Course Code: C119

Course Title: Understanding poverty

College: SOAS CEDEP

Course Director: Colin Poulton

Course Description: In recent years, international and (to a lesser extent) national development discourse in developing countries has focused strongly on the goal of poverty reduction. This focus is embodied most clearly in the UN Millennium Development Goals, which are accompanied by targets for combating various dimensions of poverty by 2015. Government departments, international development agencies and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are expected to design policies and to plan interventions with a clear understanding of how these will contribute to poverty reduction objectives in the areas concerned.

This course is aimed at students and researchers from the academic world and at development practitioners - from government departments, international development agencies, NGOs or private business - who are involved in the design of policy or interventions to combat poverty in developing countries. The course focuses on rural areas, where the majority of the world's poor are found, a pattern which is expected to continue at least until 2015. It aims to provide a sound understanding of the causes and consequences of poverty, of trends in poverty reduction across continents and regions of the world, of debates as to the drivers of these trends, and of national and international policies to address problems of poverty. As a result of studying this course, you will be equipped to understand how development interventions and processes impact on poor people and to assess critically the policies and interventions to combat poverty.

This course aims:

• To present the multiple dimensions of poverty and how they can be measured.

• To explore the dynamics and causes of poverty at individual and household level.

• To compare recent trends in poverty reduction across continents and regions and to examine competing explanations for the observed trends.

• To examine critically the national and international policy architecture for poverty reduction.

• To compare and contrast approaches to measuring poverty and to explain why the approach used to measure poverty matters.

• To examine critically competing explanations for the observed trends in poverty reduction across continents and regions.

• To understand how development interventions and processes impact on poor people.

• To assess critically policies and interventions to combat poverty.

Assessment: Exam 100%

Course Credit: All SOAS CeDEP short course students receive a certificate of completion. Students of SOAS CeDEP Short Courses who may wish to transfer credit to Certificate, Diploma or Masters-level programmes are advised to select short courses which also act as Core Modules on CeDEP's various programmes.

Course Study Hours/Duration: 240 hrs over 35 weeks

Schedule of Availability: Feb - Oct (Enrolment deadline prior to Feb start - 30th November)

Delivery Mechanisms: Print; CD-Rom; Online Discussion

Cost: £960

How to apply: To enquire about applying for this course, or for any other information, please contact the Course Administrator using the online Enquiry Form below