Measurement & Trends

Canadian measures of poverty are monetary in nature and now the federal standard for the poverty line will be the Market Basket Measure, or MBM, which is “based on the cost of a basket of goods and services that individuals and families require to meet their basic needs and achieve a modest standard of living in communities across the country” (Government of Canada, 2018). The definition of poverty is integral to poverty reduction as it determines who is considered poor and able to access certain supports and subsidies. This can exclude vulnerable individuals from supports because they do not fit program and policy requirements. The resources in this section explore common definitions used as related to poverty in Canada, as well as report cards and poverty statistics.