Poverty Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! == Measuring poverty == [[File:The number of people below different poverty lines.svg|thumb|The number of people below different poverty lines]] {{Main|Measuring poverty}} {{See also|Poverty threshold|Individual Deprivation Measure}} === Absolute poverty === [[File:Poverty headcount ratio at 1.90 a day.png|alt=|thumb|300px|[[List of countries by percentage of population living in poverty|Poverty headcount ratio]] at $1.90 a day (2011 PPP) (% of population). Based on [[World Bank]] data ranging from 1998 to 2018.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Poverty headcount ratio at $1.90 a day (2011 PPP) (% of population) {{!}} Data|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SI.POV.DDAY?view=map|access-date=23 July 2020|website=data.worldbank.org|archive-date=19 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210119063653/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SI.POV.DDAY?view=map|url-status=live}}</ref>]] {{Main|Extreme poverty}} {{See also|Purchasing power|Asset poverty}} Absolute poverty, often synonymous with 'extreme poverty' or 'abject poverty', refers to a set standard which is consistent over time and between countries. This set standard usually refers to "a condition characterized by severe deprivation of basic human needs, including food, safe drinking water, sanitation facilities, health, shelter, education and information. It depends not only on income but also on access to services."<ref name=UN1995>UN declaration at World Summit on Social Development in Copenhagen in 1995</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.worldbank.org/poverty/mission/up2.htm |title=Poverty |publisher=World Bank |access-date=23 April 2010 |archive-date=30 August 2004 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040830075349/http://www.worldbank.org/poverty/mission/up2.htm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=SachsEndofPoverty2005>{{cite book |last=Sachs |first=Jeffrey D. |title = The End of Poverty |publisher=Penguin Press |year= 2005 |page =[https://archive.org/details/endofpovertyecon00sach/page/416 416] |isbn=978-1-59420-045-8 |title-link=The End of Poverty }}</ref> Having an income below the [[poverty line]], which is defined as an income needed to purchase basic needs, is also referred to as ''primary poverty''. The "dollar a day" poverty line was first introduced in 1990 as a measure to meet such standards of living. For nations that do not use the US dollar as currency, "dollar a day" does not translate to living a day on the equivalent amount of local currency as determined by the [[exchange rate]].<ref name=dollar>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7122356.stm|title=When a dollar a day means 25 cents|publisher=bbcnews.com|access-date=28 May 2011|first=Mukul|last=Devichand|date=2 December 2007|archive-date=13 August 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110813032040/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7122356.stm|url-status=live}}</ref> Rather, it is determined by the [[purchasing power parity]] rate, which would look at how much local currency is needed to buy the same things that a dollar could buy in the United States.<ref name=dollar/> Usually, this would translate to having less local currency than if the exchange rate were used.<ref name=dollar/> From 1993 through 2005, the [[World Bank]] defined absolute poverty as $1.08 a day on such a [[purchasing power parity]] basis, after adjusting for inflation to the 1993 US dollar<ref>{{cite web |title=Dollar a Day Revisited |publisher=The World Bank |year=2008 |first1=Martin |last1=Ravallion |first2=Shaohua |last2=Chen |first3=Prem |last3=Sangraula |name-list-style=amp |url=http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/IW3P/IB/2008/09/02/000158349_20080902095754/Rendered/PDF/wps4620.pdf |access-date=8 August 2012 |archive-date=5 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120805165034/http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/IW3P/IB/2008/09/02/000158349_20080902095754/Rendered/PDF/wps4620.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2009, it was updated as $1.25 a day (equivalent to $1.00 a day in 1996 US prices)<ref name=dollarrevisited2008>{{cite report|first1=Martin|last1=Ravallion|first2=Shaohua|last2=Chen|first3=Prem|last3=Sangraula|date=May 2008|title=Dollar a Day Revisited|publisher=The World Bank|url=http://www-wds.worldbank.org/servlet/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2008/09/02/000158349_20080902095754/Rendered/PDF/wps4620.pdf|location=Washington, DC|access-date=10 June 2013|archive-date=3 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303222220/http://www-wds.worldbank.org/servlet/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2008/09/02/000158349_20080902095754/Rendered/PDF/wps4620.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=RavaillionWB26Jun2009>{{cite journal|first1=Martin|last1=Ravallion|first2=Shaohua|last2=Chen|first3=Prem|last3=Sangraula|journal=The World Bank Economic Review|volume=23|pages=163–184|doi=10.1093/wber/lhp007|title=Dollar a day|access-date=11 June 2013|url=https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/4499/wber_23_2_163.pdf?sequence=1|format=PDF|issue=2|year=2009|s2cid=26832525|archive-date=29 October 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029183657/https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/4499/wber_23_2_163.pdf?sequence=1|url-status=live}}</ref> and in 2015, it was updated as living on less than US$1.90 per day,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2015/10/04/world-bank-forecasts-global-poverty-to-fall-below-10-for-first-time-major-hurdles-remain-in-goal-to-end-poverty-by-2030 |title="The Bank uses an updated international poverty line of US $1.90 a day, which incorporates new information on differences in the cost of living across countries (the PPP exchange rates)." |access-date=29 October 2015 |archive-date=3 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160103202525/http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2015/10/04/world-bank-forecasts-global-poverty-to-fall-below-10-for-first-time-major-hurdles-remain-in-goal-to-end-poverty-by-2030 |url-status=live }}</ref> and ''moderate poverty'' as less than $2 or $5 a day.<ref>{{cite web|author=WDI|title=Societal poverty a global measure of relative poverty|url=http://datatopics.worldbank.org/world-development-indicators/stories/societal-poverty-a-global-measure-of-relative-poverty.html|access-date=2 February 2021|archive-date=3 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210303151843/https://datatopics.worldbank.org/world-development-indicators/stories/societal-poverty-a-global-measure-of-relative-poverty.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Similarly, 'ultra-poverty' is defined by a 2007 report issued by International Food Policy Research Institute as living on less than 54 cents per day.