UK Academic

Bradshaw, Professor Jonathan, University of York
With many free unpublished research papers on child poverty, including several papers on the Poverty and Social Exclusion Survey of Britain.

Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion (CASE), London School of Economics
CASE focuses on exploration of different dimensions of social disadvantage, particularly from longitudinal and neighbourhood perspectives, and examination of the impact of public policy. There is an excellent collection of free publications on social exclusion and poverty.

Centre for Research in Social Policy (CRSP), University of Loughborough
CRSP is an independent research unit conducting high quality work in the field of social policy. See their Poverty and Social Exclusion page in particular.

Centre for Research into Socially Inclusive Services (CRSIS), Heriot-Watt University
CRSIS is an interdisciplinary research centre which stimulates, supports, undertakes and disseminates research into the provision and use of local private and public services in deprived areas. It is one of the few organisations anywhere in the World which does this kind of research.

Chronic Poverty Research Centre (CPRC), University of Manchester
CPRC is an international partnership of universities, research institutes and NGOs which exists to stimulate debate and deepen understanding of the causes of chronic poverty, and to provide research, analysis and policy guidance that will contribute to its reduction. CPRC was established in 2000 with initial funding from DFID UK.

ESRC Centre for Neighbourhood Research (Site available but no longer maintained)
Aims to advance theoretical and empirical understanding of neighbourhoods and neighbourhood renewal. It provides a resource for other researchers and policy makers working in this field through an assessment of existing evidence and through original research.

Institute of Development Studies (IDS), Sussex
IDS is a leading global organisation for research, teaching and communications on international development. The research programmes at IDS are organised in five closely linked multidisciplinary teams: Vulnerability and Poverty Reduction; Knowledge, Technology and Society; Globalisation; Governance; Participation, Power and Social Change.

Independent Inquiry into Inequalities in Health Report
This inquiry, chaired by Sir Donald Acheson, is the most recent major review of the causes of inequalities in health. The evidence submitted to the review team has been published by the Townsend Centre for International Poverty Research (Inequalities in health: The evidence presented to the Independent inquiry into Inequalities in Health) as part of the Poverty, Inequality and Social Exclusion book series in collaboration with the Policy Press.

Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS): Inequality, poverty and well-being
The distribution of income, consumption and wealth continues to be a central area of IFS research. Amongst the many aspects of their work in this area, they seek to chart, explain, and understand changes in inequality in wages, earnings, incomes and consumption, in the UK and other countries; they also seek to examine the effectiveness of a wide range of policies aimed at reducing poverty - including taxes and benefits, and other types of policy interventions - both in the UK and abroad.

Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR)
The IPPR is the UK’s leading progressive think tank, producing cutting edge research and innovative policy ideas for a just, democratic and sustainable world. Also see their research page for current special research programmes and research themes.

Institute for Social and Economic Research (ISER), University of Essex
ISER specialises in the production and analysis of longitudinal data – evidence which tracks changes in the lives of the same individuals over time. Research at ISER focuses primarily on the life-course of the individual and the changing nature of society. Work to date has examined the family; labour markets, income and poverty, social disadvantage and public policy. ISER is home to the ESRC Research Centre on Micro-Social Change, an interdisciplinary centre with a prestigious team of staff with a wide range of expertise in social science disciplines, including economics, sociology, demography, geography and statistics.

Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Lots of free summaries of research on poverty, social exclusion and related issues (requires registration). Some of the key issues they work on are poverty and social exclusion and child poverty.

New Policy Institute (NPI)
Think tank that produces the annual report on Monitoring Poverty and Social Exclusion for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. See also their statistics page.

Oxford University Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI)
OPHI is a research centre within the Oxford Department of International Development, Queen Elizabeth House, at the University of Oxford. Led by Sabina Alkire, OPHI aspires to build a more systematic methodological and economic framework to underlie poverty reduction. OPHI has two research themes at present: the identification of missing dimensions for measurement of poverty, and the development and testing of survey modules in different countries; the examination of issues relating to the comparisons of multidimensional poverty, and the application of new methodologies in different countries.

Personal Finance Research Centre (PfRC), University of Bristol
Some excellent research work on financial exclusion.

Poverty and Social Exclusion in Northern Ireland
Provides data that allow Northern Ireland to be compared with the results of the British Poverty and Social Exclusion Survey.

Scottish Centre for Research and Social Justice (SCRSJ), University of Glasgow
SCRSJ sought to integrate research and develop new research capacity in the field of social justice. The SCRSJ was established in January 2002 and aimed to:

Reveal patterns of social injustice;
Explore the processes involved in its emergence and persistence;
Inform policies which can alleviate inequalities and exclusion; and
Contribute to wider debates on the nature of social justice.

