ارزیابی اعتبار پیشرفت از شاخص فقر (PPI)

Development organisations need easy-to-use and quick-to-implement indicators to quantify poverty when requested to measure program impact. In this paper we assess the validity of the Progress out of Poverty Index (PPI)™, a country-specific indicator based on ten closed questions on directly observable household characteristics, by its compliance to the SMART criteria. Each response receives a pre-determined score, such that the sum of these scores can be converted into the likelihood the household is living below the poverty line. We focus on the PPI scorecard for Rwanda, which was validated using two national household surveys conducted in 2005/06 and 2010/11. The PPI is Specific, Measurable, Available cost effectively, and Timely available. Yet, its Relevance depends on the way it is used. Although it accurately distinguishes poor from non-poor households, making it a useful reporting tool, its limited sensitivity to changes in poverty status restricts its usefulness for evaluating the impact of development projects.

Development programs with the objective of poverty alleviation want to target the poorest households, but lack resources, time and expertise to develop their own detailed poverty measures or conduct full-scale household surveys. Consequently, such development programs rely on standardized indicators to measure poverty and evaluate the impact of their program. Ideally, such indicators are designed according to the SMART criteria1: Specific, Measurable, Available cost-effectively, Relevant and Timely available ( European Evaluation Network for Rural Development, 2014 and Poister, 2008). The Progress out of Poverty Index (PPI)™, introduced by the Grameen Foundation, is promoted as a tool that can quantify the share of program participants living below the poverty line, assess the performance of the intervention among the poor and poorest, and track poverty levels over time. 2 By design, the PPI meets four of the five SMART criteria. It is Specific, Measurable, Available cost-effectively, and Timely available. The Relevance criterion, however, requires validation. Assessing this validity is the objective of this paper.