The status and determinants of multidimensional rural poverty at household level: The case of Boricha Woreda, Sidama region, Ethiopia

Abstract

Poverty is a complex and multifaceted social problem around the world, expressly in developing countries. Governments and national  and international development agencies have sought to understand the multidimensional nature of poverty and the mechanisms to  alleviate it. This study was conducted in Boricha Woreda, Sidama Regional State, Ethiopia, focusing to assess the status of  multidimensional poverty of rural households and to find its determinants. A sample of 364 households was selected using systematic  random sampling technique. The data were collected from primary and secondary sources. The multidimensional poor and non-poor  households were identified using the Alkire-Foster method of multidimensional poverty, and the determinants of poverty were  investigated using logistic regression models. Findings show that 40 percent of households are multidimensionally poor. The results of  the binary logit model showed that education, cultivated land, agricultural income, livestock ownership, and frequency of contact with the population were statistically significant, which was theoretically expected to be associated with the multidimensional poverty status of  rural households, showed a negative association at 1% and 5%. Promoting adult education, appropriate family planning, and quality  healthcare are therefore important policy tools to adequately address multidimensional rural poverty.