A “graduation” from poverty
An anti-poverty program tested extensively on three continents has produced sustained gains in individuals’ income, wealth, and well-being, according to a study published today in the journal Science. The program provides very poor people with productive assets, such as livestock, as well as job training, life-skills coaching, and health information. Known as the “Graduation” program, its intention was to examine whether helping the poor in multiple ways simultaneously could be especially effective in fighting poverty. Overall, with more than 20,000 people enrolled across six countries over a three-year period, the experiment produced a 5 percent increase in per capita income, an 8 percent increase in food consumption, a 15 percent increase in assets, and a 96 percent increase in savings, compared with similar groups of people not enrolled in the program. “The results show that three years after the intervention, hunger is down, consumption is up, and income is up,” says Abhijit Banerjee,...