Sources of Official Poverty Data: Reflections on Sixty Years of the Production of Statistics on Poverty in Zambia, 1964-2024

Abstract

This article explores the evolution of official statistics on poverty in Zambia during the first sixty years of independence. Using various government reports and oral sources, it analyses the sources of data on poverty and how they shaped the understanding of the phenomenon. It demonstrates that up to the late 1980s, the sources of poverty-related data were household budget surveys whose emphasis was on data required for computing national income indices. Therefore, data on poverty from these sources were incomprehensive. However, with the economic decline and the negative effects of Structural Adjustment, the collection of data on poverty increased significantly from the 1990s. More regular and comprehensive multidimensional surveys were undertaken, which emphasised the living conditions of the people rather than income indices. This resulted in more comprehensive data on living conditions and a better understanding of the poverty situation. The data informed the efforts made by government and other stakeholders to combat poverty in Zambia.