Also visit their research page to find out more about completed research projects.

Scottish Poverty Information Unit, Glasgow Caledonian University
The Scottish Poverty Information Unit aims to research and collate information about poverty in Scotland and to make it accessible to community groups, voluntary organisations and people working in the anti-poverty field. The Unit also hopes to make a contribution by providing information needed to develop and evaluate effective anti-poverty work.

Social Disadvantage Research Group (SDRC), University of Oxford
These researchers were responsible for developing the new Index of Multiple Deprivation for the Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions. The SDRC also produced a similar Index of Multiple Deprivation for Wales and a deprivation Index for Northern Ireland. A list of their research projects can be found here.

Social Policy Research Unit (SPRU), University of York
SPRU is part of the Department of Social Policy and Social Work at the University of York and researches into social policy, especially health and social care, poverty, social security and social work. See research on Social Exclusion, Income and Poverty.

South Bank University, Centre for International Business Studies
The work of the Centre for International Business Studies (CIBS) builds on an already established research base which is multidisciplinary and involves work in Accountancy and Finance, Economics, Business Strategy, Marketing, Human Resource Management, Employment Relations and Organisational Behaviour, all considered in their international context. Comparative Studies of both countries and areas are also the subject of much of the research. Lists of publications might be of interest.

Welfare Reform on the Web
This is a free monthly digest by the British Library's Social Policy Information Service (SPIS) of the vast range of material published on welfare issues in research reports, government consultation and policy papers, academic and trade journals and quality newspapers.

Wellbeing in Developing Countries (WeD), University of Bath
This group aims to study poverty, inequalities and quality of life in developing countries using a conceptual and methodological approach for understanding the social and cultural construction of wellbeing. The interdisciplinary team focuses on six communities in Ethiopia, Thailand, Peru and Bangladesh. WeD also hosts the WeDNetwork, a forum to share and publish information on wellbeing in developing countries through its noticeboard and working paper series. (ESRC WeD website archived.)

UK Governmental

Department of Energy & Climate Change
See, in particular, the Fuel Poverty Strategy and Fuel Poverty Advisory Group.

Department of Health: Health Inequalities (Archived content at 6 May 2010)
In 2001, the government gave a commitment in The NHS Plan that, for the first time ever, local targets for reducing health inequalities would be reinforced by the creation of national health inequalities targets.

The new Department of Health website is at www.dh.gov.uk.

See also www.marmotreview.org to download Fair Society, Healthy Lives, the Strategic Review of Health Inequalities in England post 2010.

Department for International Development (DFID)
DFID is the part of the UK Government that manages Britain's aid to poor countries and works to get rid of extreme poverty. It is working to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the international targets agreed by the United Nations (UN) to halve world poverty by 2015.

Department for Work and Pensions: Research and Statistics Page
Use the Resource Centre to find publications. 'Opportunity for All' the Labour Government’s annual report on poverty and social exclusion has now been archived (12 June 2010). You can read the DWP's Child Poverty Strategy and other key reports and evidence by visiting the Child Poverty page.

The Northern Ireland Targeting Social Needs Unit (New TSN)
This unit is now called Central Anti-Poverty. It has overall responsibility for developing, co-ordinating and driving the Government's priorities for tackling poverty and social exclusion. There is a link to download Lifetime Opportunities as a PDF.

Office for National Statistics
Download their Social Inequalities Report 2000 as a PDF.

The Scottish Executive Mainstreaming Equality Page
Provides information on policy and a tool kit for researchers wanting to implement their own project. See also their Social Inclusion Strategy and Research page.

The Social Exclusion Task Force
Their remit was to coordinate the Government's drive against social exclusion, ensuring that the cross-departmental approach delivered for those most in need. It is now part of Local Government, Improvement and Development.

Social Security Select Committee Report on Pensioner Poverty
Here you can browse the report together with the Proceedings of the Committee.

UK Non-Governmental Organisations

Barnardo's
Barnado's vision is that the lives of all children and young people should be free from poverty, abuse and discrimination. They support research into child poverty and help young people transform their lives.

Bevan Foundation: The social justice think tank for Wales
There is a Poverty and Social Exclusion page. Also, download Poverty and Social Exclusion in Wales.

Child Poverty Action Group
CPAG promotes action for the relief, directly or indirectly, of poverty among children and families with children. See also their page on Poverty in the UK, a summary of facts and figures and details of their publication, Ending Child Poverty: a manifesto for success.