<ref>International Food Policy Research Institute, [http://www.ifpri.org/publication/worlds-most-deprived The World's Most Deprived. Characteristics and Causes of Extreme Poverty and Hunger] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100323220931/http://www.ifpri.org/publication/worlds-most-deprived |date=23 March 2010 }}, Washington: IFPRI Oct 2007</ref> The poverty line threshold of $1.90 per day, as set by the World Bank, is controversial. Each nation has its own threshold for absolute poverty line; in the United States, for example, the absolute poverty line was US$15.15 per day in 2010 (US$22,000 per year for a family of four),<ref>{{cite web|title=Poverty Definitions|publisher=US Census Bureau|year=2011|url=https://www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty/methods/definitions.html|access-date=20 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160206003015/http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty/methods/definitions.html|archive-date=6 February 2016}}</ref> while in India it was US$1.0 per day<ref name="wb2010a" /> and in China the absolute poverty line was US$0.55 per day, each on PPP basis in 2010.<ref>{{cite web|title=New Progress in Development-oriented Poverty Reduction Program for Rural China (1,274 yuan per year <nowiki>=</nowiki> US$ 0.55 per day)|publisher=The Government of China|year=2011|url=http://www.gov.cn/english/official/2011-11/16/content_1994729_3.htm|access-date=8 August 2012|archive-date=14 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714022605/http://www.gov.cn/english/official/2011-11/16/content_1994729_3.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> These different poverty lines make data comparison between each nation's official reports qualitatively difficult. Some scholars argue that the World Bank method sets the bar too high,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Subramanian |first=S. |date=March 2009 |title=Poverty Measurement in the Presence of a 'Group-Affiliation' Externality |url=http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14649880802675168 |journal=Journal of Human Development and Capabilities |language=en |volume=10 |issue=1 |pages=63–76 |doi=10.1080/14649880802675168 |s2cid=154177441 |issn=1945-2829}}</ref> others argue it is too low. [[File:Children of migrant cotton field workers from Sweetwater, Oklahoma, 8b15324.jpg|thumb|left|Children of the [[Great Depression|Depression]]-era migrant workers, Arizona, United States, 1937]] There is disagreement among experts as to what would be considered a realistic poverty rate with one considering it "an inaccurately measured and arbitrary cut off".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.politifact.com/global-news/statements/2016/mar/23/gayle-smith/did-we-really-reduce-extreme-poverty-half-30-years/|title=Did we really reduce extreme poverty by half in 30 years?|website=@politifact|language=en|access-date=25 April 2019|archive-date=26 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190526130914/https://www.politifact.com/global-news/statements/2016/mar/23/gayle-smith/did-we-really-reduce-extreme-poverty-half-30-years/|url-status=live}}</ref> Some contend that a higher poverty line is needed, such as a minimum of $7.40 or even $10 to $15 a day. They argue that these levels are a minimum for basic needs and to achieve normal [[life expectancy]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Hickel |first=Jason |date=29 January 2019 |title=Bill Gates says poverty is decreasing. He couldn't be more wrong |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/jan/29/bill-gates-davos-global-poverty-infographic-neoliberal |work=The Guardian |access-date=23 February 2023 |archive-date=29 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190129191021/https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/jan/29/bill-gates-davos-global-poverty-infographic-neoliberal |url-status=live }}</ref> One estimate places the true scale of poverty much higher than the World Bank, with an estimated 4.3 billion people (59% of the world's population) living with less than $5 a day and unable to meet basic needs adequately.<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://www.commondreams.org/views/2015/03/16/four-reasons-question-official-poverty-eradication-story-2015 | title=Four Reasons to Question the Official 'Poverty Eradication' Story of 2015 | access-date=11 August 2016 | archive-date=13 September 2016 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160913215402/http://www.commondreams.org/views/2015/03/16/four-reasons-question-official-poverty-eradication-story-2015 | url-status=live }}</ref> [[Philip Alston]], a [[United Nations special rapporteur|UN special rapporteur]] on extreme poverty and human rights, stated the World Bank's international poverty line of $1.90 a day is fundamentally flawed, and has allowed for "self congratulatory" triumphalism in the fight against extreme global poverty, which he asserts is "completely off track" and that nearly half of the global population, or 3.4 billion, lives on less than $5.50 a day, and this number has barely moved since 1990.<ref>{{cite news |last=Beaumont |first=Peter |date=7 July 2020 |title='We squandered a decade': world losing fight against poverty, says UN academic |url=https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/jul/07/we-squandered-a-decade-world-losing-fight-against-poverty-says-un-academic |work=The Guardian |access-date=11 July 2020 |archive-date=10 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200710213428/https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/jul/07/we-squandered-a-decade-world-losing-fight-against-poverty-says-un-academic |url-status=live }}</ref> Still others suggest that poverty line misleads because many live on far less than that line.<ref name="wb2010a">{{cite web|title=World Bank's $1.25/day poverty measure – countering the latest criticisms|publisher=The World Bank|year=2010|url=http://econ.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/EXTDEC/EXTRESEARCH/0,,contentMDK:22510787~pagePK:64165401~piPK:64165026~theSitePK:469382,00.html|access-date=4 December 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141210022841/http://econ.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/EXTDEC/EXTRESEARCH/0,,contentMDK:22510787~pagePK:64165401~piPK:64165026~theSitePK:469382,00.html|archive-date=10 December 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Poverty Measures|publisher=The World Bank|year=2009|url=http://info.worldbank.org/etools/docs/library/93518/Hung_0603/Hu_0603/Module4MeasuringPovertyMeasures.pdf|access-date=8 August 2012|archive-date=10 July 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120710075625/http://info.worldbank.org/etools/docs/library/93518/Hung_0603/Hu_0603/Module4MeasuringPovertyMeasures.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Poverty: An Ordinal Approach to Measurement|first=Amartya|last=Sen|journal=Econometrica|volume= 44|date= March 1976|pages= 219–231|jstor=1912718|issue= 2|doi=10.2307/1912718}}</ref> Other measures of absolute poverty without using a certain dollar amount include the standard defined as receiving less than 80% of minimum caloric intake whilst spending more than 80% of income on food, sometimes called ultra-poverty.