The traditional measures of poverty have been based on household income or consumption as welfare indicators obtained through household surveys.4 in table 1, brief definitions are furnished, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of these two indicators of welfare. Relative poverty lines that are usually used in developed countries are based on a selected cut-off point in income distribution or consumption, such as the level below which one third of the population finds itself, or that proportion earning half of the median income. The most common basis for constructing an absolute poverty line at the national level is the use of the basic needs approach.