Cities act as escalators out of poverty, as Edward Glaeser demonstrates. And yet, this very function drives poorer immigrants into urban regions – in search of jobs or access to better public services. More than half the world’s population now lives in urban areas , but most social assistance programs in developing countries have traditionally concentrated on the rural poor, with the bulk of past efforts on proper identification and targeting. The pandemic has shone a spotlight on the plight of the urban poor. When the pandemic hit, in the face of harsh lockdowns, the urban poor faced sudden shocks to their income and consumption. Governments in several countries were caught unprepared, with many lacking data on important questions – who are the urban poor? where do they live? how best to find them, and help them?

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