Poverty is the first of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals for a reason, and far from being a niche problem, it is an issue which still affects billions of people around the world. Nor is poverty just about income – our soon to be released Citi GPS report, Eliminating Poverty - The Importance of a Multidimensional Approach in Tackling SDG 1 examines how taking a multidimensional approach to understanding poverty, be it via access to healthcare, education, nutrition, energy, water, or even political inclusion, can enable us to better understand its depth and its nature, and to formulate targeted programmes to tackle it. We should not, however, see these programs as a cost — we analyze the $1.6 trillion per year investment opportunity and the economic multiplier effects of >5x that it can provide, alongside how the public, private, and financial sectors can all play their part in eradicating poverty and improving the lives of billions of people around the world. The report presents a robust social metrics framework that can be used for ESG investing and impact assessment.
The report represents an exciting collaboration between Citi and SOPHIA Oxford, which was formed by Oxford University as a not-for-profit partner of the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI). Over the past decade, OPHI has developed the field of multidimensional measurement, focused primarily on poverty and well-being, and advocates for expanding its research and social policy uses.