to less segregated urban forms or a transitional outcome before new forms of segregation emerge around suburban poverty concentrations.

Differential Characteristics of Poor and Non-Poor Communities in Malaybalay City

Poverty is a multi-dimensional phenomenon. In this study, eight dimensions were considered: demography, economic activities, environmental sanitation, literacy and education, social welfare, food shortage and food threshold of 14,528 households of Malaybalay City, Bukidnon. Given these dimensions, discriminant analysis was used to establish the characteristics of poor and non-poor households on the basis of multiple responses on all households. The classification results reveal 87.9% of households were classified correctly into poor and non-poor groups. Initial results further revealed that literacy and education and environmental sanitation were the strongest predictors of the group classification. Furthermore, on the basis of the classification rule developed in the study, of the identified poor households only 32.14% were recipients of the poverty reduction program of the city while 67.86% of the recipients were actually non-poor. The classification rule developed by this study did not match the classification rule of the city. The analysis of this paper is certainly not of sufficient complexity to allow a comprehensive poverty reduction strategy for Malaybalay City to be devised entirely from this result. Nevertheless, it does provide policy planners with objective measures on the distribution of goods and services for poverty alleviation that might be realized from sectoral poverty reduction strategy. Policy planners should view this result as a guide to allocate resources for poverty reduction in a more informed evidence-based manner.Keywords: differential characteristics, poverty, discriminant analysis

The Impact of the Thai Flood of 2011 on the Rural Poor Population Living on the Flood Plain

Poor and non-poor groups from two flood-prone villages in central Thailand were compared following the flood of 2011. The results showed that the damage/income ratio was higher among persons in the poor group living in old, high-pillared houses near the river. Although this group was not as well prepared and experienced less damage than the non-poor group, they had fewer resources for recovery. The study examined household history, networks, and socio-economic status, as well as the local history. The poor group’s socio-economic characteristics may limit their capacity to resettle, as they have lived in the flood-prone area for generations. Proposals to address this included improving dykes and early warning systems as well as offering compensation for lost earnings.

High Awareness but Low Coverage of a Locally Produced Fortified Complementary Food in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire: Findings from a Cross-Sectional Survey.

Poor complementary feeding practices among infants and young children in Côte d’Ivoire are major contributing factors to the country’s high burden of malnutrition. As part of a broad effort to address this issue, an affordable, nutritious, and locally produced fortified complementary food product was launched in the Côte d’Ivoire in 2011. The objective of the current research was to assess various levels of coverage of the program and to identify coverage barriers. A cross-sectional household survey was conducted among caregivers of children less than 2-years of age living in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. Four measures of coverage were assessed: “message coverage” (i.e., has the caregiver ever heard of the product?), “contact coverage” (i.e., has the caregiver ever fed the child the product?), “partial coverage” (i.e., has the caregiver fed the child the product in the previous month?), and “effective coverage” (i.e., has the caregiver fed the child the product in the previous 7 days?). A total of 1,113 caregivers with children between 0 and 23 months of age were interviewed. Results showed high message coverage (85.0%), moderate contact coverage (37.8%), and poor partial and effective coverages (8.8% and 4.6%, respectively). Product awareness was lower among caregivers from poorer households, but partial and effective coverages were comparable in both poor and non-poor groups. Infant and young child feeding (IYCF) practices were generally poor and did not appear to have improved since previous assessments. In conclusion, the results from the present study indicate that availability on the market and high awareness among the target population is not sufficient to achieve high and effective coverage. With market-based delivery models, significant efforts are needed to improve demand. Moreover, given the high prevalence of malnutrition and poor IYCF practices, additional modes of delivering IYCF interventions and improving IYCF practices should be considered.

