Measuring Multidimensional Poverty: A Rigorously Documented Global Data Gap

Abstract This paper presents a three-stage in-depth review of multi-topic household surveys to assess whether existing data could be used to estimate a truly global moderate Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) that is frequently updated and extensively disaggregated. Drawing on previous studies it first summarises data sources presently used for international or national MPIs, setting out some advantages and drawbacks. The review then sets out criteria used for selection and assessment of reviewed datasets, and schematically presents survey contents and their cross-national comparability. It then assesses potential indicators for comparable multidimensional poverty indices, and identifies data gaps according to reviewed datasets. Additionally, the paper highlights some common shortcomings and comparability issues found in multi-topic household surveys, and proposes feasible adjustments. While this paper covers 152 suitable household surveys and 3 cross-country datasets, it cannot be an exhaustive review. Nor does it claim to assess the suitability of the reviewed surveys for any other purposes. It assesses data availability for a set of concrete structures of internationally comparable, frequently updated, and subnationally disaggregated moderate MPIs, in the hope of closing the gap towards global coverage. It uncovers a large data gap and sets out recommendations to address it.