UN report puts multidimensional poverty at 1.2 billion people

The number of people living in acute multidimensional poverty has reached 1.2 billion, up 51.5 million from the previous update, according to the 2026 UNDP-Oxford index released on October 12.

This is the first increase in the recorded headcount since the index was launched in 2010. The measure covers deprivation in areas including housing, sanitation, electricity, food and education, rather than income alone.

UNDP said population growth accounted for part of the increase. New estimates were available for only 13 of the 108 developing countries covered, limiting how the updated total should be interpreted. More than half of those living in poverty were children.

The report also identified progress: 33 countries had at least halved their index value in fewer than 15 years. In Egypt, Nepal and Tajikistan, both the poverty rate and the number affected declined. In Angola and Zambia, lower poverty rates were outweighed by population growth, leaving more people affected.

Most people in multidimensional poverty remain concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. The higher total therefore does not mean that conditions worsened in every country.