Poverty and Human Development Report 2009 - UNDP in Tanzania

pOVertY aND hUMaN DeVeLOpMeNt repOrt 2009
equipment, clothes, personal effects, personal care, recreation, cleaning, domestic services,
contributions, fuel, petrol, soap and cigarettes, and other non-durable items (see table 35), as
well as telecommunications, medical and education expenses. Assets (such as houses and
consumer durables) are not included in consumption because these items provide ‘use value’
for an extended period of time. 94
the data show that between 2000/01 and 2007 consumption per capita increased by 5%,
implying an average annual growth rate of 0.8% (table 33).
Table 33: Per Capita Consumption, by Wealth Quintile and Area of Residence,
2000/01 and 2007 (at 2001 TShs prices)
Wealth Quintile 2000/01 2007 % change
poorest Quintile 3,978 3,895 -2%
2nd 6,551 6,660 2%
3rd 9,163 9,490 4%
4th 12,972 13,635 5%
least poor Quintile 26,056 27,836 7%
dar es salaam 21,415 21,655 1%
other urban 14,185 14,004 -1%
rural 8,456 8,507 1%
Tanzania Mainland 9,997 10,470 5%
note: Consumption is expressed per 28 days
source: hoogeveen et al., 2009
in dar es salaam and rural areas, consumption increased by 1% on average; in other urban
areas it dropped by 1%. the reason why consumption for tanzania Mainland as a whole
increased by more than consumption in each residence strata may in part be explained by the
shift in population from (poorer) rural areas towards (less poor) urban areas; the proportion of the
population living in urban areas increased from 20% in 2000/01 to 25% in 2007.
the increase in consumption was not equally distributed. Consumption per capita of the least
poor 20% of households increased by 7% between 2000/1 and 2007, while consumption of the
poorest households dropped by 2%.
94 imputing user values for assets is possible but would be imprecise given the absence of rental markets for
housing in rural areas and because the age of durable assets was not recorded in the surveys, which meant
that that depreciation could not be taken into account.
144