Feasibility study on a capital-based income generation scheme for ...

ANALYSIS OF LIVELIHOOD RECOVERY NEEDS AND PROGRAMMES IN TRINCOMALEE DISTRICT
2.3. Detailed analysis of extremely poor households
2.3.1. Analysis of their structure and income
From a list of households classified as extremely poor and lacking labour power that was
given by village leaders in Faisal Nagar and Gopalaporum, 48 were interviewed. For details
on the survey methodology used see Appendix 3. It turned out that 21 of the interviewed
households had either no adult fit for work or had a gender-adjusted dependency ratio of
over four, while 27 had a ratio of four or lower.
The dependency ratio is the relation between the total number of household members and
the number of household members fit for income generating work (potential breadwinners).
Those fit for income generating work are all household members aged 18 to 60 years who
are physically and mentally fit. However, taking social and religious norms into account,
women are only calculated at being half (50 per cent) fit for work. The formula to calculate
the gender-adjusted dependency ratio is:
Total number of household members
Men fit for work + women fit for work
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The households with a dependency ratio over four are classified for the purpose of this <strong>study</strong>
as extremely poor and labour-scarce. An analysis of the household structure and income of
each of the 21 households is given in Appendix 10. The households with a dependency ratio
of four and lower are classified as extremely poor with labour. An analysis of the household
structure and income of the 27 households in this category is given in Appendix 11. For both
groups of households, the income data given do not include the tsunami-related government
and WFP transfers, but all other earned and transfer incomes.
A comparison of the two groups of households classified by the community leaders as
extremely poor leads to the following conclusions:
• The total income per person in both groups varies between no income and Rs3,000 per
person per month. Those without income live entirely on the current tsunami relief
transfers (which will leave them without income when they are discontinued).
• Using the official inflation-adjusted poverty line of Rs1,650 per person per month, all
but five of the households with labour and six of the labour-scarce households fall
below the poverty line
• None of the households with labour reports earnings from child labour, while three of
the labour-scarce households have substantial income from child labour. When income
from child labour is excluded, the number of labour-scarce households over the poverty
line is reduced to just three; and two of these households received substantial transfers
from relatives.
• Incomes earned by adult males are, in both groups, two to three times higher than those
earned by adult females.
• Unearned income received from relatives, the community or begging is an important
source of income for half the labour-scarce households, but for only 20 per cent of the
households with labour.
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