Engaging International Institutions in Multidimensional Poverty

The objective of this proposal is to share the academic, credible, evidence-based information generated in the original ESRC-DFID grant to transform the way that the United Nations institutions and associated international institutions measure and report on poverty. Through discussion, debate and presentations of research results, OPHI and collaborators will engage in the process of discussing the (improved) indicators that will measure poverty in all its dimensions in the new Sustainable Development Goals. This work, in turn, will have a direct economic and social impact on global poverty. This proposal thus responds to a unique moment in time when actors are determining the indicators to measure the Sustainable Development Goals.

The uptake of the ESRC-DFID sponsored research at the national level led to OPHI being awarded the International Impact award by ESRC last year. This proposal moves the ESRC-DFIC grant's targeted impact audience from national level policy makers to the international level, where the United Nations Statistics Division has convened an inter agency expert working group to define the indicators that will measure poverty (among other topics) over the next 15 years as part of the Sustainable Development Objectives (SDGs). More specifically, the target audiences include the UN Statistics Division and the Governments that make it up; the Inter-Agency Expert Working Group on SDG Indicators, the World Bank, the lead agency focused on global poverty measurement (which is itself considering new global poverty indicators with OPHI as an Advisor on its commission); the Foreign Affairs Offices and UN Missions of selected countries and key stakeholders in global poverty measurement such as the Sustainable Development Solutions Network.

The crucial time for this debate, discussion and decision-making is between September and March 2016. We plan to communicate this body of research to these audiences in order to educate the debate and decision-making on measuring poverty within the SDGs. The specific activities planned include:

- Join with governments in the Multidimensional Poverty Peer Network in a Side Event at the United Nations General Assembly to discuss the new global MPI and its relevance as an indicator in the SDGs.
- Disseminate the new OPHI authored OUP book to the target audiences and promote seminar discussions with statisticians at the UN and World Bank.
- One-on-one discussions with key figures at the World Bank, the UN, National UN representatives and key non-state stakeholders (such as the SDSN) to discuss the research findings and their relevance.
- At least two meetings of a working group of MPPN countries to discuss the research findings and how to broaden the discussion to Foreign Ministries, national UN Missions and statisticians and others involved in the SDG Indicator process.
- With its MPPN partner countries hold a side event at the UN Statistics Commission Annual Meeting in March 2016. This side event could be essential in the UN debate and decision making process on indicators.
- Throughout this grant period, OPHI will prepare and disseminate results packaged for these research users through appropriate channels.

These specific activities would benefit the technical staff, statisticians and evidence-based policy makers who would emerge with better knowledge of and understanding of the multidimensional poverty measurement methodologies and their practicality for policy. This would give them the tools needed as they set the indicators for the new SDGs.

If the results of OPHI's research were to be adopted by the UN, it would transform the way the world not only views but also deals with poverty in an integrated and multi-sectoral manner, informing national public policies over the next few decades. The impact would be on the extreme poor at a global level.

Our goal is to transform the way the United Nations and related international institutions view and measure poverty, in all countries. The best way to understand this is to compare what we are proposing with the complementary indicator of poverty: the $1.25 a day extreme poverty income standard set by the World Bank, then by the Millennium Development Goals 15 years ago. For years this income line has defined extreme poverty. Every country in the world was held to that minimum standard and most mobilized resources and activated policies to eradicate extreme income poverty. Our research has found that countries can do the same to tackle multidimensional poverty - the multiple deprivations that people suffer at the same time. These might include lack of education, lack of health care, malnutrition, lack of safe drinking water and poor housing. What we are placing before the international community is the need for a minimum standard of multidimensional poverty to be established within the Sustainable Development Goals, parallel to the $1.25 income poverty measure. Our and others' research has clearly shown that this complementary measure often differs from income poverty levels and trends to income poverty, because different policies affect it. Thus creating a new headline measure for poverty also creates incentives for integrated policies to tackle non-monetary deprivations.

OPHI has developed a methodology for measuring multidimensional poverty in order to track and energise progress towards reducing it. If this were to be adopted in the SDGs, it would transform the way the world not only views but deals with poverty, informing national public policies in most countries over the next few years. The impact would be on the extreme poor at a global level. Those who are poor because of multiple deprivations in education, health, housing, nutrition, and services would no longer be dismissed, forgotten, or visible only as part of a large and complex dashboard.

The impact would thus be on the poor, on governments and on those international agencies and NGOs working on poverty. The specific activities contemplated in the grant application would benefit the technical staff, statisticians and evidence-based policy makers who would benefit from a better knowledge of and understanding of the multidimensional poverty measurement methodologies and their practicality for policy. Much of the specific activities contemplated are aimed at this group so that they may have the tools needed as they set the indicators for the new SDGs.

How will these groups benefit? The target audiences will benefit through increased awareness and knowledge of these new methodologies. Governments will benefit by having clear international standards for multidimensional as well as income extreme poverty. The poor will benefit because over time, poverty programs would change to meet this new, more realistic definition of poverty-and to meet the global standard set by the United Nations.

The involvement of the MPPN in this project will help to insure its impact. The MPPN is a network of 40 countries from Africa, Asia and Latin America focused on reducing poverty through multidimensional poverty measurement and programs. These countries also are very involved in helping to have multidimensional poverty measurement in the SDGs. They will be active participants throughout this project. The impact will therefore also be on the MPPN, strengthening it as an organization that is quickly growing. Our expectation is that each m member country will deepen its understanding and therefore commitment to multidimensional poverty measurement.

We have found that the pathway to impact combines technical knowledge and political will. The MPPN brings both Statisticians and Policymakers into the debate. Their active participation will help impact the World Bank and the UN. They in turn will be impacted by this work at the international level.