Constructing a Child Poverty Approach the case of Vietnam

1
Constructing a Child Poverty Approach the case
of Vietnam

• Keetie Roelen
• Franziska Gassmann
• Chris de Neubourg
• Maastricht Graduate School of Governance
• CROP and Childwatch conference, Oslo
• 18 September 2007

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Development of a child poverty approach for
Vietnam

• Research project for Unicef Vietnam, in
  collaboration with the Ministry of Labour,
  Invalids and Social Affairs (Molisa)
• First part of project completed in December 2006,
  extension of project takes place from July 2007
  June 2008
• to develop a practical child poverty measurement
  tool.
• gtgt Work in progress!

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Agenda

• Why measure child poverty?
• Review of existing approaches
• General construction process of child poverty
  approaches
• Application of child poverty approach to the case
  of Vietnam
• Preliminary results.

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Why do we want to measure child poverty?

• Children are more vulnerable to poverty (eg
  White, Leavy and Masters 2002)
• Poor children become poor adults (eg Corak 2006)
• Children have different basic needs than adults
  (Waddington 2004)
• if you cant measure it, you cant manage it
  (eg Ben-Arieh 2000).

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Different child poverty approaches

• Only taking income into account (monetary
  poverty)
• Conceptually taking multidimensional aspects into
  account but implementation of uni-dimensional
  approach due to practical constraints (Coraks
  Practical Approach)
• Taking multidimensional aspects into account in
  concept and implementation of approach
  (Deprivation Approach, EU Child Well-being
  Index)
• Using a holistic and inclusive conceptual
  framework but no implementation due to practical
  difficulties (DEV Framework).

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What can we learn from existing child poverty
approaches? - 1

• Approaches range from income- or consumption
  based to multi-dimensional focus

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What can we learn from existing child poverty
approaches? -2

• Approaches range in using single indicator output
  products to all-compassing analyses

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What can we learn from existing child poverty
approaches? -3

• General Construction Process

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Case of Vietnam choice 1Rationale and purpose

• Rationale need for a comprehensive child poverty
  measurement in Vietnam
• Purposes
• advocacy putting the issue on the agenda
• policy information feeding into the policy
  process

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Case of Vietnam choice 2Concept

• Multi-dimensional
• Outcome based
• Based on the Conventions of the Rights of the
  Child (CRC) and the basic needs approach
• Incorporates children up to 16 years of age
• Vietnam-specific

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Case of Vietnam choice 3Theoretical framework

• Selection mechanisms for choice of domains and
  indicators
• Assumptions and expert opinion
• 2) Public consensus
• 3) Participatory processes
• 4) Assessment of data availability.

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Case of Vietnam choice 3Theoretical framework

• 8 domains
• Education
• Nutrition
• Health
• Shelter
• Water and sanitation
• Labor
• Leisure
• Social inclusion and protection.

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Case of Vietnam choice 4Theoretical framework

• Selection criteria for indicators
• Child-specific
• Easily observable and measurable
• Easily interpretable
• Objective
• Decomposable.

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Case of Vietnam choice 4Theoretical framework

• Illustrations of the selection process
• having private space indicator on m2 per
  household member of having own room/bed?
• dental hygiene indicator on number of visits to
  dentist or use of toothbrush?
• having leisure time indicator on number of hours
  for playing time per day?

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Case of Vietnam choice 5End products

• Advocacy purpose
• Child poverty rate
• Policy input purpose
• Child indicator matrix
• Child domain indices
• Child poverty index

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What distinguishes this approach from other child
poverty approaches?

• Approach is country-specific
• Approach is child-specific
• Approach is versatile.

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Putting theory into practice Data issues

• On the basis of MICS 2006 and VHLSS 2004
• Indicators have been reformulated after data
  assessment
• Full comparison between MICS and VHLSS survey not
  possible
• Information on domain nutrition not yet available.

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Putting theory into practice Preliminary
results indicators
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Putting theory into practice Preliminary
resultsDomain deprivation scores - MICS
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Putting theory into practice Preliminary
resultsDomain deprivation scores -VHLSS
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Putting theory into practice Preliminary
resultsSevere deprivation and absolute poverty -
MICS
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Putting theory into practice Preliminary
resultsSevere deprivation and absolute poverty -
VHLSS
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Putting theory into practice further issues

• Deprivation correlations within and between
  domains
• Comparison child poverty rate with monetary child
  poverty rates - direct comparison rates
• - overlapping poverty
• Child Poverty index.

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Comments and questions?

• Thank you!