<ref>Lipton, Michael (1986), 'Seasonality and ultra-poverty', Sussex, IDS Bulletin 17.3</ref> === Relative poverty === {{See also|Relative deprivation|Economic inequality|Wealth concentration}} [[File:Economics Gini coefficient2.svg|thumb|Graphical representation of the [[Gini coefficient]], a common measure of inequality. The Gini coefficient is equal to the area marked ''A'' divided by the sum of the areas marked ''A'' and ''B'', that is, {{nowrap|Gini {{=}} ''A''/(''A'' + ''B'')}}.]] Relative poverty views poverty as socially defined and dependent on [[social context]]. It is argued that the needs considered fundamental is not an objective measure<ref name="Innocenti2012">{{cite web|url=http://www.unicef.ca/sites/default/files/imce_uploads/DISCOVER/OUR%20WORK/ADVOCACY/DOMESTIC/POLICY%20ADVOCACY/DOCS/unicefreportcard10-eng.pdf|title=Measuring child poverty: New league tables of child poverty in the world's rich countries – UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre Report Card – number 10|first=Peter|last=Adamson|publisher=UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre|year=2012|location=Florence|access-date=19 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130612021633/http://www.unicef.ca/sites/default/files/imce_uploads/DISCOVER/OUR%20WORK/ADVOCACY/DOMESTIC/POLICY%20ADVOCACY/DOCS/unicefreportcard10-eng.pdf|archive-date=12 June 2013}}</ref><ref name="rep1964">{{cite report|title=Minority [Republican] views, p. 46 in U.S. Congress, Report of the Joint Economic Committee on the January 1964 Economic Report of the President with Minority and Additional Views|publisher=US Government Printing Office|location=Washington, DC|date=January 1964}}</ref> and could change with the custom of society.<ref name="AdamSmith1776">{{cite book|first=Adam|last=Smith|title=An Enquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations|volume=5|year=1776|issue=22|author-link=Adam Smith }}</ref><ref name="Innocenti2012" /> For example, a person who cannot afford housing better than a small tent in an open field would be said to live in relative poverty if almost everyone else in that area lives in modern brick homes, but not if everyone else also lives in small tents in open fields (for example, in a [[nomadic tribe]]). Since richer nations would have lower levels of absolute poverty,<ref name="relativeBradshawInnocenti2012">{{cite report|first1=Jonathan|last1=Bradshaw|author-link=Jonathan Bradshaw|first2=Yekaterina|last2=Chzhen|first3=Gill|last3=Main|first4=Bruno|last4=Martorano|first5=Leonardo|last5=Menchini|author6=Chris de Neubourg|date=January 2012|title=Relative Income Poverty among Children in Rich Countries|series=Innocenti Working Paper|number=2012–01|publisher=UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre|location=Florence|url=http://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/pdf/iwp_2012_01.pdf|issn=1014-7837|access-date=26 July 2013|archive-date=18 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150218081719/http://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/pdf/iwp_2012_01.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="UNICEF2000">{{cite report |title = A League Table of Child Poverty in Rich Nations – Innocenti Report Card No.1 |publisher = UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre |location = Florence }}</ref> relative poverty is considered the "most useful measure for ascertaining poverty rates in wealthy developed nations"<ref name="Raphael2009">{{cite journal|journal=Canadian Journal of Nursing Research|title=Poverty, Human Development, and Health in Canada: Research, Practice, and Advocacy Dilemmas|url=http://ingentaconnect.com/content/mcgill/cjnr/2009/00000041/00000002/art00002;jsessionid=3qnp6afbwou10.alexandra|volume=41|date=June 2009|pages=7–18|first=Dennis|last=Raphael|issue=2|pmid=19650510|access-date=7 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180314094520/http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/mcgill/cjnr/2009/00000041/00000002/art00002|archive-date=14 March 2018}}</ref><ref name="Innocenti2005">{{cite report|publisher=[[UNICEF#Innocenti Research Centre|Innocenti Research Centre]]|year=2005|title=Child poverty in rich nations: Report card no. 6}}</ref><ref name="OECD2008">{{cite web|publisher=Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)|year=2008|title=Growing unequal? Income distribution and poverty in OECD countries|url=http://www.oecd.org/els/soc/41527936.pdf|location=Paris|access-date=19 February 2016|archive-date=12 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160312195836/http://www.oecd.org/els/soc/41527936.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="UNDP2008">{{cite report|publisher=United Nations Development Program|year=2008|title=Human development report: Capacity development: Empowering people and institutions|location=Geneva}}</ref><ref name="ConferenceBoard2013">{{cite web|url=http://www.conferenceboard.ca/hcp/details/society/child-poverty.aspx|title=Child Poverty|publisher=Conference Board of Canada|location=Ottawa|year=2013|access-date=19 June 2013|archive-date=4 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130604202933/http://www.conferenceboard.ca/hcp/details/society/child-poverty.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref> and is the "most prominent and most-quoted of the EU social inclusion indicators".<ref name="povinequalityCSP">{{cite web|title=How Poverty Differs From Inequality, On Poverty Management in an Enlarged EU Context: Conventional and Alternative Approaches|first1=Ive|last1=Marx|first2=Karel|last2=van den Bosch|website=ec.europa.eu|publisher=Centre for Social Policy|location=Antwerp|url=https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/1001617/4577263/1-1-I-MARX.pdf|url-status=live|archive-date=3 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181003141347/https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/1001617/4577263/1-1-I-MARX.pdf}}</ref> Usually, relative poverty is measured as the percentage of the population with income less than some fixed proportion of median income. This is a calculation of the percentage of people whose family household income falls below the [[Poverty threshold|Poverty Line]]. The main poverty line used in the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the European Union (EU) is based on "economic distance", a level of income set at 60% of the median household income.<ref>{{cite news|url =http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/8177864.stm|title = Just what is poor?|access-date = 25 September 2008|author=Blastland, Michael|work=BBC News |date = 31 July 2009}}</ref> The United States federal government typically regulates this line to three times the cost of an adequate meal.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Principles of Economics|last=Mankiw|first=Gregory|publisher=Cengage|year=2016|isbn=978-1-305-58512-6|location=Boston|page=406}}</ref> There are several other different [[income inequality metrics]], for example, the [[Gini coefficient]] or the [[Theil Index]]. [[File:Global Wealth Distribution 2020 (Property).svg|thumb|Global share of wealth by wealth group —Credit Suisse, 2021]] [[File:GINI index World Bank up to 2018.png|alt=|thumb|300px|The [[Gini coefficient]], a measure of [[economic inequality|income inequality]]. Based on [[World Bank]] data ranging from 1992 to 2018.<ref>{{Cite web|title=GINI index (World Bank estimate) {{!}} Data|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SI.POV.GINI?view=map|access-date=23 July 2020|website=data.worldbank.org|archive-date=29 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200729153431/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SI.POV.GINI?view=map|url-status=live}}</ref>]] === Other aspects === [[File:Countries by Human Development Index (2020).png|alt=|thumb|300px|World map of countries by [[Human Development Index]] categories in increments of 0.050 (based on 2019 data, published in 2020) {| cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="0" style="width:100%; background:none;" | valign="top" |{{Legend|#003C00|≥ 0.900}}{{Legend|#007F00|0.850–0.899}}{{Legend|#00C400|0.800–0.849}}{{Legend|#00F900|0.750–0.799}}{{Legend|#D3FF00|0.700–0.749}} | valign="top" |{{Legend|#FFFF00|0.650–0.699}}{{Legend|#FFD215|0.600–0.649}}{{Legend|#FFA83C|0.550–0.599}}{{Legend|#FF852F|0.500–0.549}}{{Legend|#FF5B00|0.450–0.499}} | valign="top" |{{Legend|#FF0000|0.400–0.449}}{{Legend|#A70000|≤ 0.399}}{{Legend|#D9D9D9|Data unavailable}} |} ]] Rather than income, poverty is also measured through individual basic needs at a time. [[Life expectancy]] has greatly increased in the developing world since World War II and is starting to close the gap to the developed world.