Poverty and Health: Children of Rural-to-Urban Migrant Workers in Beijing, China

China’s domestic rural-to-urban migration has reached a stage where migration in family units is common, and basic data on the wellbeing of these families in urban settings are required for adequate social services. To obtain such data, we conducted a large-scale (N = 16,550) cross-sectional survey in Beijing of rural-to-urban migrant workers’ children attending the fourth through ninth grades, including subsamples classified as poor (18.3 % of the total) and non-poor (16.1 %). Those in the non-poor group were comparable in affluence to the host population average. We found that overall physical health was good, with no difference between the poor and non-poor groups. Poor children, however, had worse mental health, and were at higher risk of mental health problems because of lower self-esteem, less family support, and lower monthly household income than non-poor children. This is the first study to analyze data obtained from poor children who constitute nearly one-fifth of the domestic migrant population in China. In addition to pointing out the higher level of risk for this group’s mental health, our research suggests a need for countermeasures to improve self-esteem, maintain physical health, and emphasize family support. These results will help enable future hypothesis-verification mode survey research to illuminate general determinants and regulatory processes of health for migrant children, by providing large-scale survey data for a representative upper-middle-income country for comparison with previously accumulated data from high-income countries .

Personal Well-Being and Family Quality of Life of Early Adolescents in Hong Kong: Do Economic Disadvantage and Time Matter?

Differences in personal well-being and family quality of life in Chinese adolescents with and without economic disadvantage as well as the related developmental trends were examined in a longitudinal study. Over three consecutive years, Chinese junior secondary school students responded to validated measures of positive youth development, risk behaviors and perceived family functioning. Consistent with our hypotheses, results showed that poor adolescents had poorer positive youth development and perceived family functioning than did non-poor adolescents. Although there was no difference between the poor and non-poor groups on substance abuse, significant interaction effect of poverty and time on substance abuse was observed. While there was a general drop in positive youth development and perceived family functioning over the years, adolescent risk behaviors gradually increased during the junior secondary school years in Hong Kong.

Microfinance and Livelihood Development in Poor Coastal Communities in Eastern Sri Lanka

Various organizations are involved in micro-financial programmes in Sri Lanka. There is limited knowledge on the impact of microfinance on the livelihood improvements among poor coastal communities who were affected by Tsunami in Eastern Sri Lanka. This study investigated the effectiveness of microfinance support for coastal communities&rsquo; livelihood development in Trincomalee. A survey was conducted using stratified randomly selected 99 microfinance beneficiary households in three identified coastal villages in three Grama Niladhari Divisions in Kinniya. The analysis was based on 2006 information as a benchmark. The analysis was conducted using a multiple linier regression with the factors determining the revolving fund efficiency (RFE). The study found an average of 39.5% and 14.2% increase in income and private savings, respectively in agriculture sectors. Although the poor and the poorest groups have been reached by microfinance institutions, 65% of their clients seem to be from the non-poor groups. About 90% of the young people reported lack of opportunities for modern livelihood supports. The RFE was 0.32% indicating that it was not well adopted in practice. This may be due to lack of responsiveness of the Community Based Organizations (CBO). The results of multiple regression analysis showed that age, education and family income and weakly facilitated RFE was affected significantly by private savings. To improve livelihoods of poor coastal communities, effective capacity building of CBOs on microfinance management, training and technical supports to young people in alternative non traditional livelihoods and creating market opportunities are important. <strong>Key words</strong>: Livelihood; Microfinance; Coastal Communities; Eastern Sri Lanka DOI: <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.4038/tar.v22i3.3706">http://dx.doi.org/10.4038/tar.v22i3.3706</a> &nbsp; <em>Tropical Agricultural Research </em>22(3) (2011) 330-336

Was Vietnam’s Economic Growth in the 1990s Pro-Poor? An Analysis of Panel Data from Vietnam

International aid agencies and almost all economists agree that economic growth is necessary for reducing poverty, yet some economists question whether it is sufficient for poverty reduction. Vietnam enjoyed rapid economic growth in the 1990s, but a modest increase in inequality during that decade raises the possibility that the poor in Vietnam benefited little from that growth. This article examines the extent to which Vietnam’s economic growth has been “pro-poor,” giving particular attention to two issues. The first is the appropriate comparison group. When comparing the poorest x% of the population at two points in time, should the poorest x% in the first time period be compared to the poorest x% in the second time period (some of whom were not the poorest x% in the first time period) or to the same people in the second time period (some of whom are no longer among the poorest x%)? The second is measurement error. Estimates of growth among the poorest x% of the population are likely to be biased if income or expenditure is measured with error. Household survey data show that Vietnam’s growth has been relatively equally shared across poor and nonpoor groups. Indeed, comparisons of the same people over time indicate that per capita expenditures of the poor increased much more rapidly than those of the nonpoor, although failure to correct for measurement error exaggerates this result.

