NEW YORK / RankWire.AI / – Worldwide, the number of people living in multidimensional poverty has grown for the first time since the measure’s inception in 2010, impacting 1.2 billion individuals across 108 countries. The 2026 Global Multidimensional Poverty Index encompasses a population of 6.3 billion and indicates that 18.9% are experiencing severe multidimensional deprivation. This latest figure is 51.5 million higher than the previous report on a comparable basis. UNDP Administrator Alexander De Croo described this rise as a “wake-up call for the world.” The index evaluates overlapping deprivations related to health, education, and living standards, rather than solely income levels.
The most recent data comes from the United Nations Development Programme and the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative. Their index assesses 10 different indicators, including nutrition, schooling, sanitation, access to drinking water, electricity, housing quality, and household assets. It also accounts for child mortality, school attendance, and cooking fuel. A person is deemed multidimensionally poor when their deprivations reach at least one-third of the index’s weighted indicators. This framework provides policymakers with a broader perspective on hardship than relying solely on income thresholds.
Children constitute over half of those living in multidimensional poverty. About 617 million children are included, representing 51.5% of the global total. Nearly one out of three children listed in the index suffers from multidimensional poverty. Rural areas bear an even heavier burden, with roughly 83% of all multidimensionally poor individuals residing in rural zones, where gaps in essential services remain prevalent across many countries featured in the dataset.
Sub-Saharan Africa bears the greatest share
The region of Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest number of people living in multidimensional poverty, totaling 616 million, which accounts for 51.4% of its population measured by the index. The 2026 report also incorporates new survey data from 13 countries and provides subnational estimates for 1,360 regions across 100 nations. In 95 countries lacking new survey data, updated population estimates added 15.8 million individuals to the count of those experiencing multidimensional poverty this year.
Analysis of country data reveals both progress and setbacks. Nations such as Egypt, Nepal, and Tajikistan have seen notable declines in both their poverty rates and affected populations. Angola and Zambia managed to lower their poverty shares, but population growth caused the absolute number of poor people to rise. Conversely, Nigeria experienced an increase after earlier improvements during the 2010s, with both its poverty rate and the total of multidimensionally poor individuals rising in recent data.
More than thirty countries have halved their multidimensional poverty
Long-term trends demonstrate that significant reductions are achievable across various regions and income levels. Among 89 countries with available trend data, 33 countries managed to reduce their MPI value by half in less than 15 years. Six of these are located in Sub-Saharan Africa. Eswatini notably decreased its multidimensional poverty rate from 38.7% to 8.0%. China recorded the fastest halving among countries with available data, while Viet Nam achieved a 50% reduction in its MPI within seven years.
The 2026 findings also highlight the difference between multidimensional poverty and income-based extreme poverty. While the MPI captures simultaneous shortages in key aspects of daily life, income poverty is defined by a monetary threshold. Consequently, the latest report does not imply that 1.2 billion people live below the extreme poverty income line. Instead, it illustrates that over one billion individuals face overlapping deficiencies in basic needs, with children and rural populations making up the largest segments of this group.