POVERTY IN GHANA IS BASICALLY A RURAL PHENOMENON': ARE WE UNDERESTIMATING URBAN POVERTY?

Abstract

Poverty in Ghana is generally described as a rural phenomenon. While this statement is widely quoted, little attention has been given to the methodology used in the measurement of poverty. This article argues for a critical re-examination of this statement. While not underestimating the extent and depth of rural poverty, it argues that the present consumption-based approach used in estimating or measuring the level of poverty in Ghana is biased against urban areas. Such bias is traced to the evidence of the underestimation of urban poverty resulting in the consequent con- founding of data on the overall poverty level of the country. The article examines the poverty line setting methodology, biases against urban areas, and the implications of underestimating urban poverty. It concludes that the bias against urban areas may be a logical extension of the 'anti-urban' development perspective, which has its roots in the urban bias thesis (the perception that urban areas have always been favored in development policies and in the allocation of resources). It stresses that poverty reduction programmes such as the Ghana's poverty reduction strategy papers (GPRSI&II) should place equal emphasis on both rural poverty and urban poverty.