Right now, 1 in 6 people globally are multidimensionally poor, meaning deprivation stretches beyond income into health, education, and living conditions. At the same time, climate and price shocks are reshaping risk in ways that can erase gains quickly, including documented rises in extreme poverty risk tied to high food and fuel prices. This post pulls together poverty statistics that connect these shifts across money, services, and survival.
Key Takeaways
- The World Bank reports that in 2017, 734 million people were living in extreme poverty (below $1.90/day, 2011 PPP) at the time of the Sustainable Development Goal baseline update.
- 1.1 billion people still lived in poverty on less than $3.65 per day (2017 PPP) in 2017, according to the World Bank’s poverty line framework.
- In 2022, 1 in 6 people globally were multidimensionally poor, per the UNDP/OPHI MPI summary.
- UNICEF reports that 148 million children were stunted in 2022 worldwide (SDG indicator linked to poverty and deprivation).
- WHO estimates 41 million children under 5 were overweight in 2022.
- WHO estimates that 2.2 billion people lack safely managed drinking water services.
- The World Bank estimates 675 million people lack access to electricity in 2022 (energy access indicator).
- The World Bank estimates that 70% of children in low-income countries cannot read and understand a simple text by age 10 (learning poverty indicator).
- UNICEF reports that 2 in 5 children aged 5–17 were denied education in conflict-affected areas in 2022 (education deprivation context).
- World Bank reports that 2022 saw a rise in extreme poverty risk due to high food and fuel prices (poverty update).
- The IMF estimates that food and energy price inflation disproportionately affects the poor; for example, it can push vulnerable households into poverty (quantified in IMF notes).
- The IMF reports that every 10 percentage point increase in food prices can increase poverty by a measurable amount in low-income settings (quantified in IMF analysis).
- UNHCR reported that 43.4 million people were displaced within their own countries (IDPs) at end-2023.
- OECD reports that the share of households receiving social protection benefits ranged from 15% to 80% across countries (coverage metrics).
- A World Bank/IMF paper on social safety nets notes that social assistance is among the most common shock-responsive tools, with coverage expansions during COVID-19 (coverage and response).
Hundreds of millions remain poor as COVID, conflict, climate shocks, and high prices keep pushing more people into deprivation.
Related reading
01 · Category
Global Poverty Estimates9 stats
01
The World Bank reports that in 2017, 734 million people were living in extreme poverty (below $1.90/day, 2011 PPP) at the time of the Sustainable Development Goal baseline update.https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/poverty/brief/global-poverty-figures
02
1.1 billion people still lived in poverty on less than $3.65 per day (2017 PPP) in 2017, according to the World Bank’s poverty line framework.https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/poverty/overview
03
In 2022, 1 in 6 people globally were multidimensionally poor, per the UNDP/OPHI MPI summary.https://hdr.undp.org/content/multidimensional-poverty-index-mpi
04
Sub-Saharan Africa accounts for 55% of the world’s extremely poor people in 2019 (less than $1.90/day, 2011 PPP).https://www.worldbank.org/en/region/afr/overview
05
In 2019, Southern Asia accounted for about 31% of the world’s extremely poor people (less than $1.90/day, 2011 PPP).https://www.worldbank.org/en/region/sar/overview
06
The World Bank estimates that poverty in lower-middle-income countries increased in 2020 due to COVID-19, reversing some prior gains (global poverty update narrative).https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/global-economic-prospects
07
The OECD estimates that 11.5% of the population in OECD countries was income poor in 2022 (after taxes and transfers, relative poverty threshold).https://www.oecd.org/en/data/indicators/income-poverty-rate.html
08
In 2022, 32.8 million people (10.0%) in the US were in “deep poverty,” defined as below 50% of the poverty line (HHS/ASPE reporting based on Census).https://aspe.hhs.gov/reports/poverty-guidelines-poverty-status
09
In 2019, about 49% of people in fragile and conflict-affected settings were living in extreme poverty (World Bank estimates).https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/fragilityconflictviolence/brief/fragile-settings-poverty
Interpretation
Global Poverty Estimates Interpretation
Global Poverty Estimates show that although extreme poverty affected 734 million people in 2017 and still left 1.1 billion living under $3.65 a day in 2017, the burden remains heavily concentrated with 55% of the world’s extremely poor in Sub Saharan Africa and around 31% in Southern Asia, alongside setbacks from shocks like COVID 19 and persistent multidimensional poverty affecting 1 in 6 people globally in 2022.
