Paper short abstract:

The study assesses the impact of the pandemic on the rural poor of Pakistan through a household-level survey. It applies the multidimensional poverty measurement model to analyse data.

Paper long abstract:

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted the economy and livelihoods of people worldwide. Beneficiaries of microfinance were particularly at risk, given their already precarious conditions.

In order to analyse the impact of the pandemic on the living standards, vulnerability, income levels, health conditions and employment opportunities across rural areas of Pakistan, a detailed household survey was conducted in the southwestern part of Punjab.

The study sets out to explore whether the rural poor could achieve stable poverty eradication during the COVID-19 pandemic. It applies the multidimensional poverty measurement model to analyse data. Findings revealed that the overall level of multidimensional poverty vulnerability index (MPVI) of the surveyed households was low and the MPVI of each dimension varied significantly. Second, COVID-19 increased households’ vulnerability to multidimensional poverty.

The study proposes various measures in response to the impact of the pandemic to assist rural households in poverty-stricken areas, in an attempt to assist them towards a stable path out of poverty and vulnerability.