Understanding The Dimensions And Dynamics Of Poverty In Underserved Settlements In Colombo

Existing measures of urban poverty carried out for national level comparisons portray very low levels of poverty with an average urban household spending an equivalent to the top 20% of national expenditure categories. It becomes quite clear that the nature of poverty in the urban sector, and particularly in the USS, needs to be understood in relation to its immediate environment rather than in relation to the national level of poverty. This study has sought to understand poverty in a broad sense as relevant to the specific setting of the USS. The conceptual framework, thus, is built on the concept of multidimensionality and dynamism, which reflects movement in these dimensions. In this study ‘poverty’ and ‘well-being’ are viewed as the negative and positive manifestations of these dimensions.