Good news on poverty and well-being in Mozambique - Fourth National Poverty Assessment published

The Directorate of Economic and Financial Studies at the Ministry of Economics and Finance of Mozambique have just published the Fourth National Poverty Assessment for the country. The report — compiled with technical assistance from CEEG of the University of Eduardo Mondlane, UNU-WIDER, and the University of Copenhagen — provides a comprehensive analysis of poverty and wellbeing in Mozambique. It is based on the 2014/15 household budget survey data conducted by the National Statistics Institute of Mozambique.

The results from the 2014/15 budget survey indicate that consumption poverty fell by 5 percentage points from 2008, reaching a level of 46.1%. However, these gains have not contributed to a convergence in welfare levels between rural and urban zones or geographic regions, and consumption inequality is worsening.

In sum, while the fruits of growth have been tilted towards benefiting better off households, poorer households have also benefitted driving down the consumption poverty rate substantially. This conclusion that poor households are progressing is strongly reinforced by the multidimensional analysis which included six indicators: education, water, sanitation, roofing, electricity, and possession of durable goods.

Read the executive summary of the report (in English) here, or download the full document (in Portuguese) here. The results of the report were recently presented at a Conference on Poverty and Well-being in Mozambique held in Maputo, Mozambique.