A framework for assessing impacts of community-based enterprises on poverty reduction: a case study in northern Thailand

Poverty alleviation remains a challenge for Thailand's socio-economic development. A key strategy of the Thai government to help meet this challenge at the 'grass roots' level has been the promotion of Community-Based Enterprises (CBEs). And national statistics and descriptive studies have shown that CBEs have led to both income improvement and employment creation. However, poverty is a multi-dimensional concept and also some groups are more adversely affected (such a women) than others. By investigating poverty from a number of different angles, this research aims to assess whether CBES are a genuine tool for poverty reduction at the individual household level.

This paper provides an outline of the framework developed for assessing CBE impact on poverty reduction at the micro level. This approach is a multi-disciplinary approach drawing particularly on three main fields of knowledge: business performance measurement, impact assessment of development projects, and poverty measurement. The approach is divided into two main steps: (1) identification of poverty groups and poverty components, and (2) impact assessment of CBEs and other factors on household poverty. By using this approach, it is expected that not only the impact of CBEs on household poverty can be measured, but also the role and contribution of women in CBEs and possible related benefits can be assessed.

The focus of this research is on investigating the actual impact of CBEs on poverty reduction in northern Thailand. At this stage, no empirical results will be provided, but outcomes of the initial phase of the implementation are discussed. The empirical application is based on a survey conducted using 14 CBEs, 343 households and 12 villages.