Abstract

In the growth of regional identities worldwide, the Mediterranean Basin is emerging as an entity in its own right. This book, a unique collaboration among social scientists around the entire Mediterranean littoral, covers Southern Europe, Turkey, the Balkans, North Africa, and the Near East. Leading economists, sociologists and social policy experts document with new and up-to-date empirical material the changing profiles of poverty and social deprivation. The result is a thought-provoking comparison of the extent, severity and structural causes of poverty and social inequality, and the huge diversity of public responses to the challenges they pose.
"This collection of essays lucidly addresses major issues related to poverty in the Mediterranean area. Empirical measurements of poverty reduced to a meaningless ?one or two dollars of daily expenditure?, as suggested by the World Bank, are meant to escape the political economy analysis of the processes that generate the phenomenon. Eradicating poverty implies implementing a programme of social security for all citizens, whatever level of development is reached by the country, in accordance with the basic human rights approach cogently suggested in this book" Samir Amin, Director of Third World Forum, Dakar & Paris "This is a most welcome addition to the literature on poverty. It is not just another book but a different and innovative book. It offers a comparative analysis of poverty for a region -the Mediterranean- which is a microcosm of the global economy comprising a range of countries from the very poor to the rich, countries torn by war and genocide as well as havens of stability, with cultures offering a diverse mixture of family types and ethnic groups. The approach is hard headed and insists on taking the removal of poverty not just as an economic or social policy but as a human rights issue. It should interest students, researchers and policy makers across the world as it has lessons for everywhere and for everyone." Lord Meghnad Desai, London School of Economics, UK 'The volume has a number of key strengths. One of the most strong features is the level of information provided. It reflects rigorous scholarship with a wealth of empirical material and extensive use of footnotes. This is a very useful contribution to knowledge of the nature and extent of poverty and understanding of underlying structural causes. The book is an important source of information on particular countries. It should be of interest to a wide audience of students, academics, practitioners, policy makers and anyone with an interest in the advancement of human rights and the eradication of glaring inequalities.' David Storey, University of Worcester
Maria Petmesidou and Christos Papatheodorou are respectively professor and assistant professor of Social Policy at Democritus University of Thrace.