Pauvreté en Guinée de 1994 à 2007: Tendances, perceptions, et priorités des ménages[Poverty in Guinea from 1994 to 2007: Trends, Perceptions, and Household Priorities]

Since 2003, Guinea has been affected by a deep economic crisis that has contributed to exacerbating already high levels of poverty. This paper documents poverty trends in Guinea using the last three household surveys available, implemented in 1994/95, 2002/03, and 2007. The estimates suggest that the share of the population living in poverty increased to 53,0 percent in 2007 from 49,1 percent in 2002. Data on household perceptions confirm that standards of living have been negatively affected and it is likely that the increase in food prices observed recently contributed to an additional increase in poverty levels. These findings should however not lead to fatalism. Between 1994 and 2002, a period during which the economy benefited from strong GDP growth, the analysis of the 1994/95 and 2002/03 surveys suggests that the share of the population in poverty fell from 62,6 percent in 1994 to 49,1 percent in 2002. Thus if the country’s economy were to rebound and perform strongly in the future leading to growth in GDP per capita, poverty could be reduced again.