The Children’s Society is a UK charity working to ensure that disadvantaged children still have a chance in life. They focus on children at risk on the streets, children in trouble with the law, disabled children and young refugees.

Church Action on Poverty
Church Action on Poverty is an ecumenical, educational and campaigning organisation, committed to tackling poverty in the UK. They work with churches and other groups across the UK to ensure that the voices of people with firsthand experience of poverty are heard. Hidden Lives Revealed is an online archive about disadvantaged children in social care in the United Kingdom between 1881-1918.

End Child Poverty
End Child Poverty is made up of more than 150 organisations including children’s charities, child welfare organisations, social justice groups, faith groups, trade unions and others, concerned about the unacceptably high levels of child poverty in the UK. Make Poverty History brings together a coalition of UK organisations calling for urgent and meaningful policy change on three critical and inextricably linked areas: trade, debt and aid in 2005.

NCVO (National Council for Voluntary Organisations)
The NCVO works with and for the voluntary sector in England by providing information, advice and support and by representing the views of the sector to government and policy-makers.

Overseas Development Institute (ODI)
ODI is an independent think tank on international development and humanitarian issues. They seek to inform policy and practice which lead to the reduction of poverty, the alleviation of suffering and the achievement of sustainable livelihoods in developing countries. Read more about their Programmes and Themes, including the page on the Millennium Development Goals.

Oxfam GB
Oxfam GB is a development, relief, and campaigning organisation dedicated to finding lasting solutions to poverty and suffering around the world.

The Poverty Alliance
The Poverty Alliance was formally established in 1992. Their vision is of a sustainable Scotland based on social and economic justice, with dignity for all, where poverty and inequalities are not tolerated and are challenged.

War on Want
Works towards fighitng poverty in developing countries along in partnership with people affected by globalisation. They campaign for human rights and against the root causes of globalisation and poverty.

International Academic

Belgian Federal Service Social Security where you can download a guide to the Belgian Social Security system as a PDF (in English).

Centre for Studies in Social Sciences (Calcutta)
The Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Calcutta, established in 1973, is a social science research institute under the Indian Council for Social Science Research (ICSSR) and functions. It seeks to undertake, aid, promote and co-ordinate research in social sciences, with special emphasis on the problems of the eastern region and West Bengal.

Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS)
CASS is an academic research organisation in the fields of philosophy and social sciences as well as a national centre for comprehensive studies in the People's Republic of China.

Chr. Michelson Institute (CMI) (Norway)
CMI is an independent, non-profit research institution and an international centre in policy-oriented and applied development research. CMI has a multidisciplinary profile anchored in four thematic research groups, one of which is Poverty Reduction.

Comparative Research Programme on Poverty (CROP)
CROP is a response from the academic community to the problem of poverty. It was established by the International Social Science Council (ISSC). The CROP Secretariat is currently based at the Centre for International Poverty Research, University of Bergen, Norway. Members of the Townsend Centre for International Poverty Research edited and helped CROP produce The International Glossary on Poverty as part of the International Studies in Poverty Research book series published by Zed Books. Download CROP’s Strategic Plan 2010-2011, Mobilizing Critical Research for Preventing and Eradicating Poverty as a PDF.

Cornell - Poverty, Inequality and Development
Cornell University is a world leader in research on poverty, inequality and development. Its faculty and graduate students conduct theoretical, empirical and policy oriented research across a wide range of disciplines and geographical locations. The Poverty, Inequality and Development initiative at Cornell University ran for a decade, 2000-2009. Its objective was to provide a platform to link research across units at Cornell, and to project this research on to a global stage.

Equity for Children
Equity for Children is a web initiative launched in conjunction with the Graduate Program in International Affairs (GPIA) at The New School, Milano, New York. Links from this site to publications, especially on their Child Poverty & Wellbeing page.

Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI)
ESRI is the leading research centre on poverty in Ireland. It produces research that contributes to understanding economic and social change and that informs public policymaking and civil society in Ireland and throughout the European Union. It also conducts the Living in Ireland survey which is used by the Irish Government to measure poverty.

FIVIMS
At national, and regional levels, FIVIMS helps countries carry out a more careful characterisation of the food insecure and vulnerable population groups, improving understanding through cross-sectoral analysis of the underlying causes, and using evidence-based information and analysis to advocate for the formulation and implementation of policies and programmes enhancing food security and nutrition. There is a page containing various useful maps, e.g. the FAO Hunger Map, and mapping sites.