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Hardy|first1=Melissa A.|last2=Reyes|first2=Adriana M.|date=1 February 2016|title=The Longevity Legacy of World War II: The Intersection of GI Status and Mortality|url=https://academic.oup.com/gerontologist/article/56/1/104/2605202|journal=The Gerontologist|language=en|volume=56|issue=1|pages=104–114|doi=10.1093/geront/gnv041|pmid=26220413|issn=0016-9013|doi-access=free|access-date=5 October 2020|archive-date=13 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201013182949/https://academic.oup.com/gerontologist/article/56/1/104/2605202|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Child mortality]] has decreased in every developing region of the world.<ref>{{cite web|title=Levels and Trends in Child Mortality|publisher=UNICEF, World Health Organization, The World Bank and UN Population Division|year=2011|url=http://www.childinfo.org/files/Child_Mortality_Report_2011.pdf|access-date=9 August 2012|archive-date=22 August 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120822173244/http://www.childinfo.org/files/Child_Mortality_Report_2011.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> The proportion of the world's population living in countries where the daily per-capita supply of [[food energy]] is less than {{convert|9200|kJ|kcal|abbr=off}} decreased from 56% in the mid-1960s to below 10% by the 1990s. Similar trends can be observed for literacy, access to clean water and electricity and basic consumer items.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Why Are We Worried About Income? Nearly Everything that Matters is Converging |doi=10.1016/j.worlddev.2004.06.016 |volume=33 |journal=World Development |pages=1–19 |year=2005 |last1=Kenny |first1=Charles }}</ref> [[File:Tiggare vid Operakällaren.jpg|thumb|An early morning outside the Opera Tavern in Stockholm, with beggars waiting for scraps from the previous day. [[Sweden]], 1868.]] Poverty may also be understood as an aspect of unequal [[social status]] and inequitable social relationships, experienced as social exclusion, dependency, and diminished capacity to participate, or to develop meaningful connections with other people in society.<ref>H Silver, 1994, social exclusion and [[Solidarity (sociology)|social solidarity]], in International Labour Review, 133 5–6</ref><ref>G Simmel, The poor, Social Problems 1965 13</ref><ref name="Townsend1979">{{cite book|author=Townsend, P.|year=1979|title=Poverty in the United Kingdom|location=London|publisher=Penguin}}</ref> Such social exclusion can be minimized through strengthened connections with the mainstream, such as through the provision of [[relational care]] to those who are experiencing poverty. The World Bank's "Voices of the Poor", based on research with over 20,000 poor people in 23 countries, identifies a range of factors which poor people identify as part of poverty. These include abuse by those in power, dis-empowering institutions, excluded locations, gender relationships, lack of security, limited capabilities, physical limitations, precarious livelihoods, problems in social relationships, weak community organizations and discrimination. Analysis of social aspects of poverty links conditions of scarcity to aspects of the distribution of resources and power in a society and recognizes that poverty may be a function of the diminished "capability" of people to live the kinds of lives they value. The social aspects of poverty may include lack of [[information access|access to information]], [[education]], [[health care]], [[social capital]] or [[political power]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.paho.org/english/sha/be_v23n1-glossary.htm |title=A Glossary for Social Epidemiology |publisher=World Health Organization |date=March 2002 |access-date=21 June 2011 |archive-date=29 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629174304/http://www.paho.org/english/sha/be_v23n1-glossary.htm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.journalofpoverty.org/JOPPURP/JOPPURP.HTM |title=Journal of Poverty |publisher=Journal of Poverty |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120512074344/http://www.journalofpoverty.org/JOPPURP/JOPPURP.HTM |archive-date=12 May 2012 }}</ref> [[Relational poverty]] is the idea that societal poverty exists if there is a lack of human relationships. Relational poverty can be the result of a lost contact number, lack of phone ownership, isolation, or deliberate severing of ties with an individual or community. Relational poverty is also understood "by the social institutions that organize those relationships...poverty is importantly the result of the different terms and conditions on which people are included in social life".<ref>{{Cite book |date=2018 |title=Relational Poverty Politics: Forms, Struggles, and Possibilities |editor-last1=Lawson |editor-first1=Victoria |editor-last2=Elwood |editor-first2=Sarah |url=https://search.library.berkeley.edu/permalink/01UCS_BER/1thfj9n/alma991085855291906532 |publisher=The University of Georgia Press |isbn=978-0-8203-5312-8 }}</ref> In the [[United Kingdom]], the [[second Cameron ministry]] came under attack for its redefinition of poverty; poverty is no longer classified by a family's income, but as to whether a family is in work or not.<ref name=Guardian1 /> Considering that two-thirds of people who found work were accepting wages that are below the [[living wage]] (according to the [[Joseph Rowntree Foundation]]<ref>{{cite news|title=Record numbers of working families in poverty due to low-paid jobs|url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/nov/24/record-numbers-working-families-poverty-joseph-rowntree-foundation|access-date=29 July 2015|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=24 November 2014|archive-date=14 August 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150814184047/http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/nov/24/record-numbers-working-families-poverty-joseph-rowntree-foundation|url-status=live}}</ref>) this has been criticised by anti-poverty campaigners as an unrealistic view of poverty in the United Kingdom.<ref name=Guardian1>{{cite news|title=The welfare reform and work bill will make poor children poorer|url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/jul/19/the-welfare-reform-and-work-bill-will-make-poor-children-poorer|access-date=29 July 2015|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=19 July 2015|first=Javed|last=Khan|archive-date=28 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150728160722/http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/jul/19/the-welfare-reform-and-work-bill-will-make-poor-children-poorer|url-status=live}}</ref> ==== Secondary poverty ==== {{Main|Secondary poverty}} Secondary poverty refers to those that earn enough income to not be impoverished, but who spend their income on unnecessary pleasures, such as [[alcoholic beverage]]s, thus placing them below it in practice.