[PEN-L:32809] Re: Counting the poor

[Michael Pollak <mpollak@xxxxxxxxx>]

> HOW NOT TO COUNT THE POOR
> Sanjay G. Reddy and Thomas W. Pogge

<snip>

> The systematic distortion introduced by these three flaws likely leads
> to a large understatement of the extent of global income poverty and to
> an incorrect inference that it has declined.

According to Reddy and Pogge's analysis, in most cases if *nothing*
happens in a country over a period of years, its poverty rate will still
decline using the WB measure.

Their alternative, rather than turning on a mythical dollar a day, turns
on among of calories and quality of food as well as other HDI indicators.
Which they say can be made more reliable year to year and country to
country than the dollar a day measure.

Michael