Introduction

• Poverty has two dimensions-low incomes, which is in sufficient to maintain a dignified life and low level of human capabilities, which restricts a citizens option to lead a life of his/her choosing.
• Poverty is a form of deprivation with strong interactive linkages to other forms such as physical weakness, isolation, vulnerability and powerlessness.

Poverty and Nepal

• In Nepal, 38% of the population living below the poverty line.
• Based on living standard survey 1996, the size of population living below the poverty line has been found 42%.
• The ninth five-year plan had set poverty alleviation as its main objective with a determination of bringing down the number of those below poverty line from 42 percent to 32 percent.
• The plan also aimed at improving the living standard of the people below poverty line placing special emphasis on uplifting the living standard of those lacking productive assets and income generating resources and those counted as the poorest empowering socially and economically the backward and weaker section of the society and lowering the high incidence poverty.
• Through the 9th plan had target to reduce poverty (living below poverty line) from 42% to 32%.
• Now the tenth five-year plan is running which has targets of bringing down the number of those below poverty line from 38% to 30%.
• The country’s HDI value calculated in the global Human Development Report 2001 stood at 0.480, slightly above than Bhutan (0.447) and Bangladesh (0.470), but below the others sub-region.