Gender dimensions of rural poverty: Analysis from Bangladesh

Abstract

Highly aggregated measures of poverty overlook inequalities in the distribution of poverty among sub‐groups of the poor. This article focuses on gender differentials in the distribution of poverty, using a conceptual framework of basic needs and resource entitlements to distinguish between the state and process of poverty. Empirical material from rural Bangladesh offers strong evidence that women experience the state of poverty differently to, and often more acutely than, men and become impoverished through different processes. Key indicators are more likely to pick up these gender dimensions of poverty than the conventional single index approach.