Microfinance and Post-Conflict Development in Cambodia and Timor-Leste (Report‪)‬

Introduction Cambodia and Timor-Leste both have brutal histories characterized by violent conflict. Today both countries are struggling to move forward economically. In Cambodia, approximately 35 per cent of the population in 2004 lived below the poverty line, with about 19 per cent below the upper food poverty line at US$0.63 a day (NSDP 2005). In 2007, Cambodia's Human Poverty Index was at 38.6, with a Human Development Index of 0.60, placing the country 131st out of 177 countries (UNDP 2007). In Timor-Leste in 2008, almost 50 per cent of the population lived below the upper poverty line at US$0.88 a day (World Bank 2008). The Human Poverty Index was 41.8 in 2004, and the Human Development Index 0.514, placing Timor-Leste 150th of 177 countries (UNDP 2007).