“ For example, the Human Development Report of UNDP introduces into world discussion the concept of human poverty that focuses on the "denial of opportunities and choices most basic to human development – to lead a long, healthy, creative life and to enjoy a decent standard of living, freedom, dignity, self-esteem, and the respect of others." ”

“ Grassroots groups and non-governmental organisations have long advocated a comprehensive approach to extreme poverty. They introduced the understanding that extreme poverty is multidimensional, not only limited to income, but also affecting livelihood, health, education and housing, as well as social, cultural and political participation. ”

“ Eradication of poverty: an overview of the current situation High speed globalisation and its effects on poverty The current world situation presents a paradox. While high-speed globalisation is broadening opportunities for a better life for many, it has also endangered the livelihoods of the poor, thus increasing poverty and social exclusion and worsening the health of many people around the world. Progress in communication and information technologies holds out the promise of universal access to knowledge, while half of the inhabitants of the planet have never made a telephone call. ”

“ As a consequence of these changes, today’s approach to overcoming poverty recognises that poverty and social exclusion cannot be tackled through single-faceted measures or supposedly immediate solutions. Eradicating poverty requires long-term, cross-sectoral action: not only must it encompass development strategy, but it must also be a priority of all public policies.
c. Identification issues : What is extreme poverty? Who are the poorest? Several terms are used in the international community to refer to extreme poverty, such as «absolute poverty,» «acute poverty,» «deep poverty.» ”

“ Poverty has various manifestations, including lack of income and productive resources sufficient to ensure sustainable livelihoods, hunger and malnutrition, increased morbidity and mortality from illness, limited or no access to education and other basic services, homelessness and inadequate housing, unsafe environments, and social discrimination and exclusion. ”

“ Setbacks in reducing poverty have been noted in countries where growth was negative. Even where growth does start again, the poor will not automatically recoup their lost positions. "Neither moderate growth (up to four per cent per capita) nor high growth (above four per cent) was any guarantee of poverty reduction." [2]
Poverty and social exclusion are not only southern phenomena. They affect economies in transition. They also affect industrialised countries, where 30 million people are unemployed. ”

“ One hundred million more people live in poverty today than a decade ago. Half of humanity – 3 billion of the total 6 billion – live on an income of less than $2 a day, and 1.3 billion live on less than $1 a day, in a global economy of 25 trillion US dollars. One and a half billion people still lack access to safe water, and 2.4 million children die each year of waterborne diseases. One hundred and twenty-five million children still lack access to primary school. ”

“ It is also characterised by a lack of participation in decision-making and in civil, social and cultural life. The obvious characteristic of life in extreme poverty is therefore an accumulation of mutually reinforcing types of insecurity. Not only do these types of insecurity have unavoidable effects on each other but, as they increase and intensify, exclusion becomes worse and starts to erode family and social life. ”

“ Our work is guided by one essential requirement: the identification of those individuals, families or groups, who are or who shall be the focus of programmes and projects designed to end extreme poverty. ”

“ It is with this concern in mind that the Social Summit emphasised the need to acquire better quantitative and qualitative information about the poorest sector in any given society and to evaluate the persistence of poverty and the effectiveness of strategies to eradicate poverty from the qualitative standpoint. ”

“ Prospects in the countries of sub-Saharan Africa are not promising, as evidenced by the declines in adult literacy and in the educational attainment of children. Malnutrition and infant mortality rates are worsening, while standards of health and average life expectancy have been dramatically hurt by the HIV-AIDS pandemic. ”