02 · Category
Food Insecurity And Health9 stats
01
UNICEF reports that 148 million children were stunted in 2022 worldwide (SDG indicator linked to poverty and deprivation).https://data.unicef.org/resources/state-of-the-worlds-children-2024/
02
WHO estimates 41 million children under 5 were overweight in 2022.https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/obesity-and-overweight
03
WHO estimates that 2.2 billion people lack safely managed drinking water services.https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/drinking-water
04
WHO estimates 2.7 billion people lack access to safely managed sanitation services (poverty-linked WASH deprivation).https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/sanitation
05
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) reports that 419 million people practiced open defecation in 2022.https://washdata.org/data/household
06
WHO estimates that 249,000 maternal deaths occurred in 2020 globally; poverty and lack of access are major drivers (maternal health deprivation).https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/maternal-mortality
07
WHO estimates that 6.7 million children died before their fifth birthday in 2022 (poverty-linked child mortality).https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/child-mortality
08
WHO reports that 5.6 million people died in 2022 from diarrhoeal diseases (poverty-linked WASH).https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/diarrhoeal-disease
09
The IPC analysis for food insecurity indicates that 755 million people faced acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or above) in 2023/24, per IPC global report.https://www.ipcinfo.org/fileadmin/user_upload/ipcinfo/docs/IPC_Acute_Food_Insecurity_2023.pdf
Interpretation
Food Insecurity And Health Interpretation
Across the Food Insecurity And Health nexus, hundreds of millions are being deprived of basic nutrition and WASH and that health burden is stark with 755 million people facing acute food insecurity in 2023/24 and 6.7 million child deaths in 2022 alongside 5.6 million deaths from diarrhoeal disease in the same year.
03 · Category
Education And Basic Services7 stats
01
The World Bank estimates 675 million people lack access to electricity in 2022 (energy access indicator).https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/energy/brief/energy-access
02
The World Bank estimates that 70% of children in low-income countries cannot read and understand a simple text by age 10 (learning poverty indicator).https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/education/brief/learning-poverty
03
UNICEF reports that 2 in 5 children aged 5–17 were denied education in conflict-affected areas in 2022 (education deprivation context).https://www.unicef.org/documents/unicef-education-childhood-education-conflict-report
04
The World Bank estimates that 69% of schools in low-income countries lack basic sanitation facilities for girls (WASH in schools).https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/water/brief/water-and-sanitation-in-schools
05
World Bank reports that 2.3 billion people lacked access to adequate hygiene facilities in 2022 (hygiene deprivation context).https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/water/brief/sanitation
06
SDG tracker (UN) reports that in 2022, 1.3 billion people still lacked electricity access—context for service deprivation (energy poverty).https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/dataportal/
07
The World Bank reports that COVID-19 could cause learning losses equivalent to 1 year of schooling by 2021 in some settings (learning poverty impact).https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/wdr2022
Interpretation
Education And Basic Services Interpretation
In the Education And Basic Services space, hundreds of millions of people are being left behind, including 675 million without electricity and 70% of children in low income countries unable to read a simple text by age 10, showing how missing basic services and learning constraints reinforce each other.
