Over 1.1 billion people globally are living in acute poverty, with India having the highest number of impoverished individuals, according to the UN’s Global Multidimensional Poverty Index 2024. The report, released on Thursday, highlights that India is home to 234 million poor people, followed by Pakistan with 93 million. Ethiopia, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo also rank among the top five nations, together accounting for nearly half of the global poor, multiple reports said.
The report paints a grim picture of poverty’s impact on children, with approximately 584 million minors – 27.9% of the global child population – living in extreme poverty. This rate is double that of adults, where 13.5% are affected. Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia bear the brunt of this crisis, hosting 83.2% of the world’s poorest individuals.
Conflicts have exacerbated poverty, with over 117 million people displaced due to violent conflict, natural disasters, and other crises, marking the highest number since World War II. The report notes that nearly 40% of the 1.1 billion poor people reside in conflict zones, including 218 million in active war areas and 335 million in fragile regions. The ongoing conflict in Gaza has led to the displacement of 83% of its population and the destruction of 60% of its housing infrastructure by the end of 2023.
The UN’s Multidimensional Poverty Index is an annual publication by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI). It uses data from 112 countries, covering a population of 6.3 billion, and assesses poverty through factors like inadequate housing, sanitation, nutrition, electricity, and education.