Ways of Resolving Symptoms of Depression Preferred by Korean Older Adults: A Comparison Between Poor and Non-poor Groups

Ways of Resolving Symptoms of Depression Preferred by Korean Older Adults: A Comparison Between Poor and Non-poor Groups

How effectively can the New Cooperative Medical Scheme reduce catastrophic health expenditure for the poor and non-poor in rural China?

China has implemented the New Cooperative Medical Scheme (NCMS) in rural areas since 2003 to provide financial protection to its rural population. This article explores the effect of NCMS on relieving catastrophic health expenditure (CHE) among the poor and non-poor groups. A questionnaire survey was conducted in three counties, with a random sample of 358 poor and 523 non-poor NCMS enrollees who used inpatient services and obtained NCMS reimbursement in 2005. Majority of NCMS enrollees suffered CHE because of using inpatient services; the occurrence and intensity of CHE was greater among poor inpatients. NCMS reimbursement helped relieve CHE to a certain degree. Poor inpatients benefited more from NCMS than non-poor, but the effects varied among counties. Cost control measures and other medical financial assistance (MFA) helped reduce inpatients' economic burden. The objective of NCMS is only partly achieved. However, NCMS has promoted equity in health financing as poor inpatients can acquire more protection than the non-poor. Our analysis suggests that efforts should be made to improve NCMS design, strengthen cost containment and extend other MFA to further relieve economic burden of disease.

Civil society and propoor initiatives in rural Bangladesh: finding a workable strategy

This paper focuses on crafting a workable strategy for civil society advocacy in rural Bangladesh that can adequately represent the interests of the poorest groups. It shows how the poor and the poorest rely on patron–client ties, to avoid destitution and to survive, respectively, while arguing that the poor need to move beyond these inherently disempowering relationships. Recent agricultural progress will help such efforts, but elite domination must be expected to continue. Representatives of propoor groups should therefore ally initially with nonpoor groups to press for broader agendas that can gain widespread support, before pursuing more targeted agendas on behalf of their constituents.

Can Universal Access to Health Care Eliminate Health Inequities Between Children of Poor and Nonpoor Families?: A Case Study of Childhood Asthma in Alberta

Children from poor families are much more likely to have emergency visits for asthma than those from nonpoor families, which may be related to financial access barriers to good preventive care for the poor. We sought to determine whether in a health-care system that provides free access to outpatient and hospital services, the disparities in the rates of emergency visits for asthma would be less apparent across the income gradient. Longitudinal, population-based study. Alberta, Canada. All children born in Alberta, Canada between 1985 and 1988 (n = 90,845) were classified into three mutually exclusive groups based on the reported annual income of their parents from the previous year: very poor, poor, and nonpoor groups. We compared the relative risk (RR) of emergency visits for childhood asthma among children of very poor, poor, and nonpoor families using a Cox proportional hazard model during a 10-year follow-up. We found that the very poor children were 23% more likely to have had an emergency visit for asthma than those from nonpoor families (RR, 1.23; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.14 to 1.33), adjusted for a variety of factors. The poor group, however, had a similar risk of asthma emergency visits as the nonpoor group (RR, 0.97; 95% CI, 0.91 to 1.04). The average number of office visits for asthma was similar between the very poor and nonpoor groups. In a setting of universal access to health care, children of poor and nonpoor families had similar rates of asthma emergency visits; the very poor children, however, continued to experience an excess risk. These findings suggest that a universal health-care system can reduce, but not fully eliminate, the disparities in emergency utilization of asthma across income categories.

Household Welfare During Crisis and Adjustment in Ghana

A model of the producing and consuming household is developed and used to derive comparative static indicators of real welfare changes between periods that depend on observable data. Supply and demand models are then used to extend the model to a piecewise linear approximation of multi-period non-linear welfare changes. The framework is applied to Ghana, by specifying three poor and two non-poor groups based on micro-survey data, that comprise the whole population. Analysis of representative households suggest that real incomes of all households declined in the period before the Economic Recovery Program, and have risen afterwards. The changes in real incomes, however, are due to different reasons for each household class, depending on their structure of income. Copyright 1993 by Oxford University Press.