Author Description

In the past the seat of wealthy civilizations, the Central Asian republics are now the poorest area of the former Soviet Union. This book contains the first rigorous inquiry into household living standards in the region, illustrating the issues with detailed analysis in the various republics. Part 1 deals with methodological issues of measuring household welfare in transition in the Central Asian context, and covers price measurement, construction of poverty lines and collection of household survey data. Part 2 analyses various aspects of living standards, including consumption-based definitions of poverty, labour force participation and unemployment according to internationally accepted definitions, and the nutritional status of mothers and children. Part 3 looks at support given to household living standards by the different players in the 'mixed economy' of welfare provision - the state, firms, other households and NGOs. The book is characterized throughout by analysis of newly available survey data.