UN and Oxford Report Shows Multidimensional Poverty Climbing to 1.2 Billion, Triggering Global Alert

For the first time in 15 years, the number of people experiencing multidimensional poverty has climbed to 1.2 billion, as families face mounting difficulties meeting essential needs.

This finding is from the 2026 update of the global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI), jointly published by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Oxford University. The MPI assesses overlapping deprivations in health, education, and living standards.

The total of 1.2 billion people reflects an increase of 51.5 million compared to the 2025 edition. Over half of those affected are children, amounting to 617 million, with 83 % residing in rural regions.

“This is unacceptable”

UNDP Administrator Alexander De Croo emphasized, “The rise in poverty should serve as a wake‑up call for the world.”

He added, “Behind these figures are 1.2 billion people facing interlocking hardships—hunger, missed schooling, and lack of clean water or electricity. This is unacceptable.”

Introduced in 2010, the index measures poverty beyond income alone.

Overlapping deprivations

The MPI evaluates ten indicators across health, education, and living standards, including nutrition, child mortality, years of schooling, and access to electricity, clean water, and sanitation.

An individual is classified as multidimensionally poor if they experience deprivation in at least one‑third of the indicators.

Sub‑Saharan Africa and South Asia bear the overwhelming share of deprivations across all indicators.

Mixed picture, fragile success

Covering 108 nations—representing roughly 78 % of the world’s population—the 2026 update shows that the rise in poverty is driven in part by population growth outpacing improvements in living standards.

In 95 countries lacking fresh survey data, updated population estimates added nearly 16 million people to the poverty count.

The remaining increase originates from 13 countries with newly collected data, reflecting real shifts in poverty levels, demographic changes, and variations in indicator coverage.

Field surveys paint a mixed picture. Five countries—Egypt, Nepal, Tajikistan, Angola, and Zambia—have reduced the proportion of people living in multidimensional poverty. However, in Angola and Zambia, population growth outstripped poverty reduction, so the total number of poor individuals still rose.

Nigeria illustrates the fragility of poverty‑reduction gains. After notable declines in multidimensional poverty during the 2010s, the country now sees both its poverty rate and the absolute number of people struggling to meet basic needs on the rise.

Progress is possible

The international community has pledged to cut the proportion of people living in poverty by at least half by the end of this decade, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The authors of the 2026 MPI update consider this target reachable.

“We know progress is possible,” Mr. De Croo asserted. “Countries that have tackled these challenges collaboratively, rather than in isolation, have demonstrated what determined action can achieve.”

UNDP notes that 33 countries have halved their MPI values in under 15 years, six of them in sub‑Saharan Africa. Eswatini reduced its multidimensional poverty rate from roughly 39 % to just 8 %.

China achieved the fastest reduction among countries with data, cutting its MPI value from 9.5 % to 4.2 % in only four years (2010‑2014).

The agency says this demonstrates that many countries continue to make progress, with some achieving rapid and large‑scale poverty reduction, highlighting both the urgency of renewed action and the possibility of success.

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