Poverty and inequalities in Benin : a few teaching Antonin S. DOSSOU Communication at the OCED 2012 Forum New Delhi, the 16th october 2012

1 - Methodology tools (1/4) Since the study of the Commission for the economic performance measures and the social progress, it have been admitted that GDP is not the adequate tool for well- being evaluation through the time. The actual well-being depends in fact to both economic resources as income, and non economic characteristic of the peoples life : what they are doing in terms of income generating and what the can do, the appreciation of their own life, their natural environment. The tools to measure the material conditions, allowing to appreciate the situation of poverty and inequalities in Benin, improve within the time. 2

1 - Methodology tools (2/4) Those methodology tools are mainly investigations conducted more than 25 years and for witch the philosophy has improve within the time : – Consumption Budget Investigation (EBC, ) ; – Rural household life conditions Investigation, (ECVRII, 1994/95 and 1999/2000) ; – Household soft Investigation (ELAM, 1996 et 1999) ; – 2003 QUIBB Investigation, witch information are related to 2002 ; – Integrated Modular Investigation on the household life conditions in Republic of Benin (EMICoV), focus on years 2006, 2007 et

1 - Methodology tools (3/4) Integrated Modular Investigation on the household life conditions, with its integrated characteristic offers the opportunity to confront different approaches of the poverty and provide a new lighting on the poverty phenomena knowledge in Benin. It has, thus, permitted to better evaluate the wideness of the poverty, identify its characteristics and as well its determinants to fine tune the poverty fighting policies in Benin. 4

1 - Methodology tools (4/4) Thus it permit to out light various aspects of the poverty, notably : – Monetary poverty, – Non monetary poverty (human), – Subjective poverty, – Human security (measuring the individuals perception of their security according to the eight well-being dimensions). The results are presented as followed. 5

2 - EVOLUTION OF POVERTY AND INEQUALITIES

7 2 - Evolution of Poverty and inequalities (1/3)

2 - Evolution of Poverty and inequalities (2/3)

2 - Evolution of Poverty and inequalities(3/3) « The hard stone of the poverty » represents the whole household or individuals cumulating different forms of poverty. The household of this class are really poor, since they have both lower consumption expenditures, bad life conditions and privations in terms of assets. 9

3 – Main lessons 10

3 – Main lessons (1/2) The poverty analysis tools in Benin improved within the time, taking account the multiple faces of the poverty, and more generally the well-being. The analysis of the variation of the poverty components reveled the determinant role of the redistribution and the economic growth in poverty and inequalities alleviation. The analysis of explaining factors of the poverty persistence, the entrance and the outing of the poverty suggests the importance of the education level attended, the activity branch, the credit access, the basic infrastructures, the initial income as determinants of poverty alleviation. 11

3 – Main lessons (2/2) On the over hand, the high size of the household (8 persons and more) appears as a boarding factor in this perspective. Thank you for your kind attention!!! 12