PHM-Exch> Poor lives matter, but less

[Claudio Schuftan]

<https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJxVkMtuxCAMRb9m2DXiFR4LFt30NyIneBLaBFICI6VfX2ayGsnClo19de4EBeeUT7eno5DnM5RzR1eWjOBJPTAPwTsuNKNKaeKd9Mz0hoRjuGfEDcLqSq5I9jquYYISUnxtSGmoIYsDySxKrTjvwWNPtWAaJivvAqy0or9EofqAcUKHD8xnikhWt5SyHzfxeeNfLb7TluY1jbB6fHRHHY8C0083pa0Nd0z7iq0wQjcF-fH8TYLjlDPKuKJ9b6TpWBdFNX-Bgf29SbrN_O0Qye6YlnovENt0frK92g1taHmrMZRzwAjjiv6iLpdxLx-GGSPmZqgfoDimGFOSam4sZxdks0Uwo62hijRdn9pWdG9g_-UfhmE>
Poor lives matter, but less
<https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJxVkk1vozAQhn9NuCXCxgFz8GGbj12qhmyrKmr2gow9ATdgs9gkhV9fJzlV8vgw73xI7zOCO6hMP7LOWBfcvsKNHTBX98BlMFjoCyUZjhIUxnESSEYkoksaKFuceoCWq4a5foCgG8pGCe6U0fcOQmhIg5oBTxISyuWSIkJQRDkWZVyGaYIp55QuH0v5IBVoAQwu0I9GQ9Cw2rnOzqJfM7z179O0pmpMyRsJl4UdSuu4OC-Eab3Y3cKYft6oC9h5y52Dfl4Obt6AtV70ZS1o58dtnTmDnkVrGJ-RwIfxAzfn7NOMu0l87dZHnI9XJX6nk9ym3b9VFu-mDcmnM_Gazdqmlrfc-_HLR7hbi3G_uir-kU9-hhJ_DurlPQvzdXXdrzKb6RwdVRZn-ukiolcn2kN9jN66EhN1el0MW-7Ow9_medOaJxrZ_AVKPe93b7WO-kKe3LFTG7Efrh8kUAyHGIUIx6H3ktAFWuhooJNCPP0_I2Fb4R-uBD2zoh5OjmuvVjdQ97TnVNzcGLRyYwGalw3IB0L3uII71KICDb2_Dllwx1CMUExCzyzF6EHMM44QTVIaxoHfK43v0uwHpW9RHc6Q>
Jomo Sundaram
<https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJxVkMtuxCAMRb9m2DXiFR4LFt30NyIneBLaBFICI6VfX2ayGsnClo19de4EBeeUT7eno5DnM5RzR1eWjOBJPTAPwTsuNKNKaeKd9Mz0hoRjuGfEDcLqSq5I9jquYYISUnxtSGmoIYsDySxKrTjvwWNPtWAaJivvAqy0or9EofqAcUKHD8xnikhWt5SyHzfxeeNfLb7TluY1jbB6fHRHHY8C0083pa0Nd0z7iq0wQjcF-fH8TYLjlDPKuKJ9b6TpWBdFNX-Bgf29SbrN_O0Qye6YlnovENt0frK92g1taHmrMZRzwAjjiv6iLpdxLx-GGSPmZqgfoDimGFOSam4sZxdks0Uwo62hijRdn9pWdG9g_-UfhmE>
Jan
26

https://www.ksjomo.org/post/poor-lives-matter-but-less
<https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJwlkM2OhCAQhJ9muI0BRMQDh73saxiQVtlBcPmZifv0i5p0upPqVCpfTSrDEuIh95AyOteYjx1kXiMog0qCOFojadsTzHmPjGSGiE4gm8Y5AmzKOpljAbQX7eyksg3-cjAmsECrFK2eFCa8Y2QY-MyIwVoPdO5aAVh3wx2qirHgJ5DwhngED8jJNec9PdqvB_2u8_l8mlf6CVtoQlyqcPquE-LT2Tek56ZyhvjUJT8dpISspJgSTCjHXSeYaEjj2yL-LFHD74PhbaFNKjplNb2aKWwoyjStZc7K1-9ysl1yRRvr3Yq3-RjBK-3A3NT5Lu7qYVzAQ6yFmlFlSTghnOGeioGSG7LW0hLRDwJzVHNNqC4vT6TFBa2cgfc__c6H3Q>

