Publication Details

Endowments, entitlements and capabilities

what urban social movements offer to poverty reduction

Diana Mitlin
2010

Abstract

As the significance of urban poverty is increasingly recognised, questions arise about what can be done to address it. The contribution of urban social movements has been recognised and much movement activity in urban areas has been targeted at collective consumption goods and services due to their essential nature for survival and well-being (eg. piped water). This paper explores studies of three movements in Peru and South Africa to understand their objectives and approaches. The contribution of endowments and entitlements to poverty reduction has been theorised by Sen (1999). The studies show that much movement activity is designed to enhance and strengthen individual and collective capabilities to create, strengthen and use entitlements. However, a part of their work goes beyond this with the identification and influencing of “social endowments”, primarily values, discourses and conceptualizations that frame how citizens and the state interact and which influence the manner of entitlements and the ways in which they can be used.

Publication Type(s)

Conference Paper

Ten Years of War Against Poverty Conference Papers

Conference: Ten Years of War Against Poverty

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