Amsterdam Institute for Advanced Labour Studies (AIAS)
AIAS is an institute for interdisciplinary research and education at the University of Amsterdam. Founded in 1998, it brings different skills in the field of labour studies from the faculties of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences, Economics and Business and medicine together.

European System of Social Indicators
This site is part of the GESIS (Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences) portal. It provides a range of comparative indicators of population and labour market and working conditions for the European Union countries, Norway, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland. For comparative purposes the United States and Japan are included, too. Time series of the indicators cover the period from the beginning of the 1980s onwards.

FXB Center for Health and Human Rights, University of Harvard
The first academic centre to focus exclusively on the practical dynamic between the issues of health and human rights. Founded in 1993 through a gift from the Association François-Xavier Bagnoud, the FXB Center is a world leader in building a conceptual basis of the right to health and driving advocacy initiatives to incorporate human rights norms into international health policy. The centre works at international and national levels with health and human rights practitioners, governmental and non-governmental organizations, academic institutions, and international agencies to: develop domestic and international policy focusing on the relationship between health and human rights; and engage scholars, public health and human rights practitioners, public officials, donors, and activists in the health and human rights movement.

Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR)
IGIDR is an advanced research institute established by the Reserve Bank of India for carrying out research on development issues from a multi-disciplinary points of views. The research agenda of the Institute is guided by policy concerns, by individual faculty members' research interests and by projects from national and international sponsors. Areas of research include Economic Reforms and Macroeconomic Policies, Public Economics, Agricultural Economics, Food Policy, Poverty, Safety Nets, PDS, Rural Development, Labour Economics, Energy and Infrastructure and Climate Change Issues.

Institute for Research on Poverty (IRP)
IRP is a national university-based centre for research into the causes and consequences of poverty and social inequality in the United States.

Institute for Social and Economic Change (ISEC)
ISEC is an All India Institute for Interdisciplinary Research and Training in the Social Sciences, established in 1972 to create a blend of field-oriented empirical research and advances in social science theories leading to better public policy formulation. Their objectives are: To conduct interdisciplinary research in analytical and applied areas of social sciences, encompassing diverse aspects of development; To assist both central and state governments by undertaking systematic studies of resource potential, identifying factors influencing growth and examining measures for reducing poverty; To establish fruitful contacts with other institutions and scholars engaged in social science research through collaborative research programmes and seminars, and to conduct training courses and refresher programmes for university and college teachers and public functionaries.

The International Development Research Centre (IDRC)
A public corporation created by the Canadian Government, IDRC supports research in developing countries to promote growth and development. They work with researchers and innovators in those countries to find practical, long-term solutions to the social, economic, and environmental problems their societies face. Their goal is to bring choice and change to the people who need it most.

Joint Centre for Poverty Research (JCPR) (website closed)
JCPR published Poverty Research News. Information from the website can now be found at the Institute for Policy Research at Northwestern University and the Harris School of Public Policy Studies at the University of Chicago.

Luxembourg Income Study (LIS)
LIS is a cross-national Data Archive and a Research Institute located in Luxembourg. The LIS archive contains two primary databases. The LIS Database includes income microdata from a large number of countries at multiple points in time. The newer LWS Database includes wealth microdata from a smaller selection of countries. Both databases include labour market and demographic data as well. Registered users may access the microdata for social scientific research using a remote-access system. All visitors to the website may download the LIS Key Figures, which provide country-level poverty and inequality indicators.

Maastricht Graduate School of Governance (MGSoG)
MGSoG gives research in the area of poverty and social protection a prominent place within the School, with many staff members working in this field. Within this theme, three main areas can be further identified: 1) methodological issues of measuring poverty, 2) impact of social protection policies on living standards and 3) welfare state analysis from a more general perspective.

MIT - Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL)
J-PAL is a network of 51 affiliated professors around the world who are united by their use of Randomized Evaluations (REs) to answer questions critical to poverty alleviation. J-PAL's mission is to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is based on scientific evidence.

Namur University - Centre for Research in Economic Development (CRED)
CRED is a centre for research devoted to studying problems of economic development, particularly issues of micro-institutions, collective action, market development, and political economics. Most of the research carried out in CRED is based on first-hand data collected by members in various countries of Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

Poverty Mapping
The project Improving Methods for Poverty and Food Insecurity Mapping and its Use at Country Level pools know-how, data and technical skills of the three international organisations FAO, CGIAR and UNEP/GRID plus various other international expert institutions to provide the public with poverty maps from the global to the sub-national level.