Current development fads fetishize data, ostensibly for ‘evidence-based
policy-making’: if not measured, it will not matter. So, forget about
getting financial resources for your work, programmes and projects, no
matter how beneficial, significant or desperately needed.

*Measure for measure*

Agencies, funds, programmes and others lobby and fight for attention by
showcasing their own policy agendas, ostensible achievements and potential.
Many believe that the more indicators they get endorsed by the
‘international community’, the more financial support they can expect to
secure.

Collecting enough national data to properly monitor progress on the
Sustainable Development Goals
<https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJwlkM1yhSAMhZ_msrsOICIuWHTT13BQotIqWH7q2Kdv1BkmGUIOJ_lGk2EO8dR7SJlcoc_nDjovEYwlJUHsndW8bhmVsiVWC8tUo4hL_RQBNuNWnWMBspdhdaPJLvhbIYSiiiy6njrOmkaM9TS2xlCQErhsgHVCTS2Ix9QU68CPoOEX4hk8kFUvOe-v-uPFP_Ecx1G5PXk4UuUhY4VT1mGiV5icN6h-z2sYzPqecTL_xt63BbymkrLBjmEFLPzCGvYN_PUHcZpTzijjkjaNEqpila-L-nPMdD8vQbeZV6kMqB-_qzFsJOo0LmXKxuPrfK1_l3H7HvNWvMtnD7eXfcDkh-2Nqp_BQ0TmtjdZM8mYFLTlChE9HJBczVTbKSoJ-tqAKq-_whae1XD8f8GIkyA>
is expensive. Data collection costs, typically borne by the countries
themselves, have been estimated at minimally over three times total
official development assistance (ODA).

Remember aid declined after the US-Soviet Cold War, and again following the
2008-9 global financial crisis. More recently, much more ODA is earmarked
<https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJwlkMtuhSAQhp_msDsGEBUXLLrpa5gRRqVFsFxq7NOXc0wmM8lc_sn_aci4hnipI6RMXmnK14EqbxHBkJIwTtYo3g6M9v1AjBKGyU4Sm6YlIu5gncqxIDnK7KyGbIN_XwghqSSbGsZ5MIBIQQuzjPOMumUUurFlnTCa3k-hGIteo8JfjFfwSJzacj4e7ceDf9Y4z7OxR_J4psZjrh1O2VALbWvaq8ZzsR68tuCe1i8unOnpQ36aqujCsaPP4OoqsYpTzijjPe06KWTDGt8W-WcZjD8PQfeVN6nMKYP-bnTYSVRJb2XJ4Ot0fTl-t6vhqda9eJuvCT3MDs3NIt8433SmFT3GitlMkBXrGesFHbgcObutV1gtk8MoaU_qXxPqlVdfYQ-rCzO4auAfQ6mPTA>
to ‘support’ private investments from donor countries.

With data demands growing, more pressure to measure has led to either over-
or under-stating both problems and progress, sometimes with no dishonest
intent. ‘Errors’ can easily be explained away as statistics from poor
countries are notoriously unreliable.

Political, bureaucratic and funding considerations limit the willingness to
admit that reported data are suspect for fear this may reflect poorly on
those responsible. And once baseline statistics have been established,
similar considerations compel subsequent ‘consistency’ or ‘conformity’ in
reporting.

And when problems have to be acknowledged, ‘double-speak’ may be the
result. Organisations may then start reporting some statistics to the
public, with other data used, typically confidentially, for ‘in-house’
operational purposes.

