NEW YORK / RankWire.AI / – For the first time since its inception in 2010, the 2026 Global Multidimensional Poverty Index reveals an increase in global multidimensional poverty, impacting 1.2 billion individuals across 108 countries. This accounts for 18.9% of the 6.3 billion people included in the study, marking a rise of 51.5 million from the previous assessment. The index evaluates hardships related to health, education, and living standards rather than solely income levels.
The recent evaluation was produced by the United Nations Development Programme in collaboration with the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative. Researchers analyze ten indicators encompassing nutrition, child mortality, school attendance, cooking fuel, sanitation, drinking water, electricity, housing, and household assets. Individuals are classified as multidimensionally poor if their weighted deprivations total at least one-third of the overall score. This methodology captures multiple simultaneous hardships faced by households.
More than half of the individuals identified as multidimensionally poor worldwide are children. Approximately 617 million children live under these conditions, representing 51.5% of the global total. Nearly one-third of children covered by the index experience multidimensional poverty. Rural areas bear a significantly higher burden than urban ones, with around 83% of all multidimensionally poor people residing in rural regions. These figures underscore ongoing gaps in essential services, education, and living conditions across numerous countries.
Sub-Saharan Africa holds the highest share
Within the regions, Sub-Saharan Africa has the largest population living in multidimensional poverty, with about 616 million people affected. This constitutes 51.4% of the region’s population included in the index. The 2026 report incorporates new survey data from 13 countries and offers subnational estimates for 1,360 regions across 100 countries. Population updates affected results in nations without recent household surveys, with demographic revisions adding 15.8 million individuals to the poverty count in 95 such countries.
National trends display considerable variation among countries with comparable historical data. While Egypt, Nepal, and Tajikistan experienced declines in both their multidimensional poverty rates and affected populations, Angola and Zambia managed to decrease their share of residents living in poverty. Nevertheless, due to population growth, their total numbers still increased. Conversely, Nigeria saw rises in both its poverty rate and the number of affected people after previous improvements. These diverse patterns highlight that global figures can mask significant national disparities.
Persistent reductions in poverty are evident in several nations
Historical data also demonstrate notable decreases in multidimensional poverty across various regions. Out of 89 countries with trend information, 33 countries halved their MPI within 15 years, including six in Sub-Saharan Africa. Eswatini reduced its multidimensional poverty rate from 38.7% to 8.0%. China achieved the fastest decline among those with available data, dropping from 9.5% to 4.2% between 2010 and 2014. Viet Nam also halved its MPI within seven years.
The 1.2 billion figure differs from estimates of extreme poverty based solely on income, as multidimensional poverty accounts for multiple disadvantages experienced simultaneously, such as inadequate education, poor nutrition, unsafe sanitation, and limited access to electricity or clean water. This broader measurement provides a more comprehensive view of deprivation than income thresholds alone. The 2026 results emphasize children, rural populations, and Sub-Saharan Africa as the regions most affected by recent increases in global poverty.