Abstract

The multidimensional apprehension of poverty is largely accepted today given the considerable contribution to understanding and acting against the manifestations of this phenomenon. Amartya Sen’s capability approach is the basis of the recent developments on the subject. In this perspective, the present work aims to study the application of multidimensional deprivation measures on Tunisian data. This paper investigates the nature of deprivations in the country using the measures proposed by Alkire and Foster, based on a two-threshold identification method. Our work proposes measures of deprivation in four dimensions. In addition to the dimension of economic resources, we consider the deprivations in terms of housing, education and health. The study employed the national survey on household budget, consumption and standard of living 2010. The results are useful in identifying the most widespread deprivations and the most vulnerable population groups. In fact, with the monetary approach it is not possible to target all vulnerable groups and to detect all the deprivations suffered by the population. According to the results of this work, the western and southern regions of the country record the highest deprivation rates. The results are also indicative of the most widespread deprivations and the most affected socio-economic groups.

Key words: Capability approach, monetary poverty, deprivation, poverty measurement, Alkire and Foster measures, Tunisia.