A Capability Approach to Fight Poverty

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A Capability Approach to Fight Poverty

• Social Rights and Public Policies in the XXIst
  Century

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Why a Capability Approach for the European Social
Policies?

• 1. Plurality of principles, plurality of
  information basis
• 2. A definition of equality beyond the
  contradiction between neo-liberalism and the
   protective  Welfare State
• 3. A definition of poverty fitted to Europe
• 4. Human Rights Politics (not only social
  policies)

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1. Public policies plurality of development
principles

• Economic orthodoxy growth as the focus of
  economic policies, efficiency as the focus of
  economics.
• Sen Capability Approach insistence on plurality
  of principles. Efficiency must be compatible with
  equality and quality of life.Contingency of this
  compatibility.
• Connection with empirical information.An
  information basis is not value-free. Normative
  ponts of view and relevant facts are connected.

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Effects of pluralism on the information basis of
public policies

• Two sides of an information basis of public
  policies
• Data collection
• Critique of the indicators (GNP for instance)
  need for a plurality of indicators according to
  different normative points of view
• Complexity can be reduced via a homogeneisation
  (most often monetarisation) generates bias
  and poverty of information
• We can deal with complexity via complex
  indicators not via reduction.
• 2. Deliberative process at any stage of the
  policy
• Necessity of qualitative inquiries and speech
  (cognitive democracy)
• Data must be discussed in public debates and
  choices must be made (choices are unavoidable,
  and sometimes tragic choices). No absolute
  necessity.

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2. Definition of equality
How to go beyond the protective, fordist equality
without going back to the liberal formal
equality?
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Three main features

• Beyond (neo-)liberal  negative  freedom, the
  positive freedom
• négative freedom the freedom defined by the
  absence of obstacle
• Positive freedom the real freedom to live the
  life anybody wants to live
• Beyond a  ressourcist  approach, the
  capability approach
• Beyond  categories  (worker/non worker,
  retired/non/retired, learning/non learning etc.),
  an individual category.

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3. A definition of poverty fitted to European
situation

• Poverty definition in the vocabulary of
  capabilities. Multiple and multidimensional
  dedinitions of poverty. Current definitions of
  poverty are often too restrictive to deal with
  poverty in Europe
• Relativity of poverty absolute definitions of
  poverty (in income or needs) are not context
  sensitive poverty is a relative concept.
  Different socio-economic realities in Europe.
• Activity of poor people definition of needs,
  reference to well being, and responses in
  assistance a passive conception of poverty. For
  Sen well being is only one half of the story the
  other one is agency.
• Poverty policies are often income-oriented and
  not good life-oriented. Questions of quality of
  life are as important as questions of income.
  Examples food consumption, neighbourhood
  quality, work-life balance. How to live a choosen
  life of projects instead of a material survival?

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Three dimensions of capabilities (of poverty)
Capacity 1 Individual capacity Psychologie, économie classique
Capacity 2 Social capacity Sociology, social psychology
Capacity 3 Entitlements Capability Economics (Sen), institutionnalist Economics
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4. A politics of Human rights

• More important than quantitative targets
  rights. Meaning of a policy.
• Beyond the opposition between rights and policies
• Human rights are moral aims of policies. Not only
  means and not unconditional legal rights.
• Human rights can be (or not) legalised. In order
  to promote the human rights, there are and must
  be functional equivalents to law.

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A permanent evaluation of human rights
Factors of conversion

• (1) Right as a cognitive resource
• (symbolic frameworks analysis)

Complex context of peoples deliberations and
choices
(3) Functionings (practical consequences
analysis)
(2) Right as a legal resource (legal effects
analysis)
(4) capabilities
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Rights State Conception of Freedom State Intervention
Formal rights Liberal State Negative Freedom Arbitration
Material rights Protective State Positive ressourcist Freedom Manager
Substantive and procedural rights Enabling State Positive capability Supply of effective and procedural ressources