1996年-世界发展银行全球_Kenya___Participatory_Poverty_Assessment_4页_464kb

Kenya: Participatory Poverty Assessment Summary

Core Content

The Kenya Participatory Poverty Assessment (PPA), conducted in 1994 by the World Bank in collaboration with the Government of Kenya, aimed to complement statistical studies of poverty and provide deeper insights from the perspective of the poor and service providers. The PPA used a participatory approach to understand the lived experiences of poverty, including its causes, consequences, and the coping mechanisms of the poor, especially female-headed households.

Main Objectives

• To understand poverty from the perspective of the poor and those providing services to them.
• To initiate a dialogue between policymakers, district-level providers, and the poor.
• To evaluate the "value added" of the PPA method in understanding poverty.

Methodology

• The PPA was conducted in seven districts, five of which were selected based on the results of the 1992 Welfare Monitoring Survey (WMS).
• A total of 3,500 people from 35 clusters or villages were surveyed, with a small sample of female-headed households in two Nairobi slums.
• Eleven data collection methods were used, including SARAR, Participatory Rural Appraisal, and brief household questionnaires.
• Methods also included mapping, wealth ranking, focus group discussions, and gender analysis.

Key Findings

What is Poverty? Who are the Poor?

• Poverty was widespread, with estimates ranging from 54% to 85% of the population being poor or very poor.
• The poor diversified their income sources, such as small-scale farming, peddling, and informal labor.
• Poverty was seen as an intergenerational phenomenon and also a result of changing circumstances like drought, inflation, and land subdivision.

Perceptions of the Poor

• The poor identified lack of food (46%) and lack of money (30%) as their most pressing challenges.
• There was a significant gap between the understanding of district officials and the poor, with officials often using negative stereotypes about the poor.
• The poor viewed themselves as hard-working and concerned about their future, in contrast to the official portrayal.

How the Poor Perceive Their Future

• 85% of the poor believed their situation would worsen in the future.
• In some villages, this belief reached 97%, indicating a deep sense of insecurity and lack of hope.

Inflation and Its Impact

• Inflation was a major contributor to growing poverty.
• Prices of basic commodities like sugar and cooking oil increased by 20-25% annually from 1984-1992, and then by 100-150% from 1992-1994.

Access to Basic Services

• Water: Access to safe water was a major issue, especially during the dry season. However, communities with the capacity managed simple water systems effectively.
• Education: Cost-sharing in schools placed a heavy burden on poor families, leading to school dropouts. Girls were more likely to be withdrawn from school than boys.
• Health: Poor people visited health facilities only as a last resort due to issues like distance, unofficial fees, and poor service quality.

Poverty and Female-Headed Households

• Female-headed households were disproportionately affected by poverty, with 44% in the poorest category compared to 21% of male-headed households.
• Women faced challenges in accessing land and were more vulnerable to food insecurity.
• Women often engaged in labor exchange for food and relied on self-help networks like Harambee.

Harambee and Indigenous Networks

• Indigenous self-help networks, such as Harambee, play a critical role in supporting the poor.
• However, these networks are undercapitalized and often fail to reach the most vulnerable.
• Women's self-help groups have significant potential for income generation but remain largely untapped.
• Despite hardships, women's groups in Mandera continued to provide support through petty trading and other activities.

Box 1: Comparison of PPA and WMS Findings

Note: Cluster sampling was not closely followed in Kisumu.

Box 2: Trend Analysis as Perceived by Poor People

Box 3: A Women's Self-Help Group

• In Mandera, a women's group persisted despite extreme environmental challenges.
• The group engaged in small-scale farming, petty trading, and other income-generating activities.
• After losing poultry and goats to disease and drought, they shifted to selling sweets, cigarettes, and biscuits.
• Despite limited resources, they continued to support the most destitute members of the community.

Conclusion

The PPA highlighted the importance of understanding poverty from the ground up, emphasizing the need for policies that are sensitive to local realities and the role of indigenous networks in poverty alleviation. It also pointed out the critical challenges faced by female-headed households and the urgent need for targeted support to improve access to basic services and economic opportunities.