Different poverty monitoring tools have been developed over the years, usually supported by a different financial institution or organization.

Survey of Living Conditions (SLC) is a monitoring tool driven and supported mainly by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB). While it is a useful tool, the high costs associated with this methodology has lead to infrequent monitoring. In some countries the last survey conducted is as far back as eight or ten years ago! Monitoring on such an infrequent basis is simply not enough to understand the reasons of poverty and its shifts.

In view of the need for poverty monitoring tools, the UNDP has in collaboration with the EU imitated a new less costly approach- Core Welfare Indicator Questionnaire (CWIQ) survey.

CWIQ is to be used as a complimentary poverty monitoring tool. It is to assist in strengthening the capacity statistical offices to collect analyze and produce timely and credible data. The CWIQ allows for the assessment of the effectiveness of service delivery - "tracking of outcomes and impacts".

Furthermore, the CWIQ initiative can enhance monitoring at the regional level. It can assist in building capacity in the region and training local experts through knowledge transfer from experts and through consolidation of this knowledge via institutional means.