Paper short abstract:

To lift 500,000 people from extreme poverty by 2030, a multidimensional poverty measure was created using Alkire-Foster method, and each family has its progress constantly assessed. Through practical initiatives and partnerships, we show preliminary results from the field, with data about 30,000 people, and generate knowledge to impact social assistance policy for tackling poverty in the region.

Paper long abstract:

Introduction

Reducing poverty worldwide is an urgent humanitarian issue and crucial for the global climate agenda. In Brazil, this correlation becomes even more direct, as the country's carbon emissions are directly linked to deforestation rates, and studies demonstrate that preserved forests are forests where people live with dignity. As we know, Brazil is a large and complex country; it has been and still is a benchmark for overcoming poverty; but unfortunately, due to recent setbacks, it is back on the UN hunger map.

The Brazilian Legal Amazon, which covers nine states and accommodates urban populations, rural communities, and forest peoples (extractive communities, riverside dwellers, indigenous peoples, and quilombolas ), faces significant socioeconomic and environmental challenges. With a population of approximately 28 million, over a third of whom are considered poor. Access to essential public services, including electricity, sanitation, and waste collection, remains inadequate, even in urban contexts. From the perspective of sustainable development, the Amazon is divided into five major zones : Forested Amazon, Pressured Forested Amazon, Deforested Amazon, Non-Forested Amazon, and Urban Amazon - where about two-thirds of the population resides.

In the face of this challenging context, a program to combat extreme poverty in Brazil has been developed, involving the private sector, civil society, and governments, with the aim of helping 500,000 people lift from extreme poverty by 2030.

Methodology

The methodology focuses on the family unit, from a perspective of poverty as a multidimensional phenomenon prioritizing the following dimensions: income, education, health, nutrition, and infrastructure. Through this methodology, we aim to address poverty as a deprivation of essential rights that go beyond income. Ultimately, as Amartya Sen has taught us, we aim to address poverty as a deprivation of freedom to make choices about one's life. However, facing poverty as a multidimensional problem on this scale might seem like an insurmountable challenge.

We use the Alkire-Foster method, grounded in Sen's theory, to generate a multidimensional poverty index, modeled with the same prioritized dimensions for action. This index will be used for the initial diagnosis of each family's situation. However, in our program, we aim to use this methodology not only to assess poverty but also to generate solutions through practical initiatives, in partnerships with companies, NGOs, and especially with local governments. Therefore, each family will be surveyed between 5 and 7 times over the course of two years, and their progress monitored. With this approach, in addition to the fieldwork aimed at effectively lifting people out of poverty, we intend to generate knowledge about poverty in the Amazon region and poverty dynamics, generating quality primary data about families longitudinally.

Results

Currently, we are working with 30,000 people living in the Brazilian Amazon, in fifteen diverse locations, ranging from deep forest areas, only accessible after more than 12 hours by boat, to major cities. In addition to measuring the poverty situation, we have developed, in conjunction with each family, an action plan outlining pathways to exit poverty using available public policies and social projects in each locality. We systematically repeat the multidimensional metric to monitor progress while supporting and tracking the implementation of the action plan. Based on the data, we work closely with each family for at least two years to determine the best approach to overcoming poverty. Data analysis and the active involvement of families will provide insights into areas of difficulty that we may not be aware of, allowing us to create innovative solutions for social programs and improve public policy. Partial results from the field are promising and we can highlight key findings:

- A concerning reality regarding nutrition in all profiles and locations (with a slightly better situation in rural areas). More than 60% of the children enrolled in the program are in a situation of food insecurity.

- We have identified different poverty profiles in urban areas - where infrastructure performs better; rural areas - where nutrition is better; and forest areas - where deprivations are higher in all dimensions.

- We also see a more accelerated dynamics than expected in the preliminary results, with families quickly changing their poverty index after a few months of action.

Field results lead us to question the methodology not only for monitoring poverty but also for creating solutions in a practical and diverse manner. Our main objective in 2024 is to evaluate which solutions will allow us to scale up the number of supported families in the coming years to reach five hundred thousand people enrolled by 2028 at the latest. Therefore, we are also aware that the main risk for the program is scaling up in a short time, which is only possible if we successfully coordinate with governments at the federal, state, and municipal levels. Ultimately, our main objective is to support the improvement of Brazilian social assistance public policy.