SMERU (Indonesia)
SMERU is an independent institution for research and public policy studies which professionally and proactively provides accurate and timely information, as well as objective analysis on various socioeconomic and poverty issues considered most urgent and relevant for the people of Indonesia.

Social Policy Research Centre
SPRC is a specialist research centre of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at the University of New South Wales. The SPRC conducts research on all aspects of social policy, disseminates research findings, promotes research training through postgraduate study and contributes to policy development and evaluation. They have done excellent work on child poverty with UNICEF and on Budget Standards.

The Stanford Center for the Study of Poverty and Inequality
In 2006, Stanford University committed to a new program of research, training, and policy analysis on poverty and inequality. The backdrop to this new initiative was the recognition that poverty and inequality have become an unprecedented threat. A new collaborative effort, bringing together faculty and scholars from Harvard and Stanford Universities, is being launched to develop and evaluate national policy on poverty and inequality in America. The Collaboration for Poverty Research (CPR) will tap the intellectual resources of both institutions, leveraging their combined convening power to focus attention and garner public support for new measures to attack poverty.

UC Berkeley - Blum Center for Developing Economies
The Blum Center for Developing Economies was established in March 2006 to improve the well-being of the three billion people in the world who live on less than two dollars a day. Spanning UC Berkeley, UC Davis UC San Francisco and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, its mission is to increase the well-being of poor people in developing countries by designing, adapting and disseminating scalable and sustainable technologies and systems and by educating and inspiring a new generation of global citizens. The Blum Center addresses the needs of the poor in developing countries by leveraging UC and LBNL expertise and preparing students with the theoretical understanding, applied skills and experiential learning that enable them to become agents of change in the struggle against global poverty.

UNEP GRID ARENDAL World Poverty Distribution map.

UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre
The UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre in Florence, Italy, was established in 1988 to strengthen the research capability of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and to support its advocacy for children worldwide. The Centre, formally known as the International Child Development Centre, has as its prime objectives to improve international understanding of the issues relating to children's rights, to promote economic policies that advance the cause of children, and to help facilitate the full implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in industrialized and developing countries. Download the 2000 report A League Table of Child Poverty in Rich Nations as a PDF. This UNICEF report on child poverty in the world’s wealthiest nations concludes that one in six of the rich world’s children is poor - a total of 47 million children. Also, download Child Poverty in Rich Countries 2005 and the 2010 report, The Children Left Behind, a new report on the most disadvantaged children in rich countries.

University of Copenhagen - Development Economics Research Group
The Development Economics Research Group (DERG) is a group of economists based in the Department of Economics at the Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Copenhagen. Work aims at promoting high-quality policy relevant research in development economics. DERG was established and consolidated during the period 1996-2002 (sometimes referred to as DERG-I). Research and policy analysis continued under DERG-II (2002-2007), and is now carried out under DERG-III under the coordination of Professor Finn Tarp. Research is organized under three main headings: The developing countries in the global economy, including globalization, international trade and capital movements; National economic development policies, including structural adjustment, growth and transitional economics; Agriculture, environment and resource utilization, including the links between poverty, agriculture, natural resources and local institutions.

Three cross-cutting themes, eg. theory of development economics, poverty and food security, and aid policy, are also covered. DERG is, together with local and international partners, responsible for large scale research activities in Mozambique and Vietnam.

University of Gothenburg - Development Economics Unit
Development Economics is one of the subjects offered by the Department of Economics at the University of Gothenburg. Current research in the unit can be divided into five broad categories: Growth and Macro; Globalisation issues; Industrial Development; Poverty, Income Distribution and Labour Markets; and China.

University of KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) - School of Development Studies
The School of Development Studies is one of the leading centres for the study of the political economy of development. It is an inter-disciplinary school with research and graduate teaching programmes in economic development, social policy and population studies, as well as the projects, public seminars and activism around issues of civil society and social justice, organised through its affiliated Centre for Civil Society. The following are some of their research areas: civil society; demographic research; globalisation, industry and urban development; macroeconomics, trade and finance; poverty and inequality; reproductive health; social aspects of HIV/AIDS; social policy; work and informal economy. Read more about their research themes.

University of Texas Inequality Project (UTIP)
This research group is concerned with measuring and explaining movements of inequality in wages and earnings around the world. They produce data sets on pay inequality at the global level, at the national level including for Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, China, India, and Russia, and at the regional level for Europe. They have also used pay inequality as an instrument to estimate measures of household income inequality, for a large panel of countries from 1963 through 1999. This new global data set has nearly 3,200 country-year observations. All data sets are available in the data section.