*Money, money, money*

Economists generally prefer and even demand the use of money-metric
measures. The rationale often is that no other meaningful measure is
available. Many believe that showing ostensible costs and benefits is more
likely to raise needed funding.        Using either exchange rates or
purchasing power parity (PPP) has been much debated. Some advocate even
more convenient measures such as the prices of a standard McDonald’s
hamburger in different countries.

Money-metrics imply that estimated economic losses due to, say, smoking or
non-communicable diseases (NCDs
<https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJwlkM1uhSAQhZ_msruGH0VcsOimr2FGGJVWwfJTY5--3GtCZpIDZ4bzGci4hHjpI6RMXmXM14E6rxHBkpIwjs5qLnpGpeyJ1a1lqlPEpXGOiDu4TedYkBxl2pyB7IJ_O9pWUUVWbcwAasK-NxS6QQxCMAuCSqbsLORk7qVQrENvUOMvxit4JJtecz4e4uPBP-s5z7NxR_J4psZjrgqnnNZGVS1gbcSUnjtsvuToXr94ziHYp_MJTanKVZ8Rp6uLUcYl7TrVqoY1XhT15xgMP4-W7gtvUplSBvPdmLCTqJNZy5zB19vllfYt17Bj7XvxdfCIHqYN7c0h3yjfZMYFPcaK2I6QNZOMyZb2XA2c3bErKMFUPygqSd1rQ3V5_RX2sGxhgs3i7z9r3o1x>),
including obesity, tend to be far greater in richer countries, owing to the
much higher incomes lost or foregone as well as costs incurred.

*Development discourse changes*

The four UN Development Decades after 1960 sought to accelerate economic
progress and improve social wellbeing. Unsurprisingly, for decades, there
have been various debates in the development discourse on measuring
progress.

The rise of neoliberal economic thinking, claiming to free markets, has
instead mainly strengthened and extended private property rights. Rejecting
Keynesian and development economics, both associated with state
intervention, neoliberalism’s influence peaked around the turn of the
century.

The so-called ‘Washington Consensus
<https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJwlkEluwzAMRU8T7WJo8CAvtMim1zBkiZHV2pSrIYZ7-ioxQZAAP4iP_4zO4EI81R5SJu8x5XMHlZcI2pKSIE7eKi4GRvt-IFa1lslOEp-mZwTYtF9VjgXIXubVG519wM9H20oqyaIoiNHOPeeCWiHmeTC1xqfpKIAduu4y1cV6QAMKXhDPgEBWteS838Tjxr9qH8fR-D0hHKlByPXCKRvqovyt6rR4dDngPZYV0t0sGh3ctdMeq0684pQzynhPu062smENiiL_PNPj762lm-NNKnPK2vw0JmwkqmSW8swaq-reMT_nmnKqeyvo8zkB6nkFewHIF8MPkskBQqxs7aSzYj1jfUsHLkfOrryVkGByGCXtSfW1oX6h-g5bcGuY9Wrh9Q9eOYqb>’
of US federal institutions from the 1980s also involved the Bretton Woods
institutions, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank, both
headquartered in the American capital.

In 2000, the UN Secretariat drafted the Millennium Declaration. This, in
turn, became the basis for the Millennium Development Goals which gave
primacy to halving the number of poor. After all, who would object to
reducing poverty. The poor were defined with reference to a poverty line,
somewhat arbitrarily defined by the Bank.

