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Defining poverty: Are we rich or poor? |12 February 2016

In July 2015 the World Bank upgraded Seychelles from the status of upper middle income country to one of high income.

As a welfare State with what is considered as good social programmes with free education and health, numerous pension schemes and subsidies even including for legal services to some extent, Seychelles was not considered as a poor country even before the promotion, especially when compared to other African countries. The UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) Human Development Report of 2013 placed Seychelles “in the very high human development category – positioning the country at 46 out of 187 countries and territories”, and first in Africa.

At the time of the report, remarkable progress had been reported in the indicators used. Compared to the year 1980 for example, in 2012 life expectancy at birth had improved by six years (67.8 to 73.8%), years of schooling had increased by five (9.7 to 14. 3 years) and GNI per capita had more than doubled (US $10,912 to US $22,615 US).

GNI is a broad-based measure of income generated by a nation’s residents from international and domestic activity. GNI per capita measures the average amount of resources available to persons residing in a given economy, and reflects the average economic well-being of a population.

While the same report for 2015 indicates that life expectancy and years of schooling has remained almost unchanged, the GNI per capita has risen to US $23,300.

Also, UNDP’s 2013 MDG (Millennium Development Goals) Report had shown that Seychelles has achieved almost all of those MDGs in terms of eradication of poverty and hunger, primary education, gender equality and women empowerment, environmental stability as well as development of partnership for development. Only in the areas of reduced child mortality and combating diseases were not all goals achieved.

However, in spite of all those seemingly favourable reports, a hotly debated one of 2013 from the National Bureau of Statistics suggests that 40% of the local population lives below poverty line. So the question which begs is, are we finally rich or poor, or are we just doing fine?

To be able to answer the question and at the same time find an explanation to what clearly appears as a contradiction, it seems that the authorities have had to go back to the drawing board in order to redefine poverty. This is what was attempted in a half-day workshop at the Seychelles Trading Company (STC) conference room yesterday.

Two ministers – Designated Minister and Minister for Social Affairs, Community Development and Sports Vincent Meriton and his Finance, Trade and Blue Economy colleague Jean-Paul Adam – had gathered around members of the National Assembly, principal secretaries, district administrators, statisticians and representatives of the private sector and civil society to dwell on the issue.

Other sectors represented included social affairs, finance, health, labour, community development and education.

While launching the seminar, Minister Meriton rightly noted that poverty is a complex issue.

He added that the forum comes at a right time, as we in Seychelles search for the right definition of poverty.

He consequently asked those taking part to look beyond the figures, as he stressed that development is not only about material wealth but also about good moral values. 

He at the same time wished to ensure that the government is committed to the welfare of the Seychellois people.

This he insisted remains the government’s top priority.

“Nobody in Seychelles has to go to bed on an empty stomach,” he emphasised.

The methodology adopted for the working session included looking at welfare measurement, poverty from a social perspective, steps to be taken in the development of Seychelles’ MPI (Multidimensional Poverty Index) and of course poverty line which remains the threshold that divides the poor from the non-poor.

An answer may have not been immediately found. And as a question naturally leads to another when a solution is not identified, the next one is: Should poverty line be defined according to an international bench mark, or should it be rather a national thing? In other words, is a farmer in Darfur, Sudan, as rich, or for that matter, as poor as an Eskimo fisherman?

While we may have enough food to eat, the dilemma keeps us with enough food for thought!

 

 

 

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