When we started OPHI a little over ten years ago, we jotted down our ideas and expectations on a paper napkin one morning in a London bakery. Our goal was to do poverty research that shaped action –with committed and diverse team, working alongside those with different powers, be they protagonists of poverty or policy actors.

Having a multidimensional poverty measure, securing its continuity over time, and promoting its use as a tool for assessment and public policy design is fundamental for countries such as Chile, where we have opted for sustainable growth based on the principles of justice and equity.

The latest global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) update, which analysed 103 countries, reveals a shocking fact: half of the people living in multidimensional poverty are children. By disaggregating information by age, the MPI demonstrates that life for young people is extremely fragile.

Costa Rica’s Multidimensional Poverty Index was created in 2015 through a partnership between the public and private sectors, along with OPHI, as a complement to income-based poverty measurement. Two years later, the index is being used as the main criterion for budget allocation in public institutions responsible for social programmes.