 While anti-poverty policy makers have traditionally focused on issues of income and consumption, an expanded vision of poverty alleviation has emerged in recent years—one that encourages savings, investment, and asset accumulation in conjunction with, not instead of, traditional anti-poverty programs.Assets play a vital role in poverty alleviation by providing not only economic security but also a psychological orientation that encourages low income families to save and plan for the future.In his book, "Assets and the Poor