This background paper provides some preliminary estimates of the global incidence of chronic poverty for the Chronic Poverty Report 2004-05. We define chronic poverty as remaining below the poverty line for at least five years, with welfare measured in expenditure or income terms. Using the...

More than half of the world's sovereign states are small economies. The majority are in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean Basin. For small economies, the globalization process involves opportunities, but also important risks because of their vulnerability and lack of diversification. This...