ABSTRACT
Throughout history, four main strategies have been used to support the survival of the poor (Iliffe 1987: 7). First, charitable institutions motivated by religions and individual philanthropy have been created to care for the poor. Second, forced confinement has been used to contain the poor, particularly lepers and stigmatized groups. The efforts of the poor themselves, as individuals who strive to improve their own livelihoods, is the third and by far the most common strategy. Finally, organizations of the poor have been created to enable the poor to escape from poverty. It is this last strategy that is the focus of this chapter.