<ref>{{cite book|title=Poverty in the United Kingdom: A Survey of Household Resources and Standards of Living|last=Townsend|first=Peter|publisher=University of California Press|year=1979|isbn=978-0-520-03976-6|page=565|language=en}}</ref> In 18th- and 19th-century [[Great Britain]], the practice of [[temperance movement|temperance]] among [[Methodist]]s, as well as their rejection of [[Gambling#Religious|gambling]], allowed them to eliminate secondary poverty and accumulate capital.<ref name="Swatos1998">{{cite book|title=Encyclopedia of Religion and Society|last=Swatos|first=William H.|publisher=Rowman Altamira|year=1998|isbn=978-0-7619-8956-1|page=385|language=en}}</ref> Factors that contribute to secondary poverty includes but are not limited to: alcohol, gambling, tobacco and drugs. [[Substance abuse]] means that the poor typically spend about 2% of their income educating their children but larger percentages of alcohol and tobacco (for example, 6% in Indonesia and 8% in Mexico).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://economics.mit.edu/files/530|title=The economic lives of the poor|publisher=MIT|date=October 2006|access-date=1 March 2013|archive-date=23 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130523002625/http://economics.mit.edu/files/530|url-status=live}}</ref> ===Variability=== Poverty levels are snapshot pictures in time that omits the transitional dynamics between levels. Mobility statistics supply additional information about the fraction who leave the poverty level. For example, one study finds that in a sixteen-year period (1975 to 1991 in the US) only 5% of those in the lower fifth of the income level were still at that level, while 95% transitioned to a higher income category.<ref>{{cite report|url=http://www.dallasfed.org/assets/documents/fed/annual/1999/ar95.pdf|page=6|title=By Our Own Bootstraps|author=W. Michael Cox|first2=Richard|last2=Alm|year=1995|publisher=Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas|access-date=28 May 2012|archive-date=11 May 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120511155143/http://dallasfed.org/assets/documents/fed/annual/1999/ar95.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Poverty levels can remain the same while those who rise out of poverty are replaced by others. The transient poor and chronic poor differ in each society. In a nine-year period ending in 2005 for the US, 50% of the poorest quintile transitioned to a higher quintile.<ref>{{cite report|url=http://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/tax-policy/Documents/incomemobilitystudy03-08revise.pdf |title=Income Mobility in the U.S. from 1996 to 2005 |publisher=Department of the Treasury |date=13 November 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120505172648/http://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/tax-policy/Documents/incomemobilitystudy03-08revise.pdf |archive-date=5 May 2012 }}</ref> === Global prevalence === {{See also|List of countries by percentage of population living in poverty}}[[File:Worlds regions by total wealth(in trillions USD), 2018.jpg|thumb|250px|Worlds regions by total wealth (in trillions USD), 2018]] According to Chen and Ravallion, about 1.76 billion people in developing world lived ''above'' $1.25 per day and 1.9 billion people lived ''below'' $1.25 per day in 1981. In 2005, about 4.09 billion people in developing world lived above $1.25 per day and 1.4 billion people lived below $1.25 per day (both 1981 and 2005 data are on inflation adjusted basis).<ref>{{cite web|title=The Developing World Is Poorer Than We Thought, But No Less Successful in the Fight against Poverty|first1=Shaohua|last1=Chen|first2=Martin|last2=Ravallioniz|name-list-style=amp|date=August 2008|url=http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/IW3P/IB/2010/01/21/000158349_20100121133109/Rendered/PDF/WPS4703.pdf|access-date=9 August 2012|archive-date=17 April 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120417182722/http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/IW3P/IB/2010/01/21/000158349_20100121133109/Rendered/PDF/WPS4703.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Fighting poverty in emerging markets – the gloves go on; Lessons from Brazil, China and India|newspaper=The Economist|date=26 November 2009|url=http://www.economist.com/node/14979330|access-date=9 August 2012|archive-date=8 September 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120908144911/http://www.economist.com/node/14979330|url-status=live}}</ref> The share of the world's population living in absolute poverty fell from 43% in 1981 to 14% in 2011.<ref name="worldbank-Poverty">{{cite web |url=http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTPOVERTY/0,,contentMDK:20153855~menuPK:373757~pagePK:148956~piPK:216618~theSitePK:336992,00.html |title=The World Bank, 2007, Understanding Poverty |website=Web.worldbank.org |date=19 April 2005 |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-date=7 November 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191107161906/http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTPOVERTY/0,,contentMDK:20153855~menuPK:373757~pagePK:148956~piPK:216618~theSitePK:336992,00.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The absolute number of people in poverty fell from 1.95 billion in 1981 to 1.01 billion in 2011.<ref name="PovertyRoser">{{cite journal|first=Max|last=Roser|title=World Poverty|url=http://ourworldindata.org/data/growth-and-distribution-of-prosperity/world-poverty/|journal=Our World in Data|date=2015|access-date=26 September 2015|archive-date=27 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150927201601/http://ourworldindata.org/data/growth-and-distribution-of-prosperity/world-poverty/|url-status=live}}</ref> The economist [[Max Roser]] estimates that the number of people in poverty is therefore roughly the same as 200 years ago.<ref name="PovertyRoser" /> This is the case since the world population was just little more than 1 billion in 1820 and the majority (84% to 94%)<ref>{{Cite journal |first1=François |last1=Bourguignon |first2=Christian |last2=Morrisson |year=2002 |title=Inequality Among World Citizens: 1820–1992 |url=http://piketty.pse.ens.fr/files/BourguignonMorrisson2002.pdf |journal=American Economic Review |volume=92 |issue=4 |pages=727–744 |doi=10.1257/00028280260344443 |citeseerx=10.1.1.5.7307 |access-date=19 February 2016 |archive-date=18 February 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160218184001/http://piketty.pse.ens.fr/files/BourguignonMorrisson2002.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> of the world population was living in poverty. According to one study, the percentage of the world population in hunger and poverty fell in absolute percentage terms from 50% in 1950 to 30% in 1970.<ref>Origins of the Organic Agriculture Debate By Thomas R. DeGregori, 2008, P.128</ref> According to another study the number of people worldwide living in absolute poverty fell from 1.18 billion in 1950 to 1.04 billion in 1977.<ref>Economic Inequality and Poverty International Perspectives Edited by Lars Osberg, 2017, P.71</ref> According to another study, the number of people worldwide estimated to be starving fell from almost 920 million in 1971 to below 797 million in 1997.<ref>{{Cite web |title=World Bank Group – International Development, Poverty, & Sustainability |url=https://www.worldbank.org/en/home |access-date=2023-10-19 |website=World Bank |language=en}}</ref> The proportion of the [[developing world]]'s population living in extreme economic poverty fell from 28% in 1990 to 21% in 2001.