Living Standards Measurements Study - Serbia 2002 - 2007

Absolute and extreme poverty of Roma
respondents is far more evident when contrasted to
the overall population. The poverty of Roma people
is several times more wide-spread, and also deeper
and more severe compared to the general
population. The poverty of IDP Roma households
may be subject to a separate analysis based on the
previously mentioned IDP LSMS Survey.
1.2. Poverty sensitivity to change in
poverty line
In this part, the subject of analysis is the
function of cumulative consumption distribution in
2002 and 2007 to show whether the poverty line
choice affects the poverty index assessments. The
standard methodology used for assessing the
poverty index sensitivity is the analysis of the
function of cumulative consumption distribution as
shown in Graph 2. The consumption is expressed in
real terms, in 2002 prices.
The function of cumulative consumption
distribution shows the share of population having
the consumption lower than a level defined, i.e., the
poverty index for different poverty lines. The
vertical poverty line closer to y-axis would
correspond to lower poverty index. Since the
cumulative consumption curve in 2007 is shifted to
the right and is always kept below the cumulative
consumption in 2002, it is evident that the
percentage of the poor population in 2007 for the
same poverty line was lower than it was in 2002.
The Graph shows that the change in poverty
between 2002 and 2007 was not sensitive to the
poverty line choice, regardless of the consumption
level where the poverty line is defined. The same
conclusion applies to the poverty assessments for
urban and rural population, given that the function
of cumulative consumption of the urban and rural
population in 2007 is everywhere below the 2002
cumulative consumption.
Graph 1.2. Cumulative consumption distribution, 2002-2007
1
Total
1
Urban
Cumulative distribution
.8
.6
.4
.2
2002
2007
Cumulative distribution
.8
.6
.4
.2
0
0
1
0 8 16 24 32 40
Welfare indicator, '000
Rural
0 8 16 24 32 40
Welfare indicator, '000
Cumulative distribution
.8
.6
.4
.2
0
0 8 16 24 32 40
Welfare indicator, '000
12 Living Standards Measurements Study - Serbia 2002 - 2007