This book examines rural poverty in Bangladesh. Based on detailed empirical research and surveys of households in Bangladesh, it provides an accurate portrait of the everyday situations faced by the rural poor in Bangladesh today, covering all aspects of household behaviour.

1. Introduction Part 1: Socio-Demographic Issues 2. Population and Household Characteristics Part 2: Monetary Issues 3. Distribution of Household Income and Expenditure 4. Household Assets and Liabilities Part 3: Health and Nutrition Issues 5. Health and Child Nutrition 6. Food, Nutrition and Dietary Diversity 7. Poverty and Food Security Part 4: Human and Social Capital Issues 8. Poverty and Human Capital: Education and Literacy 9. Profile of Social Capital and Women's Mobility Part 5: Vulnerability Issues 10. Livelihood Strategies: Constraints and Choices 11. Shocks and Coping Strategies 12. Vulnerability to Poverty in Rural Bangladesh 13. Synthesis and Recommendations. Appendix-1 Quantitative Survey. Appendix-2 List and Map of Selected Villages. Appendix-3 Important Socio-Economic Indicators of Sample Households. Appendix-4 Important Socio-Economic Indicators of Sample Households by Year of Schooling. Appendix-5 Important Socio-Economic Indicators of Sample Households by Landholding Size. Appendix-6 Important Socio-Economic Indicators of Sample Households by Gender

Pk. Md. Motiur Rahman is currently Professor of Applied Statistics at the Institute of Statistical Research and Training, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. He is the author of several books which include Poverty Issues in Rural Bangladesh (1994), and Development Policies and Poverty Alleviation in Bangladesh (2005).

Noriatsu Matsui is Professor at the Department of Research on University Evaluation, National Institution for Academic Degrees and University Evaluation (NIAD-UE), Japan. He has edited and authored several books including Development and Poverty in Asia: Capability, Empowerment of Women, and the Quality of Life (2006).

Yukio Ikemoto is Professor of Pan-Asian Economic Studies at the Institute of Oriental Culture (IOC), University of Tokyo, Japan. His major publications include Development and Poverty in Asia: Capability, Women's Empowerment and Quality of Life (co-edited and authored with N. Matsui) (2006) and Income Distribution in Thailand: Its Change, Causes and Structure (1992).