University of Wisconsin - BASIS Research Program on Poverty, Inequality and Development
The BASIS Research Program on Poverty, Inequality and Development is dedicated to understanding the poverty and income distribution dynamics of rural economies and to crafting creative policies and programs that broaden the base of economic growth and offer sustainable pathways from rural poverty. BASIS research has developed an asset-based approach to understanding poverty traps and poverty dynamics, derived its implications for poverty measurement, and developed its implications for social protection policy. Download briefing papers from their Publications page.

World Institute for Development Economics Research (WIDER) (Finland)
UNU-WIDER's mandate is: To undertake multidisciplinary research and policy analysis on structural changes affecting the living conditions of the world's poorest people; To provide a forum for professional interaction and the advocacy of policies leading to robust, equitable and environmentally sustainable growth; To promote capacity strengthening and training for scholars and government officials in the field of economic and social policy making. Read more about their Poverty and Inequality Research Projects.

International Governmental

Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)
CIDA supports sustainable development activities in order to reduce poverty and to contribute to a more secure, equitable and prosperous world.

International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD): Rural Poverty
The IFAD’s mission is to work with the poorest populations in rural areas of developing countries to: eliminate hunger and poverty; enhance food security; raise productivity and incomes; and improve the quality of life through improved access to productive resources, and empowerment. It is one of the three UN organisations that produce estimates of World Poverty (see also UNDP and World Bank). Go to IFAD’s Rural Poverty Portal and download the Rural Poverty Report 2011.

International Monetary Fund: Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility Factsheet (PRGF)
In September 1999, the objectives of the IMF's concessional lending were broadened to include an explicit focus on poverty reduction in the context of a growth oriented strategy. (This factsheet is no longer being updated. The Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility has been replaced by the Extended Credit Facility.) (See SAPRIN and Social Watch websites for another assessment of the problems of the IMF/World Bank anti-poverty policies.)

International Policy Centre for Inclusive Growth (IPC-IG) (Brazil)
The International Policy Centre for Inclusive Growth (IPC-IG), formerly the International Poverty Centre, is supported by the Poverty Practice, Bureau for Development Policy, UNDP and the Government of Brazil. The Centre's mission is to facilitate South-South learning in development solutions by fostering policy dialogue; carrying out policy-oriented research; as well as conducting training and evaluation. Its vision is the attainment of high inclusive growth. IPC is directly linked to the Secretariat for Strategic Affairs (SAE), the Federative Republic of Brazil and SAE's Institute for Applied Economic Research (IPEA), which is a distinguished research establishment.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) POVNET
In recent years, a renewed impetus has emerged in the international community in the central goal of reducing extreme poverty by half by 2015. In order to help bilateral aid agencies sharpen the focus and impact of their poverty reduction efforts, in 1998, the OECD established the OECD Network on Poverty Reduction (POVNET).

Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA)
The overall goal of Swedish development cooperation is to contribute to making it possible for poor people to improve their living conditions.

United Nations Expert Group on Poverty Statistics (Rio Group)
The United Nations Statistical Commission, in its 28th Session of 1995, created a Group of Experts to study the statistical consequences of the World Summits of the United Nations on Population and Development (Cairo, 1994), on Social Development (Copenhagen, 1995) and the conditions of Women (Beijing, 1995) and to make proposals on the use of statistical information to follow up and monitor the objectives and goals approved in those summits. One outcome of this work was the recommendation, approved in the session of 1997, of a "Minimum National Social Data Set" of indicators to be adopted by countries.

In its session of 1996, and following another recommendation of the Group of Expert, the Working Group of the Statistical Commission decided to hold a Seminar on Poverty Statistics in Santiago, Chile, in May 1997, and to create an Expert Group on Poverty Statistics (Rio Group), chaired by the Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics (IBGE) with the UN Economic Commission for Latin America, ECLAC, acting as Secretary.

The meetings were an opportunity for many countries to present and compare their experiences and methodologies in measuring and analyzing the situation of poverty in their different aspects. The group prepared a Compendium of best practices on Poverty Measurement. The Compendium covers seven approaches based on collected experiences: absolute poverty line, access to basic services and basic capital possession, relative poverty, subjective poverty, and social exclusion, social deprivation, empowerment, and other social and political dimensions associated to poverty.

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) - Poverty Reduction
UNDP is the UN's global development network, an organization advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. They are on the ground in 166 countries, working with them on their own solutions to global and national development challenges. It is one of the three UN organisations that produce estimates of world poverty (see also IFAD and World Bank). Poverty Assessment and Monitoring is a focus area of the UNDP’s Poverty Reduction strategy.

