Asia’s extreme poor are becoming more vulnerable as prices of goods soar and climate change becomes more imminent. This can be aggravated by any crisis that could hit the region, such as the recent Asian financial crisis.

To help alleviate the plight of the poorest of the poor, the Asian Development Bank assisted the Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada to use a household-based approach designed to implement livelihood programs based on comprehensive information on the aspirations, assets and plans of the poor.

This approach enables the poor to assess their own assets and income and detail the steps they need to take to address specific poverty concerns. It helps them identify “aspiration gaps,” or the income and assets they need to increase to reach their dreams. Households are also empowered on how to formulate plans to reach their aspirations and the possible interventions that can support them. Livelihood activities, projects or programs are formed based on the plans of the households. Their aspirations also become the baseline data for monitoring and evaluation. To measure success, households are monitored on whether income was increased enough to reach its aspirations. A survey can also be used to assess if their assets also increased.

Implementing this approach requires high technical capacity, time and resources because working with the ultra-poor demands contextualized and continuously engaged programs. A market analysis for proper livelihood planning, as well as climate change component are also needed to ensure that this approach will be effective in the long-term. Planning comprehensively at the household and project level is a must, for the extreme poor are the most vulnerable to any crisis. Their needs are unique and urgent.