*Poverty fetish*

Presuming money income to be a universal yardstick of wellbeing, this poverty
measure
<https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJwlUMtuxCAM_JrlthGQhMeBQy_9jYiAN6FNIAWzVfr1ZTeSZcu2xuMZZxGWlE9zpILklSY8DzC4ZrCe1AJ5Ct7wXjIqhCTeDJ6pUZFQpkcG2G3YDOYK5KjzFpzFkOIbMQyKKrIaK9wox5lK4WUPg1Za08esvR5Hx3opLlJbfYDowMAT8pkikM2siMet_7jxzxbhKBF-SxcBW8cpk60w2hJsYQ-x6bgfqYHxvM-ACPleo4dc0EYf4nKPAB48CYZTzijjgo6jGlTHuthX9ReY1T-3ge4L70qdG8x9dy7tJJvi1vpoZ9p2eel9j5vcqdW9xoDnBNHOG_jLCbzMfHszLRAht-f8ZNEwwZgYqORKc3YJb1b1TEmtqCCN16eGiuYr7WnZ0mw3D89_GFCN-w>
has been challenged on various grounds. Most in poorer developing countries
sense that much nuance and variation are lost in such measures, not only
for poverty, but also for, say, hunger
<https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJwlkM2OhCAMx59muGkAUfHAYS_7GgahKrsKDpSZuE-_OCZNG2j__fgZjbCEeKojJCSXG_E8QOEaQVuSE8TRWcWbntGu64lVwjLZSuLSOEeAXbtNYcxAjjxtzmh0wX8UQkgqyar0JLjh7WQ15R1tzTAPs-h73lttBIX2HqqzdeANKHhBPIMHsqkV8Xg0Xw_-XcwdycM71R6wvDhlXQmMFveGymhfweZ258s51Zr9ArHS3lZHKO3wrJ7Zmd_trN4O12opp2EpMGHfHe7gkTjFKWeUXRu2Usia1b7J8s8xPTwfgu4Lr1OeEmrzWxcdiSqZNc-ofckuF4XPd4EwXm2zd3iO4PW0gb354I34Q2xcwEMsS9hRo2IdY52gPZcDZzeOArBhsh8k7UiZa0NRefUT9rBsYdKbhdc_2oiWwg>
.

Anyone familiar with the varying significance, over time, of cash incomes
and prices in most countries will be uncomfortable with such singular
measures. But they are nonetheless much publicised and have implied
continued progress until the Covid-19 pandemic.

Rejection of such singular poverty measures
<https://email.mg2.substack.com/c/eJwlUMtuxCAM_JrlthGQhMeBQy_9jYiAN6FNIAWzVfr1ZTeSZcu2xuMZZxGWlE9zpILklSY8DzC4ZrCe1AJ5Ct7wXjIqhCTeDJ6pUZFQpkcG2G3YDOYK5KjzFpzFkOIbMQyKKrIaK9wox5lK4WUPg1Za08esvR5Hx3opLlJbfYDowMAT8pkikM2siMet_7jxzxbhKBF-SxcBW8cpk60w2hJsYQ-x6bgfqYHxvM-ACPleo4dc0EYf4nKPAB48CYZTzijjgo6jGlTHuthX9ReY1T-3ge4L70qdG8x9dy7tJJvi1vpoZ9p2eel9j5vcqdW9xoDnBNHOG_jLCbzMfHszLRAht-f8ZNEwwZgYqORKc3YJb1b1TEmtqCCN16eGiuYr7WnZ0mw3D89_GFCN-w>
has led to multi-dimensional poverty indicators, typically to meet ‘basic
needs’. While such ‘dashboard’ statistics offer more nuance, the continued
desire for a single metric has led to the development, promotion and
popularisation of composite indicators.

Worse, this has been typically accompanied by problematic ranking exercises
using such composite indicators. Many have become obsessed with such
ranking, instead of the underlying socio-economic processes and actual
progress.

*Blind neglect*

Improving such metrics has thus become an end in itself, with little debate
over such one-dimensional means of measuring progress. The consequent
‘tunnel vision’ has meant ignoring other measures and indicators of
wellbeing.

          In recent decades, instead of subsistence agriculture, cash crops
have been promoted. Yet, all too many children of cash-poor subsistence
farmers are nutritionally better fed and healthier than the offspring of
monetarily better off cash crop or ‘commercial’ farmers.

           Meanwhile, as cash incomes rise, those with diet-related NCDs
have been growing. While life expectancy has risen in much of the world,
healthy life expectancy has progressed less as ill health increasingly
haunts the sunset years of longer lives.
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