United Nations Poverty Eradication
In December 1995, the General Assembly adopted resolution 50/107 proclaiming the First United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (1997-2006). In December 1996, resolution 51/178 laid down the theme for the decade as a whole which is "Eradicating poverty is an ethical, social, political and economic imperative of humankind". The 2003 Bulletin for the Eradication of Poverty is available from this site. In December 2007, the General Assembly proclaimed the Second United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (2008-2017) reiterating that eradicating poverty was the greatest global challenge facing the world and a core requirement for sustainable development, especially for developing countries. Also Download UNDESA publications from this site.

United Nations Research Institute for Social Development
Download the new report on Combating Poverty.

US Census Bureau: Poverty
The Census Bureau reports poverty data from several major household surveys and programs. The Annual Social and Economic Supplement (ASEC) to the Current Population Survey (CPS) is the source of official national poverty estimates. The American Community Survey (ACS) provides single and multi-year estimates for smaller areas. The Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) provides longitudinal estimates. The Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates (SAIPE) program provides model-based poverty estimates for counties and school districts. See the Description of Income and Poverty Data Sources page.

World Bank PovertyNet
The Poverty Net Newsletter is available on this site. The World Bank is one of the three UN organisations that produce estimates of World Poverty (see also IFAD and UNDP). Within its Development Research Programs, the Poverty and Inequality Group's research aims to improve current data and methods of poverty and inequality analysis and use it to better understand the effectiveness of specific policies to reduce poverty and inequality. See also the Poverty Reduction & Equity page.

World Income Inequality Database
WIID1 provided data on changes in income inequality over the period 1950-98, with a particular focus on the period since 1980 for 149 countries. It substantially expanded on the 1997 Deninger & Squire dataset on income inequality which has been used as the basis of many World Bank reports. WIID2 consists of a checked and corrected WIID1, a new update of the Deininger & Squire database from the World Bank, new estimates from the Luxembourg Income Study and Transmonee, and other new sources as they have became available. WIID2a contains fewer points of data than WIID1 as some overlaps between the old Deninger & Squire data and estimates included by WIDER have been eliminated along with some low quality estimates adding no information. In addition to the Gini coefficient and quintile and decile shares, survey means and medians along with the income shares of the richest 5% and the poorest 5% have been included in the update. In addition to the Gini coefficient reported by the source, a Gini coefficient calculated using a new method developed by Tony Shorrocks and Guang Hua Wan is reported. The method estimates the Gini coefficient from decile data almost as accurately as if unit record data were used. It will be continuously updated.

International Non-Governmental Organisations

ATD Fourth World Movement
The International Movement ATD Fourth World is a non-governmental organization with no religious or political affiliation which engages with individuals and institutions to find solutions to eradicate extreme poverty. Working in partnership with people in poverty, ATD Fourth World’s human rights-based approach focuses on supporting families and individuals through its grass-roots presence and involvement in disadvantaged communities, in both urban and rural areas, creating public awareness of extreme poverty and influencing policies to address it.

BRAC (Bangladesh)
BRAC is a development organisation dedicated to alleviating poverty by empowering the poor to bring about change in their own lives. Founded in Bangladesh in 1972 BRAC is established as a pioneer in recognising and tackling the many different realities of poverty. The BRAC Economic Development Programme provides the cornerstone for all of BRAC’s development work. It uses a participatory, peer supported and multisectoral strategy to offer poor rural women the skills and opportunity to achieve sustainable improvement in their livelihoods, and attain dignity and self-reliance. This programme covers microfinance, institution building, income generating activities and programme support enterprises.

Canadian Council on Social Development
CCSD is a non-profit social policy and research organization focusing on issues such as poverty, social inclusion, disability, cultural diversity, child well-being, employment and housing with an aim to develop and promote progressive social policies inspired by social justice, equality and the empowerment of individuals and communities through research, consultation, public education and advocacy.

CEDLAS (SEDLAC) (Argentina)
This website has statistics on poverty and other distributional, labour and social variables in Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay for the period 1989-2003. All statistics are computed from microdata of the main household surveys in these countries. Statistics are updated periodically. The website also includes a report for each of the four countries in the region and a methodological document. Center for Global Development (Washington, DC)
The Center for Global Development is an independent, non-profit policy research organization that is dedicated to reducing global poverty and inequality and to making globalization work for the poor. Through a combination of research and strategic outreach, the Center actively engages policymakers and the public to influence the policies of the United States, other rich countries, and such institutions as the World Bank, the IMF, and the World Trade Organization to improve the economic and social development prospects in poor countries. CGD was recently highly ranked among the world’s top think tanks in an independent survey.

