CHAPTER 3
Poverty, the Aging, and the Life Cycle in Latin America Daniel Cotlear and Leopoldo Tornarolli
Introduction This chapter explores how poverty is linked to the life cycle in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). Economic behavior varies across the life cycle. There are biological determinants to this variation: children take many years to become independent; the aging become less capable of supporting themselves as they age. Does this make them more vulnerable to poverty? Many of the new antipoverty programs are aimed at families with children and at the aging. Is this a reflection of the relatively higher poverty found among these groups? Much of the focus on antipoverty programs for the aging is on social pensions. Is this the best way to reach the aging poor? To respond to these questions, this chapter will also explore the sources of income of the aging, their living arrangements, and the economic dynamics between the aging and their extended family. Several recent studies on old-age poverty have provided results for Africa and for LAC. Kakwani and Subbarao (2007) examined data for 14 African countries and concluded that poverty among older people in African countries tracks aggregate poverty rates fairly closely, but that in 10 out of 14 countries, the elderly are overrepresented among the poor, but not by a large margin. For LAC, Gasparini and others (2007), following a methodology first developed by Bourguignon and others (2006), found that 79