Inequalities and Poverty

IDS works with global partners to generate new knowledge and evidence to identify the underlying causes of inequalities and poverty in all their dimensions and the progressive policies and practices that can help bring about transformative change.

Eradicating extreme poverty remains one of the world’s most pressing challenges, and addressing it requires the rising economic, social and political inequalities that harm people in rich and poor countries alike to be tackled.

IDS has also played a prominent part in promoting an approach that puts power at the heart of development analysis and contributed to strengthening understanding of the relationship between power, gender, sexual rights and poverty.

We continue to provide new analysis on inequalities and poverty trends, particularly in relation to the expansion of digital technologies and their impact on the lives of the poorest and most marginalised, and the growth of global cities and what this means for both urban and rural livelihoods, social relations and sustainability. Moreover, we work with governments, civil society, businesses and many others to help ensure this analysis shapes policies and programmes such as social protection and cash transfers to reduce poverty and vulnerability and strengthen livelihoods including agriculture.

People

Deepta Chopra

Professorial Research Fellow

Keetie Roelen

IDS Honorary Associate

Jerker Edström

Research Fellow

John Gaventa

Research Fellow and Director, Action for Empowerment and Accountability (A4EA) programme

Danny Burns

Professorial Research Fellow

Sohela Nazneen

Research Fellow

Patricia Justino

Professorial Fellow

Programmes and centres

Projects

Recent work

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Showing 2281–2292 of 14664 results

Opinion

Student insights into doing the MA Food and Development at Sussex

Evelyn Djuwidja completed the MA Food and Development in 2020, taught jointly by the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) and the University of Sussex. Here she tells us why she chose this specialist master’s course and what surprised her during her year at Sussex. Watch a short video...

15 December 2020

Journal Article

Urban Social Assistance: Evidence, Challenges and the Way Forward, with Application to Ghana

Motivation Urban areas are growing as is urban poverty, yet few countries have developed comprehensive programmes for social assistance in urban areas. Those programmes that exist, moreover, are often extensions or duplicates of rural schemes. Urban social protection needs to reflect the...

Jose Cuesta & 7 others

14 December 2020

Impact Story

Working towards stronger, fairer tax systems

Collaborations between researchers and revenue officials can guide bold reforms with big impacts, boosting domestic revenue mobilisation to finance the Sustainable Development Goals. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sM3cLpJ70uA&feature=youtu.be Many low- and middle-income countries...

14 December 2020

Working Paper

Children’s Harmful Work in Ghana’s Lake Volta Fisheries: Research Needed to Move Beyond Discourses of Child Trafficking

ACHA Working Paper 5

Children work throughout the Lake Volta fisheries value chain. It is commonly assumed most have been trafficked. Research and advocacy has focused on dangers to young boys harvesting fish, and poverty as a driver, precluding attention to harms experienced by non-trafficked children, girls’...

14 December 2020

Opinion

Can the RCEP strengthen global cooperation for trade, investment and sustainable development?

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), a historic trade agreement accounting for nearly 30% of global GDP, was signed on 15 November 2020 by fifteen Asia-Pacific countries, including China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. With the potential to impact lives of one...

11 December 2020

Opinion

How can Brazil sustain its food solidarity economy post-Covid?

The Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated vulnerabilities and inequalities worldwide. An estimated 246 million children are missing out on the school meals they rely on and 49 million people are expected to fall into poverty globally during the course of this year. While the crisis has exposed the...

Rachel Dixon
Rachel Dixon & 4 others

11 December 2020

Opinion

Covid-19 and people with disabilities in South Africa

The severity of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has starkly exposed the fragility of both national and global health, social and economic systems. Emerging evidence is showing that people with disabilities are being disproportionately affected, with it becoming clear that those who were...

11 December 2020

Why learn with us.

In an extraordinary time of challenge and change, we use more than 50 years of expertise to transform development approaches that create more equitable and sustainable futures. The work you do with us will help make progressive change towards universal development; to build and connect solidarities for collective action, locally and globally. The University of Sussex has been ranked 1st in the world for Development Studies for the past five years (QS World University Rankings by Subject).