MDPA and MSD – what are the differences and how could they be combined?

This brief looks at what Sida’s analytical framework for Multi-Dimensional Poverty Analysis (MDPA) has in common with the MSD approach.

The MDPA is Sida’s framework for analysing poverty that helps us understand the deprivations and constraints that people living in poverty face. It is usually applied in a country context whereas MSD is on a market system.

Where MDPA identifies which groups are living in poverty and identifies constraints to be addressed, the MSD approach can then be applied to further deepen the analysis of the market system, to address problems at the system level.