[01] Abdelateif H. Ibrahim, Department of Agric-Economics, College of Agricultural Studies, Sudan University of Science & Technology, Shambat, Khartoum, Sudan. [02] Omima A. Mirghani, Department of Agric-Economics, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Bakht - Alruda, Ad Douiem, Sudan.

This paper is primarily intended to fill part of the gap by providing an in depth study of poverty incidence in the rural areas of North Kordofan based on household expenditure. Specifically, it tries to examine the poverty status and inequality of income distribution among credit users and non-users in the three localities namely Shiekan, Um Rwaba and Enuhud. The study was relied on survey that is conducted in 2014, using a core questionnaire. It surveyed 200 farm households, which were selected through a multi-stage stratified random sampling technique. The common FGT classes, Gini coefficient and Atkinson index were applied to analyze the data. The results showed that poverty incidence is slightly higher among credit non-users (44%) compared to credit users (42%). The results also proved that households who have access to credit are more likely to escape poverty than those who do not. Concerning inequality of income distribution, the result demonstrated that although credit users are found to be better off in terms of income, credit non-users seem to be more equal in distribution. The Atkinson index values for social welfare distribution indicated that credit users in Shiekan locality are likely to give up 63% of their income to have equally distributed incomes, while non-users in Enuhud locality are willing to sacrifice by 49% of their incomes in order to get equal incomes. The result suggested that although credit policy has reduced poverty levels among credit users, still more attention need to be given for both household categories in the study area.

Credit, Income Distribution, FGT Classes, Atkinson Index, North Kordofan, Poverty Status

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