Centre for Poverty Analysis (CEPA) (Sri Lanka)
The Centre for Poverty Analysis is a professional service provider promoting a better understanding of poverty-related issues in Sri Lanka. CEPA offers advisory and training services, based on applied empirical research to organisations and professionals working towards poverty reduction. CEPA’s objectives emphasise the provision of independent analysis, capacity building of development actors, and seeking opportunities for policy influence.

Combat Poverty Agency
(On 1 July 2009, the Combat Poverty Agency was integrated with the Office for Social Inclusion to form the Social Inclusion Division within the Department of Social and Family Affairs. On 1 May 2010, the Social Inclusion Division became part of the Department of Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs.) The aim of the Combat Poverty Agency was to promote a more just and inclusive society by working for the prevention and elimination of poverty and social exclusion in Ireland. The full text of the quarterly journal Action on Poverty Today (formerly Poverty Today) is available for free download on the site.

European Anti-Poverty Network (EAPN)
EAPN is an independent coalition of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and groups involved in the fight against poverty and social exclusion in the Member States of the European Union. EAPN is working for a Social Europe free of poverty and social exclusion with access to economic, social and cultural rights for all.

European Network on Debt & Development (Eurodad)
EURODAD (European Network on Debt and Development) is a network of 58 non-governmental organisations from 19 European countries working on issues related to debt, development finance and poverty reduction. The main institutions targeted by EURODAD are European governments, the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The EURODAD network offers a platform for exploring issues, collecting intelligence and ideas, and undertaking collective advocacy.

FEANTSA
The European Federation of National Organisations Working with the Homeless (FEANTSA) is an umbrella of not-for-profit organisations which participate in or contribute to the fight against homelessness in Europe. It is the only major European network that focuses exclusively on homelessness at European level.

Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP)
GCAP is a growing alliance of trade unions, community groups, faith groups, women and youth organisations, NGOs and other campaigners working together across more than 100 national platforms. The white band is our symbol and expression of solidarity against poverty.

International Parliamentarian World Appeal for the Tobin Tax
This shows there is large support throughout the world for a Tobin type tax that would slow down speculation, impose rules on the financial markets and finance the fight against poverty and for the developing countries.

Institute for Children and Poverty
This is an independent research and policy organisation in New York which is mainly concerned with homeless families and children in the USA. It also edits the Journal of Children and Poverty - a bi-annual journal which is also largely concerned with issues of homelessness.

Make Poverty History
The biggest ever anti-poverty movement came together under the banner of MAKEPOVERTYHISTORY in 2005. On this page you will find actions you can take to pressure politicians and decision makers to help make poverty history.

National Centre for Children in Poverty - USA
The National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP) is a public policy centre dedicated to promoting the economic security, health, and well-being of America’s low-income families and children. NCCP uses research to inform policy and practice with the goal of ensuring positive outcomes for the next generation and promote family-oriented solutions at the state and national levels.

New Internationalist
An excellent UK based magazine on development issues, which has been publishing high quality information on otherwise poorly reported issues since 1970.

People's Decade of Human Rights Education
Works with its network of affiliates - primarily women's and social justice organizations - to develop and advance pedagogies for human rights education relevant to people's daily lives in the context of their struggles for social and economic justice and democracy.

Small States Net
This research group is part of the University of Bristol's, CLIO research centre for international and comparative studies in Education (ICS). As an established research group since 1994, their main focus to date has been closely related to the study of education and human development in small states throughout the Commonwealth, in Europe and elsewhere. Thirty-two of the 54 members of the Commonwealth are classified as small states.

Socialist Health Association: Poverty and Inequality
The Socialist Health Association is a campaigning membership organisation which promotes health and well-being and the eradication of inequalities through the application of socialist principles to society and government. They believe that these objectives can best be achieved through collective rather than individual action. The website is a mine of information and links. There is a separate page dealing with Child Poverty and Health.

Social Watch
This is an excellent web site based in Uruguay for the international citizens’ coalition monitoring implementation of the world governments' commitments to eradicate poverty and achieve gender equity

Structural Adjustment Participatory Review International Network (SAPRIN)
This large network of NGO’s works with a broad range of citizens' groups on four continents to assess the real impact of World Bank and IMF-supported economic-reform programs and to chart a new course for the future.