  This paper introduces a general continuous form of poverty index that
encompasses most of the existing formulas in the literature. We then propose a
consistent estimator for this index in case the poverty line is a functional of
the distribution. We also establish a uniform functional Central Limit Theorem
for the proposed estimator over a suitable product class of real-valued
functions. As a consequence, testing procedures based either on single or
simultaneously several poverty indices can be developed. A simulation study
showing the asymptotic normality of the estimator is given as well as an
application to real data for estimating the effect of relative poverty lines on
the variance of the poverty estimates.