<ref name="worldbank-Poverty" /> Most of this improvement has occurred in [[East Asia|East]] and [[South Asia]].<ref name="1980s">{{cite web|url=http://econ.worldbank.org/external/default/main?ImgPagePK=64202990&entityID=000112742_20040722172047&menuPK=64168175&pagePK=64210502&theSitePK=477894&piPK=64210520|title=How Have the World's Poorest Fared Since the Early 1980s?" Table 3, p. 28|publisher=worldbank.org|access-date=28 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070310150255/http://econ.worldbank.org/external/default/main?ImgPagePK=64202990&entityID=000112742_20040722172047&menuPK=64168175&pagePK=64210502&theSitePK=477894&piPK=64210520|archive-date=10 March 2007}}</ref> In 2012 it was estimated that, using a poverty line of $1.25 a day, 1.2 billion people lived in poverty.<ref>Ravallion, Martin. [https://web.archive.org/web/20170123164200/https://academic.oup.com/wbro/article-abstract/28/2/139/1675043/How-Long-Will-It-Take-to-Lift-One-Billion-People#cited-by "How long will it take to lift one billion people out of poverty?."] ''The World Bank Research Observer'' 28.2 (2013): 139.</ref> Given the current economic model, built on [[gross domestic product|GDP]], it would take 100 years to bring the world's poorest up to the poverty line of $1.25 a day.<ref>[[Jason Hickel]] (30 March 2015). [https://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/2015/mar/30/it-will-take-100-years-for-the-worlds-poorest-people-to-earn-125-a-day It will take 100 years for the world's poorest people to earn $1.25 a day] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210424014546/https://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/2015/mar/30/it-will-take-100-years-for-the-worlds-poorest-people-to-earn-125-a-day |date=24 April 2021 }}. ''[[The Guardian]].'' Retrieved 31 March 2015.</ref> [[UNICEF]] estimates half the world's children (or 1.1 billion) live in poverty.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unicef.org/rightsite/364_617.htm|first=Ernest C.|last=Madu|title=Investment and Development Will Secure the Rights of the Child|access-date=12 April 2014|archive-date=13 April 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140413144118/http://www.unicef.org/rightsite/364_617.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> The World Bank forecasted in 2015 that [[Global Monitoring Report (World Bank)|702.1 million people]] were living in extreme poverty, down from 1.75 billion in 1990.<ref>{{Cite report|url=http://pubdocs.worldbank.org/pubdocs/publicdoc/2015/10/503001444058224597/Global-Monitoring-Report-2015.pdf|title=Global Monitoring Report 2015/2016: Development Goals in an Era of Demographic Change|pages=1–9|publisher=World Bank|location=Washington, DC|author=The World Bank|date=2016|access-date=4 November 2015|archive-date=7 June 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160607170318/http://pubdocs.worldbank.org/pubdocs/publicdoc/2015/10/503001444058224597/Global-Monitoring-Report-2015.pdf|url-status=live|doi=10.1596/978-1-4648-0669-8|isbn=978-1-4648-0669-8}}</ref> Extreme poverty is observed in all parts of the world, including developed economies.<ref>{{cite web|title=World Bank Sees Progress Against Extreme Poverty, But Flags Vulnerabilities|publisher=The World bank|date=29 February 2012|url=http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/2012/02/29/world-bank-sees-progress-against-extreme-poverty-but-flags-vulnerabilities|access-date=8 August 2012|archive-date=23 November 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121123050607/http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/2012/02/29/world-bank-sees-progress-against-extreme-poverty-but-flags-vulnerabilities|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://povertydata.worldbank.org/poverty/country/IND |title=Poverty and Equity – India, 2010 World Bank Country Profile |publisher=Povertydata.worldbank.org |date=30 March 2012 |access-date=26 July 2013 |archive-date=25 November 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171125073110/http://povertydata.worldbank.org/poverty/country/IND |url-status=live }}</ref> Of the 2015 population, about 347.1 million people (35.2%) lived in [[Global Monitoring Report (World Bank)|Sub-Saharan Africa]] and 231.3 million (13.5%) lived in [[Global Monitoring Report (World Bank)|South Asia]]. According to the World Bank, between 1990 and 2015, the percentage of the world's population living in extreme poverty fell from 37.1% to 9.6%, falling below 10% for the first time.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2015/10/04/world-bank-forecasts-global-poverty-to-fall-below-10-for-first-time-major-hurdles-remain-in-goal-to-end-poverty-by-2030 |title=World Bank Forecasts Global Poverty to Fall Below 10% for First Time; Major Hurdles Remain in Goal to End Poverty by 2030 |publisher=Worldbank.org |date=4 October 2015 |access-date=6 January 2016 |archive-date=3 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160103202525/http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2015/10/04/world-bank-forecasts-global-poverty-to-fall-below-10-for-first-time-major-hurdles-remain-in-goal-to-end-poverty-by-2030 |url-status=live }}</ref> During the 2013 to 2015 period, the [[World Bank Group|World Bank]] reported that extreme poverty fell from 11% to 10%, however they also noted that the rate of decline had slowed by nearly half from the 25 year average with parts of sub-saharan Africa returning to early 2000 levels.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ending Extreme Poverty: Progress, but Uneven and Slowing |url=https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/30418/9781464813306_Ch01.pdf |work=The world Bank |access-date=31 January 2019 |archive-date=1 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190201013412/https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/30418/9781464813306_Ch01.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Elliott|first=Larry|date=20 January 2019|title=World's 26 richest people own as much as poorest 50%, says Oxfam|url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/jan/21/world-26-richest-people-own-as-much-as-poorest-50-per-cent-oxfam-report|work=The Guardian|access-date=31 January 2019|archive-date=15 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215040535/https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/jan/21/world-26-richest-people-own-as-much-as-poorest-50-per-cent-oxfam-report|url-status=live}}</ref> The World Bank attributed this to increasing violence following the [[Arab Spring]], [[Population growth|population increases]] in Sub-Saharan Africa, and general African inflationary pressures and economic malaise were the primary drivers for this slow down.<ref>{{cite news |last=Inman |first=Phillip |date=19 September 2018 |title=World Bank reports slower progress on extreme poverty |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/sep/19/world-bank-reports-slower-progress-on-extreme-poverty |work=The Guardian |access-date=31 January 2019 |archive-date=1 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190201013708/https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/sep/19/world-bank-reports-slower-progress-on-extreme-poverty |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Müller-Jung|first=Friederike|date=17 October 2018|title=World Bank report: Poverty rates remain high in Africa|url=https://www.dw.com/en/world-bank-report-poverty-rates-remain-high-in-africa/a-45926382|work=[[Deutsche Welle]]|access-date=31 January 2019|archive-date=1 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190201013201/https://www.dw.com/en/world-bank-report-poverty-rates-remain-high-in-africa/a-45926382|url-status=live}}</ref> Many wealthy nations have seen an increase in relative poverty rates ever since the [[Great Recession]], in particular among children from impoverished families who often reside in substandard housing and find educational opportunities out of reach.