As background to the Young Lives study, this paper looks at demographic, socio-economic, and poverty trends for the state of Andhra Pradesh during the 1990s. Substantive changes in the demographic structure, composition of economic activity, and trends in poverty are noted. Additionally, it reviews the literature on poverty measurement issues for generic populations as well as for children. A major unresolved issue is a standard and widely accepted definition of childhood poverty although a number of indicators are commonly presented when discussing quality of life for children. Following this, this paper also presents trends in immunisation coverage, nutrition, and various educational indicators for children in Andhra Pradesh over the 1990s.