Economic Convergence and Real Dimensions: The Case of Shelter Deprivation

Abstract

Economic convergence exists when two or more economies tend to reach a similar level of development and wealth. The idea of convergence in economics is the hypothesis that poorer economies' per capita incomes will tend to grow at faster rates than richer economies. Though income is considered to be an important indicator, it is now widely recognized that ‘real' dimensions like nutrition, health, shelter, education etc. assess the overall wellbeing of an individual/household. The objective of this chapter is to discuss and formulate a methodology by which one can measure shelter deprivation and its convergence in a region as a step forward to add on to overall well-being of an individual or household. This chapter not only shows a methodology to calculate such divergence and analyses the reasons for such divergence, but also prepares a list of possible combinations of policy prescriptions by which a policy maker, such as the government, can find the extent of rectification of shelter deprivation of a group given its allotment of budget.