Final MEASURE DHS Datasets have been released for Lesotho (2004), Cambodia (2005), and Nepal (2006). Please contact the Data Archivist if you are interested in obtaining any of the datasets.

Work-related migration and poverty reduction in Nepal by Elena Glinskaya, Mikhail Bontch-Osmolovski, and Michael Lokshin (World Bank Policy Research working paper no. WPS 4231)

Poverty, social divisions, and conflict in Nepal by Lakshmi Iyer and Quy-Toan Do (World Bank Policy Research working paper no. WPS 4228)

The percentage of people in absolute poverty has declined, despite regional variations, according to the authors of Absolute Poverty Measures for the Developing World, 1981-2004 (PDF), a World Bank Policy Research Paper. However, the number of people living in poverty in the developing world outside of China has not decreased, and poverty counts have risen in some areas, notably sub-Saharan Africa.

Marital sex is the biggest risk for HIV infection for women because male infidelity is culturally ingrained, according to a study in rural Mexico to be published in the American Journal of Public Health. Studies in Nigeria and Papua New Guinea (also to appear in AJPH) found similar results. Additional studies are underway in Uganda and Vietnam (press release on Science Blog).

A systematic study of China’s one-child policy reveals details about exemptions and finds that overall the policy has been effective. The study appears in the current issue of Population and Development Review.

The final report for the 2005 Armenia Demographic and Health Survey (ADHS) has been released by Measure DHS. The report can be viewed and downloaded from Measure DHS here.

Facts sheets are now available for India’s 2005-06 National Family Health Survey (NFHS-3). Click here for more information about the survey, including the facts sheets for India and its 29 states.

The Christian Science Monitor reports that Yicheng’s birthrate is lower than the Chinese national average, even though the county is exempt from the “one child policy”. The article also examines related issues, such as population aging and the effects of sex selection on Chinese society.

The PRI Library has received a conference announcement from AARP for Reinventing Retirement Asia.

Despite a rise in per capita income and recent economic growth, many children in India still suffer from malnourishment, and the number of undernourished children has actually risen in some states, according to UNICEF (Reuters AlertNet).

The State of the World’s Children 2007: Women and Children: The Double Dividen of Gender Inequality, new from UNICEF, says that gender bias increases poverty and leads to poorer health for children (BBC News).