Rural Household Multidimensional Poverty and Vulnerability in Degu’a Tembien District, South Eastern Zone of Tigray, Ethiopia
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2019-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Persistent rural poverty continues to be one of the most striking development challenges of
Ethiopia and attracted the attention of policy makers, development practitioners and
researchers. This study aimed at assessing household’s multidimensional poverty and
vulnerability (to poverty) using multidimensional poverty measures and lenses focused on a set
of household capabilities and functioning’s in Degu’a Tembien District. To address this
objective, data were collected from primary and secondary sources. Using stratified random
sampling technique, 420 households were sampled from six rural villages to fill a questionnaire
that was used to collect primary data. The study used mixed research methods where crosssectional quantitative and qualitative approaches are used. Descriptive and inferential statistics
such as percentages, means, chi-square test and ANOVA test were employed to obtain the
distributional characteristics and to describe the associations and variations among variables of
interest. The research objectives were addressed using Multiple Correspondence Analysis
approach to construct asset indices, and Alkire and Foster methodology to estimate
multidimensional poverty. Whereas logistic regression was used to identify poverty determinants,
and the three-step Feasible Generalized Least Square was used to address vulnerability to
multidimensional poverty.
The paper initially investigates household’s asset endowments, which are the foundation of
household’s strategies to achieve livelihoods. The findings reveal that although assets are the
bases on which the livelihood of the poor depends, the general household’s asset capacity and
endowments are generally low. Households are poorly endowed with financial, natural, and
human capitals. The highest proportions of households (45.7%) were categorized in the middle
socioeconomic group while low proportions of households (20%) were concentrated in the
highest socioeconomic group. The cluster technique classified 34.3% of households under the
lowest socioeconomic positions.
The findings also indicated that household’s incidence of deprivation were generally higher and
widespread in landholding, livestock ownership, decision making on income, access to
electricity, energy for cooking and sanitation where largest percentage of deprivation (>50%)
were observed in each indictors. The adjusted headcount ratio, multidimensional headcount
ratio and the multidimensional poverty intensity of households were also found high. The living
standard dimension of poverty was the major contributor to households MPI while deprivation
in decision making on income, livestock ownership and landholding appears to be the larger
contributor indicators to overall Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI). Building on these
results, determinants of multidimensional poverty were investigated. Result of this analysis
shows that access to non-household labor, number of plots, contact with extension agents,
education level of the household head, household size and household’s annual income are
statistically significant determinants of multidimensional poverty.
Households were found highly exposed to various natural shocks particularly to drought, hailed
rainfall, flood and pest. Reducing the number and quality of food, relying on savings and sale of
livestock were the three dominant coping strategies following shocks. The finding of this
empirical analysis demonstrates that greater proportions of households (80.3%) are vulnerable
to future poverty, and the overall vulnerability incidence exceeds the current multidimensional
poverty rate. Out of the total vulnerable households, 24.4% of the currently non-poor households
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are at risk of becoming multidimensional poor while 55.9% of households who are currently
poor will remain vulnerable to future multidimensional poverty. The results also discloses that
ceteris paribus, female headed households, households with a better social capital, financial
asset and number of plots are associated with reduced vulnerability to multidimensional poverty
while households with better physical capital are found highly vulnerable. Household’s exposure
to drought, hailed rainfall and pest attack were highly vulnerable to multidimensional poverty
with higher average level of MPI deprivation. Those who were vulnerable to drought were also
found with lower expected volatility in their wellbeing. The finding also shows that households
that relied on savings, sale of livestock and formal borrowing of money to manage shocks are
associated with reduced vulnerability to future poverty.
In general, the empirical findings of this study have strong implications to vulnerability
reduction efforts in the Degu’a Tembien District. Building asset endowments of the vulnerable
should be the policy focus to increase and expand household’s capability to invest in various
livelihood activities. The most effective way of reducing poverty is not focusing on the current
poor households, but addressing the larger population who are at risk of becoming
multidimensional poor. Therefore, government should also focus on rural vulnerability reduction
program as a strategic effort to increase human and financial capital rather than piecemeal
dimension by dimension interventions targeted only on the currently poor households.
Key Words: Asset endowment; Multidimensional Poverty; Incidence; Intensity; Vulnerability;
Deprivation
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Keywords
Asset endowment; Multidimensional Poverty; Incidence; Intensity; Vulnerability; Deprivation