36 million people still go smarting under acute poverty: study.

from the United News of Bangladesh

About a quarter of the population of Bangladesh are in acute poverty and hunger. That stat comes from report that was presented at a "Understanding Chronic Poverty and Poverty Dynamics in Rural Bangladesh" workshop in Dhaka. - Kale

Chronic Poverty Research Centre (CPRC), Data Analysis and Technical Assistance Ltd. (DATA) and The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) arranged the workshop.

Government officials, researchers and civil-society representatives attended the workshop with Dr Quazi Shahabuddin, Director General, Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS), in the chair.

CPRC's Study Coordinator Dr Bob Baulch and Dr Peter Davis presented the pros and cons of the findings.

The study focused on three key aspects of poverty in rural Bangladesh - poor people's perceptions of what makes them poor, the factors that create and perpetuate their poverty and the patterns of loss and gain that they directly experience.

Conducted on 18,000 households across the country, the study found that while close to half the households surveyed moved out of poverty, around one-fifth remained chronically poor and small percentage fell into poverty.

These households were found to be extremely vulnerable to unexpected shocks, such as illness, dowry and wedding expenses and natural disasters like floods and cyclones.

Bob Baulch said unlike previous studies, this research integrates two types of important data-household survey data and individual life histories-to provide a deeper understanding of the causes of chronic poverty in the rural Bangladesh.

The researchers found households having lower education levels, owning less land, holding fewer non-land assets and livestock, and having many young children and elderly members face the most difficulty escaping poverty trap.

DATA's managing director Zihadul Hassan, PROSHIKA's Director of Research Dr Iqbal Khan, CPRC Director Dr Andrew Shepherd and BRAC's executive director Dr Mahabub Hossain, among others, addressed the workshop.

Zihadul Hassan said, "The study makes it clear that rural households are particularly vulnerable to crises."