An individual holding dual or multiple jobs is defined as moonlighting. Today, moonlighting has become a key strategy among individuals in many developed and developing countries, where high competition exists to achieve economic goals. Moonlighting occurs when people are willing to work more hours than that demanded by their primary job with its fixed hours of work.

The poor, facing absolute or relative poverty, are one key group who are willing to moonlight to uplift their living conditions while professionals are another group for whom moonlighting plays a significant role. There are positive and negative factors with respect to this moonlighting. On the one hand, moonlighting encourages low income workers to earn more through for example, self employment than they could achieve merely with their primary employment, hence it would serve to uplift the living conditions of their families.

Moonlighting then seems to be a good solution for enhancing the earning potential of the working poor in the labor market. On the other hand, however others argue that workers who moonlight grab the employment opportunities, particularly of newcomers to the job market, and contribute to the high unemployment problem that worsens poverty. Moonlighting could also lower the equilibrium wage, through expanding the labour supply relative to demand.

In Sri Lanka 9.1% of the total employed are moonlighters according to the (Samaraweera and Rathnayake, (to be published) calculation based on data from CFS 2003/04) of which the majority are male. In Sri Lanka, the highest moonlighting rates are recorded for the primary educated group followed by graduates. 13.7% of the employees in the agricultural sector are reported to be moonlighters while 5.8% of industrial workers are also engaged in dual or multiple jobs. The impacts of moonlighting on the working poor, the unemployment rate and the wage levels, are some of the key policy concerns. Some questions that arise in this context are:

• Could the unemployment problem in Sri Lanka be reduced through prohibiting moonlighting?  
• How does the wage rate of primary jobs influence in moonlighting?
• How does the moonlighting affect wages in secondary employment?
• Does moonlighting really benefit the working poor?
• How does this affect the non -monetary aspects such as leisure, family relationships etc.

Moonlighting by professionals is the other side of the coin. Many professionals are attached to government sector bodies in Sri Lanka. Moonlighting reduces the enthusiasm and dedication of professionals for their first job and the financial benefits of the second job encourage them to do more evening work. Poor people however may have more access to such professionals when they engage in their primary job. Examples such as accessing the services of a medical specialist in a government hospital or a teacher in a government school come to mind.

The issue that then arises is, would prohibiting secondary occupations improve the quantity and quality of services accessible to the poor or would it have the reverse effect? The latter argument in arises in particular, because moonlighting opportunities helps to keep professionals in the government sector even at relatively low wage rate. This enhances the services available to the poor. Yet moonlighting by professionals can in turn create inefficiency in their primary job leading to negative influences on the services provided, including for the poor.  The debate here centers on the issue

Does professional moonlighting influence the poor? How does it affect?
How can the state intervene to ameliorate the influences of professional moonlighting on the poor?
 

Sri Lanka has achieved excellent health indicators in maternal and infant mortality, life expectancy and immunization. Yet malnutrition remains a major problem.
 
The intergenerational vicious cycle related to malnutrition has four main stages: (i) low birth weight infants; (ii) child growth failure; (iii) malnourished stunted adolescents and (iv) small statured malnourished reproductive age women. Detailed evidence exists on three components of the vicious cycle for Sri Lanka. The DHS 2006/2007 data that links malnutrition (both under and over nutrition) in women aged 15-49 (the reproductive age group), weight at birth and in children under five to the asset index clearly shows that malnutrition is linked to economic inequalities. The very lack of national level information on the third component of this cycle is an issue of importance. Small studies, anecdotal evidence and the continuing intergenerational cycle clearly indicate that adolescent malnutrition is a major problem in the country.
 
Why is malnutrition a problem today but a crisis tomorrow?
Malnourished children are likely to end up as stunted adults with lesser intellectual abilities and hence lower productivity. Given the challenge of demographic transition a countries growth depends on improved productivity. Firstly then from an economic as well as a humanitarian angle focusing on reducing malnutrition is a priority.
Secondly, evidence clearly indicates that malnutrition at all stages of the life cycle is linked with income inequality. Early childhood mortality is negatively linked to wealth levels (DHS 2006/2007). Most deaths in early childhood, in countries with safe delivery and high levels of immunization are linked to foetal growth, with abnormalities in nutrition being a major determinant. Breaking the intergenerational cycle of malnutrition could contribute significantly to breaking the intergenerational cycle of poverty and improving equity.
Thirdly breaking the vicious cycle between maternal malnutrition and low birth weight is particularly important now given the wide spread acceptance of the Barker hypothesis on NCDs (that maternal malnutrition leading to poor gestational growth of the foetus causes the individual’s metabolism to be unfit to cope with higher levels of nutrition and so more prone to NCDs). Non Communicable diseases (NCDs) have major health impacts and impose heavy economic burdens on the individual, household and the national health system, apart from the major psychic costs that result from NCD morbidity and mortality at early ages.

• What then are the policy issues that emerge in this context? What measures should be taken to break the intergenerational cycle? What new measures would you propose?
• Should the health system be focusing on adolescent nutrition and if so what measures would be appropriate?
• While much discussion in policy circles is on the need for inter-sectoral coordination, in practice this component seems dormant. What mechanisms could ensure more systematic and dynamic coordination? 
• Malnutrition while closely related to food security still is still complicated by the fact that on the one hand malnutrition remains a problem even in non-poor settings and on the other that obesity (a non-communicable disease risk factor) is a problem even among the poor. What socio-cultural factors should be addressed in this regard?

Cordaid, an international development organisation, launched a People in Need campaign with the following visuals in 2007. The visuals depict people modelling with consumer products that can be purchased in many outlets in different countries. The advertisement contains comparisons of the price of the item and the price of daily requirements for the people depicted in the visual as a way of conveying that it takes less to support someone in poverty than the money spent on such an item.

We would like to open a discussion about this campaign and obtain your views on it.

• What do you think the campaign is trying to portray? Is it effective in what it conveys? Please explain
• Who do you think the target audience is? Is the advertisement effective in influencing this audience?
• Do the pictures adequately portray poverty? If so, in what way? Does it address facets of poverty such as employment, empowerment, safety etc?
• Do the visuals provide an accurate depiction of poverty which is applicable to all global regions?

Credits: Cannes Lions 2007 Silver
Agency: Saatchi & Saatchi
Brand: Cordaid

The article on contribution of agricultural insurance on livelihood of rural farmers (click here to read the article) submitted by Agricultural and Agrarian Insurance Board (AAIB) to the Poverty Portal highlights importance of agricultural insurance for a farmer to withstand adverse conditions. Further, the article addresses issues which are important to consider in the efforts of poverty reduction and improvement of livelihoods of rural farmers.

1. Lower participation of private sector in the agricultural insurance sector
2. Less demand for agricultural insurance from farmers due to lack of awareness of farmers

With the above views we would like to lead the discussion on
1. What are the factors needed to get greater support from the private sector offer insurance services to farmers?
2.  What are the innovations that can be introduced to align the insurance to farmer needs?
3. How can we create a culture of use among farmers?