More related reading
04 · Category
Inflation And Shocks5 stats
01
World Bank reports that 2022 saw a rise in extreme poverty risk due to high food and fuel prices (poverty update).https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/poverty-and-shared-prosperity
02
The IMF estimates that food and energy price inflation disproportionately affects the poor; for example, it can push vulnerable households into poverty (quantified in IMF notes).https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/Policy-Papers/Issues/2022/10/05/The-Poverty-Impact-of-Food-Inflation-517041
03
The IMF reports that every 10 percentage point increase in food prices can increase poverty by a measurable amount in low-income settings (quantified in IMF analysis).https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/Staff-Discussion-Notes/Issues/2017/11/14/The-Poverty-Impact-of-Food-Price-Changes-45036
04
FAO’s Food Price Index averaged 124.0 in 2021 (2014-2016=100), providing a before/after comparison versus 2022.https://www.fao.org/worldfoodsituation/foodpricesindex/en/
05
IMF reports that inflation erodes real incomes; for households in the poorest quintile, food and energy account for larger shares (quantified in IMF notes).https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/Issues/2024/01/02/world-economic-outlook-update-january-2024
Interpretation
Inflation And Shocks Interpretation
With the World Bank linking 2022 to rising extreme poverty risk from high food and fuel prices and the FAO noting the Food Price Index averaged 124.0 in 2021, the evidence shows that inflation and related shocks hit the poorest hardest by eroding real incomes and pushing vulnerable households into poverty, especially since IMF analysis finds that a 10 percentage point jump in food prices can measurably increase poverty in low income settings.
05 · Category
Policy, Aid, And Programs5 stats
01
UNHCR reported that 43.4 million people were displaced within their own countries (IDPs) at end-2023.https://www.unhcr.org/refugee-statistics/insights/
02
OECD reports that the share of households receiving social protection benefits ranged from 15% to 80% across countries (coverage metrics).https://www.oecd.org/social/income-distribution-database.htm
03
A World Bank/IMF paper on social safety nets notes that social assistance is among the most common shock-responsive tools, with coverage expansions during COVID-19 (coverage and response).https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/Policy-Papers/Issues/2021/03/29/Shock-Responsive-Social-Protection-Methods-and-Approaches-Discussion-Note-49700
04
UNICEF reports that 68 million people received at least one social protection benefit in 2022 through child-focused cash and social protection systems (program reporting).https://www.unicef.org/social-protection
05
The OECD reports that public social spending averages about 19% of GDP across OECD countries (social policy financing).https://www.oecd.org/social/society-and-health/Policy-Brief-Social-Spending.pdf
Interpretation
Policy, Aid, And Programs Interpretation
Across the Policy, Aid, And Programs space, social protection coverage and financing have scaled rapidly, reaching 68 million people via child-focused benefits in 2022 and with public social spending averaging about 19% of GDP, while World Bank and IMF analysis highlights social assistance as one of the most common shock-responsive tools during crises like COVID-19.
06 · Category
Climate And Risk7 stats
01
The World Bank’s Climate Change Knowledge Portal notes that climate hazards increase poverty risk through lower agricultural productivity (quantified in WDR).https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/wdr2023
02
The IPCC AR6 reports that climate change increases the frequency and intensity of extreme precipitation and drought events (risk linkage to poverty).https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/
03
NOAA/NASA report heat extremes increased global average temperature; in 2023, global mean temperature reached about 1.18°C above pre-industrial levels (heat stress contributing to poverty risk).https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/global/time-series
04
EM-DAT records that in 2023, 409 disaster events were recorded worldwide (disaster counts used for risk).https://public.emdat.be/data
05
World Bank estimates indicate that 1.3 billion people are exposed to drought hazard (context for drought poverty impacts).https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/water/brief/drought
06
World Bank estimates show that 1.7 billion people are exposed to floods (context for flood poverty impacts).https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/water/brief/drought-floods
07
World Bank reports that 60% of households in low-income countries are highly vulnerable to climate-related shocks (reported in climate and poverty literature).https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/climatechange/overview
Interpretation
Climate And Risk Interpretation
With 1.3 billion people exposed to drought and 1.7 billion exposed to floods, climate and risk is translating climate hazards into poverty risk at massive scale, and this is further amplified by 60% of households in low income countries being highly vulnerable to climate related shocks.
Reference
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APA
Aisha Okonkwo. (2026, February 13). Poverty Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/poverty-statistics
MLA
Aisha Okonkwo. "Poverty Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/poverty-statistics.
Chicago
Aisha Okonkwo. 2026. "Poverty Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/poverty-statistics.
Sources & references
42 datasets cited across this report
+26 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)