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/11/why-rich-countries-are-seeing-more-poverty|title=Why rich countries are seeing more poverty|last=Charlton|first=Emma|date=20 November 2018|website=[[World Economic Forum]]|access-date=17 February 2019|archive-date=18 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190218021433/https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/11/why-rich-countries-are-seeing-more-poverty|url-status=live}}</ref> It has been argued by some academics that the [[neoliberal]] policies promoted by global financial institutions such as the [[International Monetary Fund|IMF]] and the World Bank are actually exacerbating both inequality and poverty.<ref>{{cite book|editor1-last= Haymes|editor1-first= Stephen|editor2-last= Vidal de Haymes|editor2-first= Maria|editor3-last= Miller|editor3-first= Reuben|title= The Routledge Handbook of Poverty in the United States|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=qnHfBQAAQBAJ&q=microcredit&pg=PA1|location= London|publisher= [[Routledge]]|date= 2015|isbn= 978-0-415-67344-0|pages= 1–2|access-date= 18 December 2020|archive-date= 24 July 2021|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210724225952/https://books.google.com/books?id=qnHfBQAAQBAJ&q=microcredit&pg=PA1|url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Jones|first1=Campbell|last2=Parker|first2=Martin |last3= Ten Bos |first3=Rene|date=2005 |title=For Business Ethics |publisher=Routledge|page=101|isbn=978-0-415-31135-9|quote=Critics of neoliberalism have therefore looked at the evidence that documents the results of this great experiment of the past 30 years, in which many markets have been set free. Looking at the evidence, we can see that the total amount of global trade has increased significantly, but that global poverty has increased, with more today living in abject poverty than before neoliberalism.}}</ref> In East Asia the World Bank reported that "The poverty headcount rate at the $2-a-day level is estimated to have fallen to about 27 percent [in 2007], down from 29.5 percent in 2006 and 69 percent in 1990."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/EASTASIAPACIFICEXT/0,,contentMDK:21550665~pagePK:146736~piPK:146830~theSitePK:226301,00.html|title=East Asia Remains Robust Despite US Slow Down|publisher=worldbank.org|access-date=27 May 2011|archive-date=22 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110322182301/http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/EASTASIAPACIFICEXT/0,,contentMDK:21550665~pagePK:146736~piPK:146830~theSitePK:226301,00.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[People's Republic of China]] accounts for over three quarters of global poverty reduction from 1990 to 2005, which according to the World Bank is "historically unprecedented".<ref>{{cite book |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=2022 |title=Four Decades of Poverty Reduction in China: Drivers, Insights for the World, and the Way Ahead|url= |location= |publisher=World Bank Publications|page=ix |isbn=978-1-4648-1878-3|quote=By any measure, the speed and scale of China's poverty reduction is historically unprecedented.}}</ref> China accounted for nearly half of all [[extreme poverty]] in 1990.<ref>{{cite news|last=Stuart|first=Elizabeth|date=19 August 2015|title=China has almost wiped out urban poverty. Now it must tackle inequality|url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/economics-blog/2015/aug/19/china-poverty-inequality-development-goals|work=The Guardian|access-date=22 January 2019|archive-date=10 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170910040855/https://www.theguardian.com/business/economics-blog/2015/aug/19/china-poverty-inequality-development-goals|url-status=live}}</ref> In Sub-Saharan Africa extreme poverty went up from 41% in 1981 to 46% in 2001,<ref>{{cite book|author=Perry|title=Contemporary Society: An Introduction to Social Science, 12/e|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8sa8RCA8VYQC&pg=PA548|publisher=Pearson Education|isbn=978-81-317-3066-9|page=548|year=1972|access-date=14 October 2015|archive-date=5 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160505092949/https://books.google.com/books?id=8sa8RCA8VYQC&pg=PA548|url-status=live}}</ref> which combined with growing population increased the number of people living in extreme poverty from 231 million to 318 million.<ref name="birthrates">{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/politics/birth-rates-must-be-curbed-to-win-war-on-global-poverty-434387.html|title=Birth rates must be curbed to win war on global poverty|work=The Independent|location=London|access-date=11 June 2012|date=31 January 2007|archive-date=15 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131215163037/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/politics/birth-rates-must-be-curbed-to-win-war-on-global-poverty-434387.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Statistics of 2018 shows population living in extreme conditions has declined by more than 1 billion in the last 25 years. As per the report published by the world bank on 19 September 2018 world poverty falls below 750 million.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/world-poverty-falls-below-750-million-report-says-1537366273|title=World Poverty Falls Below 750 Million, Report Says|last=Zumbrun|first=Josh|date=19 September 2018|work=[[The Wall Street Journal]]|access-date=20 September 2018|language=en-US|issn=0099-9660|archive-date=19 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180919230436/https://www.wsj.com/articles/world-poverty-falls-below-750-million-report-says-1537366273|url-status=live}}</ref> In the early 1990s some of the transition economies of Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia experienced a sharp drop in income.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTPOVERTY/0,,contentMDK:20153855~menuPK:373757~pagePK:148956~piPK:216618~theSitePK:336992,00.html |title=Worldbank.org reference |publisher=Web.worldbank.org |date=19 April 2005 |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-date=7 November 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191107161906/http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTPOVERTY/0,,contentMDK:20153855~menuPK:373757~pagePK:148956~piPK:216618~theSitePK:336992,00.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[collapse of the Soviet Union]] resulted in large declines in GDP per capita, of about 30 to 35% between 1990 and the through year of 1998 (when it was at its minimum). As a result, poverty rates tripled,<ref>{{cite book |last=Scheidel |first=Walter |author-link=Walter Scheidel |title=The Great Leveler: Violence and the History of Inequality from the Stone Age to the Twenty-First Century |publisher=[[Princeton University Press]] |year=2017 |isbn=978-0-691-16502-8 |page=222 }}</ref> excess mortality increased,<ref>{{cite journal |last1= Rosefielde|first1=Steven|date=2001 |title=Premature Deaths: Russia's Radical Economic Transition in Soviet Perspective|journal=[[Europe-Asia Studies]]|volume=53 |issue=8 |pages=1159–1176|doi= 10.1080/09668130120093174|s2cid=145733112|author-link=Steven Rosefielde}}</ref> and life expectancy declined.