Poverty & Development

Poverty & Development in the 21st Century provides a fully updated, interdisciplinary overview of one of the world's most complex and pressing social problems. The book analyses and assesses key questions faced by practitioners and policy makers, ranging from what potential solutions to world poverty are open to us to what form development should take and whether it is compatible with environmental sustainability.

The third edition considers the complex causes of global poverty and inequality, introducing major development issues that include hunger, disease, the threat of authoritarian populism, the refugee crisis and environmental degradation.

Three new chapters illustrate the impact of climate, refugee and health crises on development by drawing on accounts of lived experience to explore the real-world implications of theory.

Refreshed student-centred learning features include boxes outlining key concepts, definitions and cases that explore contested issues in greater depth. These case studies encourage critical reflection on key issues, from refugees' personal accounts of containment to the Ebola epidemic to indigenous perspectives on climate change. Questions posed at the start of each chapter provide a framework for critical reflection on key assumptions and theories within the field of development. Each chapter also clearly unpacks figures and tables, supporting students to develop a nuanced understanding of economic arguments and key skills of data interpretation

Students and lecturers are further supported by online resources to encourage deeper engagement with content.

For students:

Web links organised by chapter to deepen students' understanding of key topics and explore their research interests

For lecturers:
Customisable PowerPoint slides support effective teaching preparation
Figures and tables from the book allow clear presentation of key data and support students' data analysis

Tim Allen, inaugural Director of the Firoz Lalji Centre for Africa, London School of Economics and Political Science,Alan Thomas, Former Chair of International Development, Swansea University

Tim Allen is the inaugural Director of the Firoz Lalji Centre for Africa, and is a Professor in the Department of International Development, London School of Economics and Political Science.


Alan Thomas is now retired, previously co-founder of Development Policy and Practice at The Open University, then Chair of International Development at Swansea University.

Part One: Conceptions of Poverty and Development
1. Why Poverty and Development?, Alan Thomas and Tim Allen
2. Poverty and Inequality, Naila Kabeer and Alan Thomas
3. Meanings and views of development, Alan Thomas
4. Agencies of Development, Duncan Green and Tom Kirk
Part Two: Aspects and Causes of Poverty
5. Hunger and Famine, Tim Allen, Shun-Nan Chiang and Ben Crow
6. Diseases of Poverty, Melissa Parker and Cristin Fergus
7. Poverty and Education, Peggy Froerer
8. Unemployment and making a living, David Wield
9. Population, Poverty and Development, Valeria Cetorelli and Alan Thomas
10. Environmental Degradation and Sustainability, Kathryn Hochstetler
11. War and Armed Conflict, Tim Allen and Tom Kirk
Part Three: Transformation and Development
12. Diversity in pre-capitalist societies, Janet Bujra
13. Colonialism, capitalism, development, Henry Bernstein
14. The Power of Colonial States, David Potter and Alan Thomas
15. The era of development A short history, Tom Hewitt
16. The legacies and prospects of socialist models of development, Guoer Liu and Andy Kilmister
Part Four: Challenges for Development
17. Democratization, Governance and Development, David Potter, Alan Thomas and Maria Lopez del Uribe
18. Rethinking Gender Matters in Development, Charlotte Brown and Ruth Pearson
19. Engineering for Development, Peter Robbins, David Wield, Gordon Wilson
20. New Directions and Challenges for Health, Cristin Fergus, Tim Allen and Melissa Parker
21. Migration, Security and Development, Helen Hintjens, Shyamika Jayasundara-Smits, Ali Bilgic
Part Five: Prospects for Development
22. Digital Technologies and the Future of Poverty and Development, Tony Roberts, Kevin Hernandez and Becky Faith
23. City Life, Jo Beall
24. Identity Politics and Clashing Cultures, Tom Kirk, Tim Allen, and John Eade
25. Climate Change and the End of Development, Dina Abbott, Gordon Wilson and Alan Thomas
26. Returning to the Great Transformation, John Harriss
27. Conclusion