783 million people worldwide live in extreme poverty, according to the World Bank. That’s about one in ten people globally, or about 75% of the world’s population. The United Nations has set the ambitious goal of eliminating extreme poverty by 2030.
There are a number of different ways to define and measure poverty. The most common measure is based on income, but poverty can also be defined in terms of access to basic needs like food, water, shelter, and sanitation.
Income is often times not the only or main driver of poverty. Conflict, natural disasters, and other factors can also play a role.
There are a number of different approaches to tackling poverty. One is to focus on economic growth, which can create jobs and raise incomes. Another is to provide direct assistance to those in need, which can help meet basic needs and address urgent situations.
A third approach is to focus on the underlying causes of poverty. This can include addressing issues like conflict, governance, and access to education and healthcare.
No single approach is enough on its own. Tackling poverty requires a comprehensive and coordinated effort. But there is still much to be done.
The world has made progress in reducing extreme poverty. The percentage of people living in extreme poverty has declined from 36% in 1990 to 10% in 2015. But this progress has been uneven.
While the poverty rate has declined in many parts of the world, it has actually increased in others. And even in the places where poverty has declined, the rate of decline has slowed in recent years.
So there is still a long way to go. Eliminating extreme poverty by 2030 is an ambitious goal, but it is possible. To achieve it, we need to redouble our efforts and explore new frontiers in tackling global poverty.
The world has made great strides in tackling global poverty, but much more needs to be done.
In 2015, the United Nations set out an ambitious goal to end poverty worldwide by 2030. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), of which poverty eradication is Goal 1, provide a blueprint for achieving this.
The SDGs build on the success of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which helped to halve the global poverty rate between 1990 and 2010. But global poverty has been stubbornly persistent, and progress has been uneven.
The new frontier in the fight against global poverty is data.
Data can help us to better understand where poverty is concentrated, identify the most effective interventions and track progress.
The World Bank’s Poverty and Shared Prosperity 2018 report draws on data from over 80 countries to provide the most comprehensive picture of global poverty trends since the early 2000s.
The report finds that the global poverty rate fell from 21 percent in 1999 to 10 percent in 2015. This translates into 1.1 billion people lifted out of poverty over that period.
However, progress has been uneven. While the poverty rate in East Asia and Pacific and in Latin America and the Caribbean fell by more than half, the poverty rate in sub-Saharan Africa actually rose from 41 percent to 43 percent over the same period.
The report also finds that the number of people living in extreme poverty – on less than $1.90 a day – has declined from 1.9 billion in 1990 to 836 million in 2015. However, this is still far from the SDG target of eradicating extreme poverty by 2030.
The data also reveal some progress on other aspects of poverty, such as access to electricity, clean water and sanitation.
The Poverty and Shared Prosperity 2018 report is an important step in the right direction. It is a call to action for governments, businesses and civil society to work together to end poverty and build a more prosperous future for all.
