Sustainable Poverty Escapes

Poverty is a dynamic phenomenon; while some people remain in poverty for long periods of time, over the same period others escape poverty, others fall into poverty and yet others escape poverty and fall back into it. In other words, poverty reduction is not a one-way street.

Research on the alarming rates at which people are escaping and then falling back into poverty in the face of shocks and stresses underscores the broader relevance of resilience to sustainably reducing hunger, poverty and malnutrition. It also highlights the need to look at the compound nature of shocks and stresses over time, including the everyday shocks and stresses that inhibit the ability of households and communities to sustainably escape poverty.