Vulnerability To Poverty: A Survey

There has been no consensus over the concept and measurement ofvulnerability to poverty (VP). Many scholars bring in different perspectives todiscuss various conceptual and measurement issues. This paper summarizes theavailable economic literature on the definitions and measurements of VP. Despitea lack of agreement, the concept of VP essentially captures the dynamic aspects ofpoverty, which are extremely important for formulating appropriate and effectivepoverty alleviation policies. This paper discusses the three basic approaches formeasuring VP. Further, the data-related issues are also discussed. Then the paperreviews previous studies on the vulnerability estimation for different countries andhighlights the relative importance of various shocks in determining vulnerability.Finally, the paper ends by raising a number of policy-related issues.