Globalisation is one of the most controversial development issues of the day. ‘Globaphobes’ attribute most of the ills of the world to globalisation. The anti-globalisation movement has focused attention on the extent to which decisions affecting the lives of millions of the world’s poorest people are made in international fora – at which the poor have no voice. Globalisation is seen as marginalising a large part of the world’s population and contributing to increased international inequality. On the other hand, ‘globaphiles’ see extending globalisation as the key to eliminating world poverty. But despite the heated debate on globalisation, there is still a lack of empirical research examining the links between globalisation and poverty in detail.