Global Poverty

Global povertyFor three decades, the number of people living in extreme poverty—defined as those who live on less than $2.15 per day at 2017 purchasing power parity—was declining. But the trend was interrupted in 2020, when poverty rose due to the disruption caused by the COVID-19 crisis. The number of people in extreme poverty rose by 70 million to more than 700 million people. The global poverty rate reached 9.3%, up from 8.4% in 2019. The world’s poorest people bore the steepest costs of the pandemic. The poorest also faced large setbacks in health education and education, which may have lasting consequences for their lifetime income prospects. Given current trends, 574 million people—nearly 7% of the world’s population—will still be living on less than $2.15 a day in 2030. The challenge is made harder by the fact that extreme poverty is concentrated in parts of the world where it will be hardest to eradicate: in Sub-Saharan Africa, in conflict-affected areas, and in rural areas, [1].