A Profile of Poverty in Kyrgyzstan

Abstract

As we saw in Chapter 1, poverty in Central Asia is not new. The transition to a market economy has been accompanied by significant declines in real incomes, widening income distributions and falling output. This has exacerbated poverty in Central Asia, bringing new groups into poverty and intensifying the privation of groups already less well-off. This chapter uses data from the Kyrgyzstan Multipurpose Poverty Survey to examine how the incidence of poverty has changed during transition in one Central Asian republic. Before looking at Kyrgyzstan in particular, it is useful to review the evidence concerning the level and composition of poverty prior to transition in the Former Soviet Union (FSU) more generally, and to speculate on how the profile of poverty might have changed during transition.

1. The anlysis in this paper is based on the Kyrgyzstan Multipurpose Poverty Survey and we are grateful to the Goverment of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan for permission to use the data. The data was made available through the LSMS unit at the World Bank and particular thanks are due to Kinnon Scott. The views expressed in this chapter are the authors’ own and to not necessarily reflect those of the World Bank and its affiliates. John Micklewright, Branko Milanovic and Michael Mills have commented on drafts of the chapter with enthusiasm and thoughtfulness. The usual disclaimer applies.