Poverty analysis in the lowlands of Papua New Guinea underscores climate vulnerability and need for income flexibility

A severe El Niño event in 2015/16 decimated an important share of Papua New Guinea's (PNG) local crop production, leaving 10 per cent of the population with significant food shortages. Lack of recent socio‐economic data and analysis of the country's rural population impeded efforts to plan and mitig...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Schmidt, Emily, Gilbert, Rachel, Holtemeyer, Brian, Mahrt, Kristi
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society 2021
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/142363
_version_ 1855527653308628992
author Schmidt, Emily
Gilbert, Rachel
Holtemeyer, Brian
Mahrt, Kristi
author_browse Gilbert, Rachel
Holtemeyer, Brian
Mahrt, Kristi
Schmidt, Emily
author_facet Schmidt, Emily
Gilbert, Rachel
Holtemeyer, Brian
Mahrt, Kristi
author_sort Schmidt, Emily
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description A severe El Niño event in 2015/16 decimated an important share of Papua New Guinea's (PNG) local crop production, leaving 10 per cent of the population with significant food shortages. Lack of recent socio‐economic data and analysis of the country's rural population impeded efforts to plan and mitigate the ensuing food crisis. This paper presents the most recent poverty analysis in Papua New Guinea in nearly a decade, and a renewed effort to inform rural production, consumption and livelihood patterns in some of the country's most remote, lowland areas. We designed a rural household survey that collected detailed consumption and expenditure data to explore poverty prevalence and correlates of per capita household expenditure. Results suggest that approximately half of the sampled individuals live in households with total per capita expenditures below the poverty line. Climate shocks have significant and possibly long‐term consequences for household welfare. Households that experienced a drought in the last 5 years are associated with significantly lower per capita expenditures. Labour diversification, via migration, is associated with greater welfare. Households with at least one migrant member are associated with 13 per cent greater per capita expenditure.
format Journal Article
id CGSpace142363
institution CGIAR Consortium
language Inglés
publishDate 2021
publishDateRange 2021
publishDateSort 2021
publisher Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society
publisherStr Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society
record_format dspace
spelling CGSpace1423632025-02-24T06:46:11Z Poverty analysis in the lowlands of Papua New Guinea underscores climate vulnerability and need for income flexibility Schmidt, Emily Gilbert, Rachel Holtemeyer, Brian Mahrt, Kristi household surveys shock climate analysis capacity development consumption functions risk poverty climate change A severe El Niño event in 2015/16 decimated an important share of Papua New Guinea's (PNG) local crop production, leaving 10 per cent of the population with significant food shortages. Lack of recent socio‐economic data and analysis of the country's rural population impeded efforts to plan and mitigate the ensuing food crisis. This paper presents the most recent poverty analysis in Papua New Guinea in nearly a decade, and a renewed effort to inform rural production, consumption and livelihood patterns in some of the country's most remote, lowland areas. We designed a rural household survey that collected detailed consumption and expenditure data to explore poverty prevalence and correlates of per capita household expenditure. Results suggest that approximately half of the sampled individuals live in households with total per capita expenditures below the poverty line. Climate shocks have significant and possibly long‐term consequences for household welfare. Households that experienced a drought in the last 5 years are associated with significantly lower per capita expenditures. Labour diversification, via migration, is associated with greater welfare. Households with at least one migrant member are associated with 13 per cent greater per capita expenditure. 2021-01-01 2024-05-22T12:10:22Z 2024-05-22T12:10:22Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/142363 en https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodpol.2020.101964 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2020.105218 https://doi.org/10.6133/apjcn.202007_29(2).0024 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12992-021-00787-0 https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.134293 https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.134433 https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.134987 Open Access Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society Schmidt, Emily; Gilbert, Rachel; Holtemeyer, Brian; and Mahrt, Kristi. 2021. Poverty analysis in the lowlands of Papua New Guinea underscores climate vulnerability and need for income flexibility. Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics 61(1): 171-191. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8489.12404
spellingShingle household surveys
shock
climate
analysis
capacity development
consumption functions
risk
poverty
climate change
Schmidt, Emily
Gilbert, Rachel
Holtemeyer, Brian
Mahrt, Kristi
Poverty analysis in the lowlands of Papua New Guinea underscores climate vulnerability and need for income flexibility
title Poverty analysis in the lowlands of Papua New Guinea underscores climate vulnerability and need for income flexibility
title_full Poverty analysis in the lowlands of Papua New Guinea underscores climate vulnerability and need for income flexibility
title_fullStr Poverty analysis in the lowlands of Papua New Guinea underscores climate vulnerability and need for income flexibility
title_full_unstemmed Poverty analysis in the lowlands of Papua New Guinea underscores climate vulnerability and need for income flexibility
title_short Poverty analysis in the lowlands of Papua New Guinea underscores climate vulnerability and need for income flexibility
title_sort poverty analysis in the lowlands of papua new guinea underscores climate vulnerability and need for income flexibility
topic household surveys
shock
climate
analysis
capacity development
consumption functions
risk
poverty
climate change
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/142363
work_keys_str_mv AT schmidtemily povertyanalysisinthelowlandsofpapuanewguineaunderscoresclimatevulnerabilityandneedforincomeflexibility
AT gilbertrachel povertyanalysisinthelowlandsofpapuanewguineaunderscoresclimatevulnerabilityandneedforincomeflexibility
AT holtemeyerbrian povertyanalysisinthelowlandsofpapuanewguineaunderscoresclimatevulnerabilityandneedforincomeflexibility
AT mahrtkristi povertyanalysisinthelowlandsofpapuanewguineaunderscoresclimatevulnerabilityandneedforincomeflexibility