Breaking the Chains of Poverty: Lessons from an Integrated Approach to Sustainable Development

Abstract

Poverty is a complex problem that affects millions of people worldwide. Despite the various measures taken, there is still a long way to go in eradicating poverty and improving the standard of living for all. This study evaluates the impact of an integrated approach, designed to address specific constraints faced by poor households, on poverty reduction and socio-economic development. The study employed a Randomized Controlled Trials design to evaluate the impact of the intervention. For the analysis, 100 households in the treatment group received the program, while the control group had an equal number of households that did not receive any assistance during the entire research period. Additionally, the study investigated 400 individuals to assess the individual-level outcomes. The findings suggested that the intervention had a positive impact on all economic and financial outcome variables of the treatment group. The study also reported an improvement in the personal lives of the participants by improving physical and mental health. Moreover, the results suggested that the intervention has contributed to increased political involvement and women’s empowerment. In light of these findings, the study recommends an integrated approach that combines various poverty reduction measures to enhance the well-being of impoverished households.

Keywords:

• Poverty reduction strategies
• rural development
• randomized controlled trials
• graduation program
• impact evaluation

Acknowledgement

The authors appreciate the support of the Deanship of Scientific Research, under the Researchers Supporting Project number (RSPD2024R997), King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

AI Declaration

AI tool is not used for analysis and results.

Consent to Participate

All the authors made substantial contributions to all the segments of the articles, drafted the work, approved the final version, and agreed to be accountable and responsible for the article.

Consent to Publish

The authors are responsible and accountable for all the segments of the manuscript.

Disclosure Statement

The authors have no relevant financial or non-financial interests to disclose.

Research Limitation

The list included 320 poor households while we could select only 200 poorest of the poor households for our intervention because of limitation of financial resources.

Data Availability Statement

Our manuscript contains data, which will be made available at reasonable request.

Additional information

Funding

Funding is obtained.

Notes on contributors

Mehboob Ul Hassan

Dr. Mehboob Ul Hassan is a Professor of Economics at the College of Business Administration, King Saud University, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He specializes in Labor Economics, International Economics, Resource and Policy Economics, and Economic Philosophy. He is also a Certified Islamic Professional Accountant. Studied in Pakistan, Turkey, and Japan, he publishes articles in renowned journals and serves as PhD examiner as well as an external examiner for several universities. His official webpage is: MEHBOOB UL HASSAN | Faculty members (ksu.edu.sa).

Bilal Ahmed

Bilal Ahmed is PhD Scholar and serving the University as Lecturer in Economics since 2012.During this service period in the Department of Economics, in addition to his own teaching assignments, he worked as Incharge Examination, Incharge Admission, Sports Incharge, and Focal Person Performing Arts Society. Earlier, he did his M.Phil in Economics from the University of Sargodha by obtaining distinction. He is a dynamic researcher specializing in Poverty Measurements and Designing and Running Randomized Evaluations. His official webpage is: https://www.su.edu.pk/facultyprofile/10209.

Masood Sarwar Awan

Dr. Masood Sarwar Awan has done Post-Doctorate from University of Oxford, United Kingdom. Before that, he completed PhD in Economics from University of Sargodha, Sargodha, Pakistan. Previously, he Served as Lecturer at Higher Education Department Government of Punjab. His official webpage is: https://su.edu.pk/facultyprofile/354.

Muhammad Nauman Malik

Muhammad Nauman Malik is currently pursuing his PhD in Economics from University of Western Australia. Before that, he taught in undergraduate and master’s degree programs since 2011.