<ref>{{cite book|last=Ghodsee|first=Kristen|date=2017|title=Red Hangover: Legacies of Twentieth-Century Communism|url=https://www.dukeupress.edu/red-hangover|publisher=[[Duke University Press]]|pages=63–64|isbn=978-0-8223-6949-3|author-link=Kristen Ghodsee|access-date=14 February 2019|archive-date=7 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191207032254/https://www.dukeupress.edu/red-hangover|url-status=live}}</ref> Russian President [[Boris Yeltsin]]'s [[IMF]]-backed rapid [[privatization]] and [[austerity]] policies resulted in unemployment rising to double digits and half the Russian population falling into destitution by the early to mid 1990s.<ref>{{cite book |last=Mattei|first=Clara E.|date=2022 |title=The Capital Order: How Economists Invented Austerity and Paved the Way to Fascism|pages=301–303|url=https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/C/bo181707138.html|location= |publisher=[[University of Chicago Press]]|isbn=978-0-226-81839-9|quote="If, in 1987–1988, 2 percent of the Russian people lived in poverty (i.e., survived on less than $4 a day), by 1993–1995 the number reached 50 percent: in just seven years half the Russian population became destitute.}}</ref> By 1999, during the peak of the poverty crisis, 191 million people were living on less than $5.50 a day.<ref name=GhodseeOrenstein>{{cite book |last1=Ghodsee|first1=Kristen|last2=Orenstein|first2=Mitchell A.|date=2021|title=Taking Stock of Shock: Social Consequences of the 1989 Revolutions|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|page=43|doi=10.1093/oso/9780197549230.001.0001 |isbn=978-0-19-754924-7}}</ref> In subsequent years as per capita incomes recovered the poverty rate dropped from 31.4% of the population to 19.6%.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/DATASTATISTICS/0,,contentMDK:20398986~menuPK:64133163~pagePK:64133150~piPK:64133175~theSitePK:239419,00.html |title=World Bank, Data and Statistics, WDI, GDF, & ADI Online Databases |publisher=World Bank |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100416035127/http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/DATASTATISTICS/0%2C%2CcontentMDK%3A20398986~menuPK%3A64133163~pagePK%3A64133150~piPK%3A64133175~theSitePK%3A239419%2C00.html |archive-date=16 April 2010 }}</ref><ref name="Soviet">{{cite news|url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C07E0D8163FF931A25753C1A9669C8B63|title=Study Finds Poverty Deepening in Former Communist Countries|work=The New York Times|access-date=28 May 2011|date=12 October 2000|archive-date=28 February 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090228105849/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C07E0D8163FF931A25753C1A9669C8B63|url-status=live}}</ref> The average post-communist country had returned to 1989 levels of per-capita GDP by 2005,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Appel|first1=Hilary|last2=Orenstein|first2=Mitchell A.|date=2018|title=From Triumph to Crisis: Neoliberal Economic Reform in Postcommunist Countries|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PHhTDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA36|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|page=36|isbn=978-1-108-43505-5|access-date=18 December 2020|archive-date=24 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210724225952/https://books.google.com/books?id=PHhTDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA36|url-status=live}}</ref> although as of 2015 some are still far behind that.<ref>{{Cite journal | doi = 10.1080/05775132.2015.1012402| title =After the Wall Fell: The Poor Balance Sheet of the Transition to Capitalism| journal =[[Challenge (economics magazine)|Challenge]]| volume = 58| issue = 2| pages =135–138| year = 2015| last1 = Milanović | first1 = Branko| s2cid =153398717|author-link=Branko Milanović|quote= So, what is the balance sheet of transition? Only three or at most five or six countries could be said to be on the road to becoming a part of the rich and (relatively) stable capitalist world. Many of the other countries are falling behind, and some are so far behind that they cannot aspire to go back to the point where they were when the Wall fell for several decades.}}</ref> According to the World Bank in 2014, around 80 million people were still living on less than $5.00 a day.<ref name=GhodseeOrenstein/> World Bank data shows that the percentage of the population living in households with consumption or income per person below the poverty line has decreased in each region of the world except Middle East and North Africa since 1990:<ref>{{cite web |url=http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet/jsp/index.jsp |title=World Bank, 2007, Povcalnet Poverty Data |publisher=World Bank |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-date=4 December 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101204081829/http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet/jsp/index.jsp |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>The data can be replicated using World Bank 2007 Human Development Indicator regional tables, and using the default poverty line of $32.74 per month at 1993 PPP.</ref> In July 2023, a group of over 200 economists from 67 countries, including [[Jayati Ghosh]], [[Joseph Stiglitz]] and [[Thomas Piketty]], sent a letter to the United Nations secretary general [[António Guterres]] and World Bank president [[Ajay Banga]] warning that "extreme poverty and extreme wealth have risen sharply and simultaneously for the first time in 25 years."<ref>{{cite news |last= Elliott|first=Larry|date= |title=Top economists call for action on runaway global inequality|url=https://www.theguardian.com/inequality/2023/jul/17/top-economists-call-for-action-global-inequality-rich-poor-poverty-climate-breakdown-un-world-bank|work=The Guardian |location= |access-date=August 22, 2023}}</ref> In 2024, Oxfam reported that roughly five billion people have become poorer since 2020 and warned that current trends could postpone global poverty eradication for 229 years.<ref>{{cite news |last=Neate|first=Rupert |date=January 14, 2024 |title=World's five richest men double their money as poorest get poorer|url=https://www.theguardian.com/inequality/2024/jan/15/worlds-five-richest-men-double-their-money-as-poorest-get-poorer|work=[[The Guardian]] |location= |access-date=January 16, 2024}}</ref> {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" |- ! rowspan="2" |'''Region''' ! colspan="6" |$2.15 per day<ref>{{Cite web |title=Poverty headcount ratio at $2.15 a day (2017 PPP) (% of population) – East Asia & Pacific, Sub-Saharan Africa, Europe & Central Asia, Middle East & North Africa, South Asia, Latin America & Caribbean, World |url=https://data.worldbank.org/ |access-date=2023-06-01 |website=World Bank Open Data}}</ref> |- !1981 !1990 !2000 !2010 !2018 !2019 |- | East Asia and Pacific |83.5% |65.8% |39.5% |13.3% |1.6% |1.2% |- | Europe and Central Asia |— |— |9.1% |4.1% |2.3% |2.3% |- | Latin America and the Caribbean |15.1% |16.8% |13.5% |6.4% |4.3% |4.3% |- | Middle East and North Africa |— |6.5% |3.5% |1.9% |9.6% |— |- | South Asia |58% |49.8% |— |26% |10.1% |8.6% |- | Sub-Saharan Africa |— |53.8% |56.5% |42.2% |35.4% |34.9% |- ! World !43.6% !37.9% !29.3% !16.3% !9% !8.5% |} Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page